Newsletter

Sometimes people come to the Writing Salon expecting it to be set up like a college or university, but it’s not. That’s because it’s a small business, run by one writerly person (me) who figured there were lots of other writerly persons out there (you) who wanted to write creatively but didn’t necessarily want to enroll in college classes because they’d: a) Already been there, done that, or b) Didn’t WANT to be there or do that. So I started this little school, which has gotten bigger and bigger over the past six years, but which continues to be, despite the growth, a homegrown mix of bohemians and intelligentsia, plus a bunch of everyday folk who probably wouldn’t want to classify themselves as bohemians OR intelligentsia!

Given this eclectic mix of clients, the Writing Salon offers an equally eclectic mix of classes that are never exactly the same from one session to the next. We do offer many of the same classes on a regular basis, taught by many of the same teachers, but every session always includes new teachers, new classes, and/or new twists on old classes. This keeps things lively, fresh and fun, and the system works because you can mix and match classes any old way you want to. That’s part of being creative!

However, I know that some of you would prefer a few more guidelines, and I’m happy to oblige by breaking down the course offerings into some basic categories and levels.

But before I do, a word of advice: Categories are useful for providing GENERAL guidelines. But not every class fits neatly into just one category, nor is there only one "right" order in which to take the classes. The "intro" category classes are great for beginners, but they’re also perfectly useful for more experienced writers. For example, people who take my Round Robin class or Alison Luterman’s "Show a Lot, Tell a Little" class are a mix of beginning to advanced writers. Ultimately, it really just depends on where YOU are at on your path as a writer, and it’s up to you to decide if a class sounds right for YOU, regardless of how I’ve categorized it. Bottom line: Don’t take it so seriously that you sabotage yourself by creating unnecessary uptightness or confusion. The Writing Salon is designed to be a fun place. So let it be fun! Plunge in and don’t worry about whether you’re choosing the "perfect" class, because there isn’t one. Just join in, enjoy, make mistakes, learn from your mistakes, and keep on keeping on!

Best, Jane Underwood (that’s me up above, at my 50th birthday party)

Break down blocks, get inspired, learn basic skills, generate raw material

If you want to take a class that is especially good for helping overcome writing blocks, or if you simply want to generate lots of new writing that you can revise later (in future classes), check out one or both of Chris DeLorenzo’s "Finding Your Writer’s Voice" classes. Or consider my class, The Writing Salon Round Robin.

If you want to explore (and have a good time playing with) the fundamental elements of craft - elements that are useful no matter what genre you write in - take Alison Luterman’s one-day workshop, "Show a Lot, Tell a Little" or Suzy Parker’s one-day "Copy Cat" workshop, or Linda Watanabe McFerrin’s popular "Intro to Creative Writing."

Short stories or novels

If you’ve never written fiction and/or have never taken a fiction class, then Junse Kim’s 5-week Intro to Fiction class is an excellent, solid introductory class that will give you the building blocks to start writing fiction. Or you can take the longer fiction workshop taught by David Booth. The main difference between these two classes, other than length, is that Junse’s class is not a "workshopping" class, whereas David’s is. In Junse’s class, you will not bring in drafts of short stories to be shared or critiqued, as you will in David’s class Junse gives you short in-class exercises and/or short take-home assignments.

Longer "workshopping" classes such as David’s are the best choice for anyone who falls within the range of "advanced-beginner" on up to the high end of "intermediate." (Note: Every teacher sets up the "workshopping" format a little differently, depending on how many people are in the class, how long the stories are, how much time is allotted for critiquing each story, etc. Just remember that you CAN take these fiction workshops more than once and still get a lot out of them. Many students take them on an ongoing basis, bringing in different stories every session.)

If you want to work on a novel, and if you already know at least a few basics of fiction writing (you don’t have to be "advanced," but you should know SOMETHING), I suggest taking Willa Rabinovitch’s 5-week "Crafting Your Novel" class, which includes workshopping. You can also work on your novel in David Booth’s fiction workshop, although there may not be as much discussion focused specifically on novel writing.

If you are further along in your fiction writing (intermediate to advanced), another option is to take one of our "general revision" workshops (for people working on fiction, memoir or nonfiction). This summer, we’re offering two - one in the East Bay, taught by Wendy Lichtman, and one in San Francisco, taught by Karen Bjorneby. In these classes, it will be assumed that you are a more experienced writer, and that you will be farther along in the process (i.e. you’re bringing in work that has already been through at least a couple of drafts). The focus will be on practicing the skills required to edit and revise your own work (including restructuring and rewriting).

