Missed my class

This flu has robbed a lot of time from my days and energy from my awake hours. Feeling better all morning, I still managed to run a fever this afternoon. I prepared for the eventuality by planning to stay home all day. What that means is that I missed my writing class.

What writing class, you ask?

I have gotten such a kick out of writing this blog, and so much good feedback about it, that I decided to sign up for a writing workshop. I wanted to get some professional direction and feedback in addition to that from dear friends who tend to have a personal investment in my writing. There is a local institute, Gotham Writers’ Workshop, that offers six- and ten-week classes at various Manhattan locations, covering all types of writing: fiction, non-fiction, memoir, mystery, travel, screenplays, etc, etc. They also offer online classes for those who can’t make it into the City, or can’t commit to a fixed time. I decided to ease into it with a six-week overview called Creative Writing 101, which started at the end of January.

So far, I’m really enjoying the class. It offers an opportunity to write about topics I wouldn’t have chosen, to read my writing out loud and have it critiqued by a teacher and a dozen other aspiring writers, and to hear and evaluate how others satisfy the same assignments. The class is opening my eyes to writing styles and helping me clarify what I like and what I want from my writing.

The class I missed today is number four, so it’s almost time to select another. I think memoir or non-fiction would be natural choices, but then I wonder if fiction might stretch me more. I find it pretty easy to write about feelings and events I’m familiar with, but one goal I hope to achieve from these classes is to free my imagination to come up with stories less directly connected to me.

Stay tuned….