Master Class with Lisa Cron (June 9-10, 2018)
Wired For Story: How to Become a Story Genius
Every writer wants two things: to tell a story that hooks readers and never lets them go, and to find a way to accomplish that without going through the long slog of endlessly writing draft after draft. This workshop will give you actionable ways to meet both goals. Instead of rooting around in your “plot” for the story, you’ll unearth the key elements specific to your story that will then create the plot, bring it to life, drive it forward, and give it meaning. These elements have little to do with the surface events or “writing well” and everything to do with what we’re hardwired to respond to in every story we read (turns out the brain is far less picky about lyrical language than we’ve been lead to believe). You’ll be able to zero in on what your story is actually about before you write word one, or if you’re in the midst of your umpteenth rewrite, before you write another word. You’ll not only produce a more powerful novel, chances are you’ll drastically reduce your rewrite time.
On Day One we’ll cover:
- We’ll explore what the reader’s brain is hungry for, why, what a story actually is, and why writers are therefore the most powerful people on the planet.
- Why all stories begin in medias res (Latin for in the middle of the thing)
- What your point is. All novels make a point, beginning with the first sentence.
- What your story is about. You will create a What If? that captures both the external and the internal story you’re telling.
- Who your protagonist is before your plot kicks in.
- What your protagonist enters the story already wanting very badly, and as important, why she wants it.
- The longstanding misbelief that’s kept your protagonist from getting what she wants.
On Day Two we’ll cover:
- Your protagonist’s story-specific worldview, including creating her “origin” scene, the moment in childhood when her misbelief took root.
- How your protagonist’s misbelief has driven her choices from its inception up until page one.
- Whether your escalating plot problem has the power to force your protagonist to struggle with her misbelief, ultimately forcing her to change.
- When your novel opens, and why.
- Your protagonist’s ultimate “aha” moment.
About Our Guest:
Lisa Cron is the author of Wired for Story and Story Genius. Her TEDx talk, Wired for Story, opened Furman University’s 2014 TEDx conference, Stories: The Common Thread of Our Humanity. Her video workshop Wired for Story: How to Become a Story Genius can be found at CreativeLive.com. Lisa has worked in publishing at W.W. Norton, as an agent at the Angela Rinaldi Literary Agency, as a producer on shows for Showtime and Court TV, and as a story consultant for Warner Brothers and the William Morris Agency. Since 2006, she’s been an instructor in the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program, and she is on the faculty of the School of Visual Arts MFA program in Visual Narrative in New York City.
In her work as a private story coach, Lisa helps writers of all ilk wrangle the story they’re telling onto the page. For a library of her free myth-busting writing tips, and information on how to work with her one-on-one, you can find her at: wiredforstory.com.
Saturday Schedule
Morning Session: 9:30-12:00
Lunch: 12:00-1:30
Afternoon Session: 1:30-4:30
Sunday Schedule
Morning Session: 9:30-12:00
Lunch: 12:00-1:00
Afternoon Session: 1:00-3:00
Cost for Saturday and Sunday
WRW Members
$35 – Registration opens Friday, April 27, 2018
RWA Members
$40 – Registration opens Monday, May 14, 2018
Public
$45 – Registration opens Monday, May 28, 2018
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Location
Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Service Center
Large Room on the 2nd Floor
4805 Edgemoor Lane
Bethesda, Maryland 20814
240-777-8200
Cancellation Policy: Prior to 6/4/18, your payment will be refunded less a $10 handling fee. From 6/4/18 on, there are no refunds. Please email programs@wrwdc.com if you need to cancel.