Meets: Monthly, third Wednesdays 6-9p, Jan through Dec
Instructor: Susanna Daniel
Location: Madison, WI (and Zoom when nec)
Cost: $2495 (in 2 payments)
Enrollment: wait list
“Susanna offered exactly what i was looking for. Expert, critical, supportive feedback and guidance. She was consistently positive, creative in possible approaches and responsive. The course itself offered the discipline I needed to write a book.”
There’s no reason for writing to be a lonely business. In this workshop, we focus on feedback, deadlines, and encouragement — a scaffolding for success that, together with your commitment, will help you achieve your goal of writing a complete draft of a novel or memoir. This is a challenging yet rewarding year-long experience, and many of the partnerships made at the table continue for years.
We’ll meet monthly starting in January and take a break in August. For 11 sessions, we’ll meet as a group to workshop excerpts, discuss challenges and goals, resolve stumbling blocks, and encourage each other.
“I’m so incredibly grateful to have been in your BIAY workshop this year. I learned so much from you and the other writers. I’ll be recommending the Madison Writers Workshop to anyone who wants to write a book. ”
During each workshop, we’ll discuss aspects of novel and memoir writing, including time management, overcoming obstacles, developing and introducing characters, problem solving, pacing and plot, balance of scene and exposition, and how to stay focused. Each session will include a brief break and snacks to keep up our energy.
Students will submit 25 pages per month, with the goal of completing a first draft by the end of the year.
Between sessions, you’ll write, revise workshopped material, and touch base with the other members of the class. We’ll keep in regular email contact to provide as much encouragement and support as you need, when you need it.
“A year ago, I signed up for the Book In A Year workshop with Susanna. I swear, I believed I’d quit eventually, like I’d quit on myself so many times before. But I didn’t. Susanna, and the other members of our little troupe, picked me up when I stumbled, encouraged me when I doubted, slogged through the messy middle with me, and we came out the other end together. Twelve months later, we’ve handed each other completed first drafts. We’ve done the unimaginable, often driven by nothing more than Susanna’s unwavering belief that we could.”
This workshop is meant for anyone ready to commit to writing a book, whether you have barely formed an idea or every chapter outlined. The class will be most useful for writers with some experience receiving and offering feedback in a workshop setting, but workshop experience is not necessary. Our priority is encouragement and accountability, with a secondary focus on useful and concrete feedback.
This workshop is appropriate for writers with all levels of experience with short and long forms. Limited to 8 students.
“Susanna was able to show me the most important things I had to offer as a writer: authority and authenticity. That knowledge vastly increased my confidence to trust in my own creative process.”