Don’t have time for a longer class this summer? We’re also offering a one-day "how to create a strong plot" workshop for those who need more help with this important element of storytelling.

Personal essays, memoirs, experimental prose

Creative nonfiction is the category of writing that falls somewhere between pure fiction (fictional short stories, novels) and pure nonfiction (newspaper articles, non-narrative magazine features, and nonfiction books, i.e. how-to books, self-help books, biographies, etc.). Personal essays, memoirs and experimental, literary prose all fall into this category.

Personal essays and memoirs are similar genres, in that they’re about (or based on) your real life stories. The lines between these two genres are blurry at times, but there ARE differences. For one thing, personal essays tend to be shorter, self-contained, stand-alone pieces. They generally range anywhere from 500 to 15,000 words in length, and are published in mainstream magazines, newspaper columns, literary journals, anthologies and as collections. You can write a personal essay about something as small as why you love hot dogs, or as large as how you dealt with losing a sibling to AIDS. You can write a funny essay about how you hate the texture of pasta, or a pensive, meditative essay about the day your father died in a car wreck.

Memoirs, on the other hand - although they can also be short - are more likely to lead to book-length works that focus on one particular THEME from your personal life (i.e. your struggle with an addiction, your career as a surgeon, or your memories of being raised by parents who were also politicians). Or they may focus on one particular PERIOD in your life (i.e. the year you spent living on a beach in Thailand, or the first three years you worked as a kindergarten teacher, or the period when you fought breast cancer, or the decade when you worked as a circus performer).

Another difference between personal essays and memoirs is that memoirs tend to focus more on telling a story - on the narrative, the drama, the action - whereas personal essays, although they may contain big chunks of narrative, tend to be more reflective, more focused on making a point about an idea or opinion, or on talking about how you came to have a personal epiphany about some particular aspect of your life.

Magazine and newspaper pieces, nonfiction books, book proposals

This is a broad category and requires that you know the basics of good journalism (fact-gathering, researching, reporting, interviewing, pitching, meeting deadlines, etc.).

Also, just as you need to learn many specific elements of craft when writing fiction - ie. how to write effective dialogue, or develop compelling characters, or structure a captivating plot - you need to learn specific elements of craft when writing nonfiction - i.e. how to create a great hook, or select the right quote, or compose a dynamite query letter, or organize chapters of a book.

One of most enjoyable aspects of nonfiction writing is that there are many ways to develop "specialties" or niches as a freelancer. Many freelancers find one or two or three "niches" that they become "experts" in. Travel. Health. Food. Business. Beauty. Fashion. Home design. Parenting. Politics. Sports. Opinion pieces. Culture. Entertainment. Technology. Etc.

It’s impossible to cover all these niches in one general magazine writing class, even a 9-week class. That’s why we periodically offer one-day workshops, in addition to general magazine writing classes. and Constance Hale’s "writer’s crash course in fact gathering." Each of these workshops focuses on a different "sub-genre" of freelance writing, such as food writing, travel writing, sports writing, or health and medical writing. For each of these categories, there are specific writing rules, tips, and guidelines, as well as specific markets that our teachers can turn you on to.

Movie screenplays, television scripts, video documentaries, etc.

How to get your work out into the world (and maybe even get paid for it)

Whenever you take a craft-oriented class at the Writing Salon, you can ask questions about how to get your writing published. Your teacher will give you the short-version answers. But if you want more detailed instruction on how to market, promote and sell your work, you may want to take a class that focuses solely on the business end of writing.

I already know the ropes when it comes to marketing and publishing. Even so, whenever I sit in on one of our "how to get published" classes, I learn new things or am reminded of stuff I’ve forgotten. Like it or not (and most writers don’t like it), if you want to get your work published (and granted, not everyone does, and that’s fine), then you must approach writing as a business as well as an art and a craft.

I’ve known so many writers who sit around kvetching and whining because they don’t want to deal with the marketing/publishing end of writing. But you know what? It’s not rocket science. All it takes is some basic knowledge and lots of perseverance. So why not find out what you need to know, take charge, and experience the sense of personal power and satisfaction that comes from that. In the long run it’s easier and much less depressing!

My life revolves around the Writing Salon to a great extent, so sometimes I forget that not everyone else in the world has as clear a sense as I do of what kinds of classes we offer here, or which ones it might make more sense to take first - or last.

