After a conversation with my friend Leslie (The proprietor of Leslie's Tutoring in Port Orchard, WA) I'm strongly considering teaching a Novel-Writing class for her. I have to admit I'm very excited about the possibility. At the same time I'm a little overwhelmed by the enormity of the task.
I love writing and I love teaching so it would seem to be a natural fit. And I had a very good time and great response from the Literary Analysis class I taught for Leslie's Tutoring last year. But there is just so much to writing a novel or non-fiction book that I do reflexively. A lot of the time it just sort of happens. Yet intention is a major player as well.
Additionally there's a lot of different philosophies out there on that emphasize very different aspects of the craft. I just re-read Stephen King's On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft last month and I'm really glad I did. It's brilliant and very "man-on-the-street" in it's ideas. There's a lot to draw from there. But Robert McKee's Story has some exceptional, but VERY different ideas. Plus, I have a lot of other resources I'll probably use, though they don't all say the same kinds of things. Getting this down to a manageable effort may be abit like herding cats. I don't expect to come away unscathed.
Regardless, I'm very excited and hope I get to do it. If I do, I'll probably end up using this blog with for supplimentary lessons and writing ideas and exercizes.
Peace out.
