Delving Deep

Mary Alice Monroe, New York Times bestselling author of The Butterfly’s Daughter and twelve other novels and books, and Debra Moffitt, author of Awake in the World: 108 Practices to Live a Divinely Inspired Life, screenplays and internationally published short stories, will present an interactive workshop on Friday evening with a conversation around the writing process and ways to create passionate characters using place, direct experience and images in storyboards.  Following the introduction, writers will have an opportunity to create their own visual storyboard as a way to spur the creative imagination, find the passions and yearnings of their characters and have insights into aspects of them that may surprise and delight.

On Saturday, Debra Moffitt will lead a workshop exploring character through the journey and how the journey helps to build a coherent structure for story in fiction and non-fiction.  Writing practices will include guided visualization, collage, work with the storyboard and more. 

Friday evening 6:30PM - 8:30PM

Mary Alice Monroe, New York Times bestselling author of The Butterfly’s Daughter and twelve other novels and books, and Debra Moffitt, author of Awake in the World: 108 Practices to Live a Divinely Inspired Life, screenplays and internationally published short stories, will present an interactive workshop on Friday evening with a conversation around the writing process and ways to create passionate characters using place, direct experience and images in storyboards.  

Following the introduction, writers will have an opportunity to create their own visual storyboard as a way to spur the creative imagination, find the passions and yearnings of their characters and have insights into aspects of them that may surprise and delight.

Who will benefit?

Writers wishing to get a jump start on a project using a playful, creative approach or those with works in progress will benefit from this direct and hands-on approach to the writing process. It will spark the imagination of both fiction and non-fiction writers and offer tools that can be used throughout a writer’s life.

Saturday 9:30 AM - 5:00 PM with Debra Moffitt

One of the most powerful ways for writers to explore character is through the journey and how this journey helps to build a coherent structure for story in fiction and non-fiction. On every journey the characters we meet, whether in fiction or real life, can fall into categories or roles that are deeply symbolic. These are often referred to as archetypes. They include not only the hero and heroine, but also the ally, enemy, gatekeepers, tricksters, mentors and more. When we come to truly understand the significance of these universally recognized symbols, it adds a depth and wisdom to the writing that deeply touches the psyche of the reader. Writing practices will include guided visualization, collage, work with the storyboard and more.

The day-long workshop will include:

• Deepening understanding of the hero and heroine’s journey and its relation to the character’s life and to your own.
• Exploration and understanding of the universal roles or archetypes
• Using active imagination to effortlessly move the story forward
• Ways to draw on creative intuition for inspiration
• Working with dialogue to reveal character
• Setting a discipline to move your writing projects forward

Mary Alice Monroe is the award winning, New York Times bestselling author known for richly textured books that explore the compelling parallels between nature and human nature.  Monroe is an active volunteer in local conservation groups and serves on the board of the SC Aquarium.  Her dedication to conservation and wildlife inspired her Lowcountry novels, including The Butterfly’s Daughter, Time is a River, Swimming Lessons, and Sweetgrass. Mary Alice lives with her husband on Isle of Palms, South Carolina.

Debra Moffitt is the author of Awake in the World: 108 Practices to Live a Divinely Inspired Life (Llewellyn Worldwide).  Her fiction was broadcast by BBC World Services Radio and appeared internationally in French Literary Review, Cha: Asian Literary Review and her collection of short stories, Riviera Stories: Just Below the Surface will be published in 2012. Debra has written screenplays with for Wolfington Productions and participated as a screenwriter at the Cannes Film Festival.