We (the teachers and I) try to write up helpful course descriptions, but even so, it’s impossible to include the entire course syllabus for each class, which means that not all your questions will necessarily be answered in the course description. That’s why I try to be available by phone to give out additional information. Feel free to call me! This is a small business, not a college or university, so I’m the person you’ll get when you call, and I am happy to help you figure out which class(es) would work best for you. Oh, and since some of you have expressed curiosity about who the real live person is behind the Writing Salon curtain, here’s a blurry picture of me (for what it’s worth!) at my 50th birthday party, pretending to play a tiny accordian.

Below you will find my attempt at describing the upcoming classes according to categories, in hopes that this might also be of help to you. You can click on each course link for a full description.

Best, Jane Underwood

Break down blocks, get inspired, start learning the basics

If you want to take a class that is especially good for people struggling with writer’s block, or if you simply want to generate lots of new, raw material that you can work on revising and developing later on, perhaps in some other class, I suggest that you check out one or both of Chris DeLorenzo’s "Finding Your Writer’s Voice" classes.

OR, if you want to start exploring and playing with some of the basic, fundamental elements of craft - elements that would be useful no matter what kind of writing you intend to do - then Alison Luterman’s one-day workshop, "Show a Lot, Tell a Little" is a great choice. Or if you want to do a longer course, take Linda Watanabe McFerrin’s popular class, "Intro to Creative Writing."

Short stories, novellas, novels

If you’ve never written fiction and/or have never taken a fiction class, then I suggest starting out with Junse Kim’s 5-week Intro to Fiction class. You don’t HAVE to take this class before you take one of the longer fiction workshops, but it’s a great, solid introductory class that will give you the building blocks you need to start writing fiction. This is not a "workshopping" class. That is, you will not be bringing in drafts of short stories to be shared or critiqued. Junse gives you short in-class exercises and/or short take-home assignments.

If you already know the basics of fiction writing and want to try your hand at writing a NOVEL for the first time, then I suggest beginning with Willa Rabinovitch’s 5-week "Crafting Your Novel" class. If you’re past the beginning stage and are already well into the process of working on your novel, then I suggest that you join a 9-week fiction workshop.

Our basic 9-week fiction workshops are the best choice for anyone who falls within the range of "more advanced-beginner" on up to the high end of "intermediate." These workshops DO include "workshopping" of either short stories or novel excerpts. Every teacher sets up the workshop format a little differently, depending on how many people are in the class, how long the stories are, how much time is allotted for critiquing each story, etc. You can take the fiction workshops more than once and still get a lot out of them. Many students take them on an ongoing basis, workshopping different stories every time, and learning more and more about fiction writing over a much longer period than nine weeks.

If there’s enough demand, we might start to offer more advanced fiction classes in the future. To get into these classes, you would have to apply for by submitting a piece of work beforehand.

Personal essays, memoirs, experimental prose

Creative nonfiction is the category of writing that falls somewhere between pure fiction (fictional short stories, novels) and pure nonfiction (newspaper articles, magazine features, and nonfiction books, i.e. how-to books or self-help books). Personal essays, memoirs and experimental prose all fall into this category.

Personal essays and memoirs are similar genres, in the sense that they are written from or about your real life. The lines between them are sometimes rather blurry, however; they overlap. But there ARE differences. For one thing, personal essays are usually shorter, self-contained, stand-alone pieces. They generally range anywhere from 500 to 10,000 words in length, and are published in mainstream magazines, newspaper columns, literary journals, anthologies and as collections. You can write a personal essay about something as small as why you don’t like to set the table, or as large as how you arrived at the belief that there is no god. You can write a funny essay about how you finally came to terms with living next door to your wacko nudist neighbors, or a sad, meditative essay about what you learned from a divorce or breakup.

Memoirs, on the other hand - although they can also be short - more often lead to book-length works that focus on one particular THEME from your personal life (i.e. your struggle with an illness or disability, or your career as a fireman, or your memories of growing up on a hippie commune), or one particular PERIOD in your life (i.e. the year you sailed around the world, or the first three years you spent as the mother of triplets, or the two-year period when you went through the process of adopting a child, or the decade of your life when you ran a chicken farm).

Another difference between personal essays and memoirs is that memoirs tend to focus more on telling a story - on the narrative, the drama, the action - whereas personal essays, although they may contain big chunks of narrative, tend to be more reflective, more focused on making a point about an idea or opinion, or on talking about how you came to have a personal epiphany about some particular aspect of your life.

