The Writers Bureau

Week One: Voice - Agents and publishers often say that the most important thing they look for in a writer is a strong voice. What does this mean, and how can you find yours? This workshop proposes that your voice is nothing less than who you are as a writer. If you learn to express this, editors and agents will be lining up to read your work. In this session you’ll see how you can harness your unique author’s spark and share it with the reader. You’ll learn how you can use your own voice or your main character’s – or both! You will do simple writing exercises and study extracts from established writers.

Week Two: Developing Your Style - Once you have mined your author’s persona you can reveal it through a vivid prose style. Who are you and what do you want to say? In this session we will look at choices you can make which will help you write strong sentences. Your words will flow directly from your attitudes and feelings. Pace, vocabulary and rhythm can all be used to draw the reader into your world. A look at some paragraphs from masters of their craft will inspire you to make your language your own. These two sessions should make your writing more fluent – and publishable.