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SUMMARY:The Writers Bridge | Writing Off-Limits: How Comedy Creates Powerful Work in Every Genre with Elissa Bassist
DESCRIPTION:Do you have to be born funny to write funny?\n\n\n\nMost writers assume humor is a gift some people have and others don’t—and that it only belongs in comedy. But funny writing isn’t joke after joke after joke. It’s being vulnerable\, opinionated\, emotional\, and a little silly\, whether you’re writing a personal essay\, a novel\, or a query letter. \n\n\n\nHumor is a craft—and it’s built the same way any other kind of good writing is: through observation\, specificity\, honesty\, and revision. And good humor leavens the darkest personal essay\, sustains reader compassion in a memoir\, and makes novels sparkle on the page. \n\n\n\nElissa Bassist—author of the memoir Hysterical\, created and edited The Rumpus’s “Funny Women” column\, and has been a humor-writing teacher for two decades. She joins The Writers Bridge to talk about why infusing humor into your writing—even writing that isn’t “comedy”—makes it sharper\, more honest\, and more memorable. Elissa will share no-fail ways to make anything you write funnier (and just plain better)\, and how to find the joke in any topic\, including the ones that feel too boring or too off-limits to touch. \n\n\n\nJoin us TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 29 at 1PM EASTERN / 10AM PACIFIC – live and FREE on Zoom\, all welcome! \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nOur special guest \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nElissa Bassist is the author of the memoir Hysterical\, a semifinalist for The Thurber Prize for American Humor. \n\n\n\nRoxane Gay called Hysterical “one of the most intelligent\, painful\, ridiculous\, awesome\, relevant things I’ve ever read\,” and Cheryl Strayed wrote that Bassist “wrote it like a motherfucker.” The memoir also earned a starred review from Library Journal and praise from Kirkus and Booklist for its fierce\, funny take on chronic pain\, medicine\, and the silencing of women’s voices. \n\n\n\nElissa has worked in media and publishing since 2007—as an editor\, a managing editor\, a TV and film writer’s assistant\, a producer\, a performer\, a speaker\, and a barista. Her writing has appeared in over 30 publications and anthologies\, and she’s taught for more than 20 writing programs\, including The New School\, 92NY\, and Lighthouse Writers Workshop. Her next book\, Inside Jokes: A Comedy and Creativity Guide for All Writers (co-written with Caitlin Kunkel)\, is out October 20th from Grand Central Publishing—a step-by-step guide to writing anything funnier\, from short humor to personal essays. \n\n\n\nJoin your hosts Allison K Williams (SEVEN DRAFTS)\, Sharla Yates (CRAFT TALKS) and our special guest for a genuinely funny\, genuinely useful hour on writing with more humor—no matter what genre you write. \n\n\n\nFREE\, all welcome! Sign up to receive the Zoom link the day before. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEnjoy past recorded sessions here\n\n\n\nClosed captioning is available. ✔All registrants receive the recording. ✔ \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nABOUT YOUR PRESENTERS\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAllison K Williams has edited and coached authors to publishing deals with Penguin Random House\, Knopf\, Mantle\, St. Martin’s Press\, and numerous small presses. An expert in author marketing and community building\, her platform includes the Brevity Blog (80k+ followers)\, Instagram (10k+)\, a mailing list (12k+)\, and Facebook (5k+)\, with publications in the New York Times and appearances on NPR and CBC. Her bestselling writing craft book is Seven Drafts: Self-Edit Like a Pro from Blank Page to Book. She leads the Rebirth Your Book writing retreats and co-hosts The Writers Bridge. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSharla Yates is the author of the poetry chapbook What I Would Say if We Were to Drown Tonight\, published by Stranded Oak Press (2017). She hosts a webinar series\, CRAFT TALKS for writers on writing\, and co-hosts The Writers Bridge with Allison K Williams. Her nonfiction essay\, “Address” was a finalist for the 2015 Columbia Journal writing contest and the 2016 Penelope Niven Creative Nonfiction Award. She is the former Director of Education at the Creative Nonfiction Foundation and teaches creative writing at the University of Pittsburgh. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nQuestions? Please email Info@writingcraft.com \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRegistration Info\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nLocation
URL:https://writingcraft.com/event/comedy-elissa-bassist/
LOCATION:Zoom
CATEGORIES:Writers Bridge
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260930T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260930T161500
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SUMMARY:WEBINAR | Getting Past "I": The Challenge of Writing in First-Person POV
DESCRIPTION:Writing a compelling first-person narrator in your novel or memoir is far more challenging than it seems. Learn to recognize and avoid the pitfalls of your Point of View.\n\n\n\nFor All GenresIncluded in the Season Pass \n\n\n\nWriting in first-person seems easy at first. After all\, how hard can it be to get inside just one character’s head and stay there? But from a craft perspective\, writing in first-person is a potential minefield. Building an interesting and dynamic world full of believable characters can be a craft challenge when the reader only sees that world through one set of eyes.  \n\n\n\nCommon first-person pitfalls involve an over-reliance on telling rather than showing; not using inner dialogue strategically to build conflict and tension; and accidentally switching out of first-person\, which can confuse the reader.  \n\n\n\nYet the first-person perspective is an exciting opportunity to explore your protagonist’s deepest secrets—whether a fictional character or from your own perspective—and drives and develops a sympathetic bond with the reader as they get to know your character from the inside.  \n\n\n\nIn this webinar\, we’ll examine what can go wrong and explore great examples of first-person done well. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIn this webinar\, you will:\n\n\n\n\nDETERMINE the right Point of View for your story and genre\n\n\n\nLEARN HOW first-person works differently from other POVs\n\n\n\nANALYZE examples of first-person pitfalls\n\n\n\nIDENTIFY hallmarks of great first-person POV writing\n\n\n\nEXPLORE practical techniques to vary your writing style within a single narrator\n\n\n\n\nThis webinar is ideal for beginning and intermediate writers…\n\n\n\n\nwriting a novel\, memoir\, or personal essay in first person who want to strengthen their craft\n\n\n\nworried their narrator sounds flat\, limited\, or overly self-focused\n\n\n\nstruggling with showing rather than telling from a single perspective\n\n\n\nwho want to build a rich\, believable world through one character’s eyes\n\n\n\nunsure whether first-person is the right POV choice for their story\n\n\n\nwho find themselves accidentally slipping out of first person mid-scene\n\n\n\nwho need models of first-person done exceptionally well\n\n\n\n\nClosed captioning is available. ✔All registrants receive the recording. ✔ \n\n\n\nABOUT YOUR PRESENTER\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAmy L. Bernstein shares her passion for writing craft and her deep knowledge in info-packed presentations with clear examples and plenty of time for Q&A!  \n\n\n\nAmy writes award-winning fiction and nonfiction that lets readers feel while making them think. As the author of six novels\, including Tent City\, and a book of inspiration for creatives called Wrangling the Doubt Monster\, Amy brings a compassionate and insightful voice to writers’ conferences around the country. A former journalist\, Amy also works as a book coach\, helping nonfiction authors craft compelling book proposals. She welcomes followers to her weekly Substack\, Doubt Monster\, which explores the agony and ecstasy of creativity. \n\n\n\nREFUNDS (less a $10 processing fee) ARE AVAILABLE before the replay is sent out. For a refund\, EMAIL us at info@WritingCraft.com. Canceling your Zoom invite will not initiate this process.  \n\n\n\nThere are no refunds after the replay is sent.Questions? Please email Info@writingcraft.com \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRegistration Info\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nINSTRUCTOR\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nLocation
URL:https://writingcraft.com/event/getting-past-i/
LOCATION:Zoom
CATEGORIES:Webinars
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261003T130000
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SUMMARY:WEBINAR | Taste and See: Using Food So Readers Can Experience Your Stories
DESCRIPTION:The date and time shown reflect the rescheduled date. \n\n\n\nA sensual medium\, food can serve as a metaphor to show\, not tell\, stories of belonging or exclusion\, joy or trauma\, passion or comfort. \n\n\n\nFor Food Writing\, Fiction\, and Creative NonfictionIncluded in the Season Pass \n\n\n\nWho doesn’t love to eat? Culinary imagery is not just for food journalists or restaurant reviewers. Food is a metaphor and cultural touchstone\, and the flavors\, aromas\, and experiences of sharing meals can bring life to many other kinds of narratives\, bringing richness\, texture\, and sensory depth to scenes. \n\n\n\nIn this 90-minute webinar\, examine scenes of fiction and creative nonfiction that use descriptions of food in surprising ways. Then expand your toolkit by practicing using these techniques in your own storytelling. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIn this webinar\, you will:\n\n\n\n\nREAD fiction and creative nonfiction that use food in scenes\n\n\n\nEXAMINE what makes these examples resonate with readers\n\n\n\nTRY an exercise in unexpected ways to write about food\n\n\n\nDISCOVER how food can serve as metaphor to show\, not tell\, stories of belonging\, trauma\, and desire\n\n\n\nLEAVE with new techniques to bring sensory richness to your own narratives\n\n\n\n\nThis webinar is ideal for beginning and intermediate writers…\n\n\n\n\nwrite fiction or creative nonfiction (essay or memoir)\n\n\n\nwant to learn food writing techniques that bring new sensory experiences to their stories\n\n\n\nwant to bridge food and literary writing\n\n\n\nare looking for fresh ways to use sensory detail \n\n\n\nare food lovers who want to bring their passion for eating and cooking to the page\n\n\n\nare writing about family\, memory\, identity\, or place and want a new entry point\n\n\n\n\nClosed captioning is available. ✔All registrants receive the recording. ✔ \n\n\n\nABOUT YOUR PRESENTER\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nA conversational speaker whose love of food and writing shine through\, Grace Hwang Lynch is a journalist\, essayist\, and community builder with an eye for Asian American culture and food. Her work can be found on outlets including Tin House\, Catapult\, and NPR and her food memoir How to Cook Rice: On the Care and Feeding of an Immigrant Family is coming in January 2027. Follow her on Instagram @gracehwanglynch or at gracehwanglynch.com. \n\n\n\nREFUNDS (less a $10 processing fee) ARE AVAILABLE before the replay is sent out. For a refund\, EMAIL us at info@WritingCraft.com. Canceling your Zoom invite will not initiate this process.  \n\n\n\nThere are no refunds after the replay is sent.Questions? Please email Info@writingcraft.com \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRegistration Info\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nLocation
URL:https://writingcraft.com/event/taste-and-see/
LOCATION:Zoom
CATEGORIES:Webinars
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