Magazine and newspaper articles, radio pieces, nonfiction books

This is a broad category and requires that you know the basics of good journalism (fact-gathering, researching, reporting, interviewing, pitching, meeting deadlines, etc.).

Also, just as you need to learn many specific elements of craft when writing fiction - ie. how to write effective dialogue, or develop compelling characters, or structure a captivating plot - you need to learn specific elements of craft when writing nonfiction - i.e. how to create a great hook, or select the right quote, or compose a dynamite query letter, or organize chapters of a book.

One of most enjoyable aspects of nonfiction writing is that there are many ways to develop "specialties" or niches as a freelancer. Many freelancers find one or two or three "niches" that they become "experts" in. Travel. Health. Food. Business. Beauty. Fashion. Home design. Parenting. Politics. Sports. Opinion pieces. Culture. Entertainment. Technology. Etc.

It’s impossible to cover all these speciality niches in one general magazine writing class, even a 9-week class. That’s why we offer several one-day workshops, in addition to Cary Pepper’s general magazine writing class and Constance Hale’s "writer’s crash course in fact gathering." Each of these workshops focuses on a different "sub-genre" of freelance writing. This time around, for example, we’re offering workshops on food writing, travel writing, op-ed pieces, and short radio commentaries. For each of these categories, there are specific writing rules, tips, and guidelines, as well as specific markets that our teachers can turn you on to.

A sadly misunderstood and/or feared genre!

Thirty years ago, I earned a graduate degree in creative writing with an emphasis in poetry. So I admit that I’m biased in favor of this genre, and it pains me that we always have a harder time filling poetry classes than fiction, essay or memoir classes. My theory is that a lot of people got turned off to poetry in high school, when they were exposed to only a very narrow, conservative, traditional spectrum of poems and poets.

We were taught that poems had to rhyme, or we thought they had to be flowery or cornily romantic. We were forced to memorize Hiawatha in grade school. Then, if we were lucky, maybe we got to read a couple of poems by e.e. cummings in high school, which was certainly better than Hiawatha, but still ridiculously limited.

A good poetry class can teach you SO much about how to be a better writer. Even if you decide you don’t want to become a poet, you can apply what you’ve learned in a poetry class to any other genre: personal essays, fiction, memoir, magazine articles. Why? Because poetry is largely about using imagery effectively and evocatively - about learning to be more vivid and concrete and grounded in your five senses. It’s also about learning to listen much more carefully to the SOUND of writing - to rhythm and cadence. It’s also about learning how to be more succinct and concise, to stop wasting words, to pare down and reveal the essence, with brevity.

Because I have written and read a lot of poetry, my essays and prose pieces are much more lyrical, and I have a better understanding of rhythm. I also know how to write from a more intuitive part of my brain, which helps me to make bigger leaps of the imagination, and to take more chances with language.

Call me crazy, but I believe there’s a special DIMENSION to poetry that is rarely found in any other genre. It’s a magical, musical dimension, and I urge you to cast aside your fears and doubts, and consider taking a poetry class!

How to get your work out into the world (and maybe even get paid for it)

I’ve been writing for a long time, and I pretty much know the ropes when it comes to marketing and publishing. Even so, whenever I sit in on one of our "how to get published" classes, I learn new things or am reminded of stuff I’d forgotten. Like it or not (and most writers don’t like it), IF you want to get your work published (and granted, not everyone does, and that’s fine), then you have to approach writing as a business as well as an art and a craft.

I’ve known dozens (no, more like hundreds) of writers who sit around kvetching and whining because they don’t want to deal with the marketing/publishing end of writing. But you know what? It’s not rocket science. All it takes is some basic knowledge and lots of perseverance. So why not just find out what you need to know, take charge, and experience the sense of personal power and satisfaction that will come from that. In the long run it’s easier, and much less depressing!

Whenever you take a craft-oriented class at the Writing Salon, you can ask basic questions about how to get your writing published, and your teacher will give you the basic, short-version answers. But if you are primarily interested in how to market, promote and sell your work, and want more detailed instruction, then I suggest that you take one or more of the following classes.

Special genres, interesting slants on craft, hybrids, etc.

Not every class falls neatly into one of the above categories. Lonny Shavelson’s "Words & Images" class, for example, could fall into Nonfiction, Creative Nonfiction, or Marketing & Publishing (photo to left is from Lonny’s book, I’m Not Crazy, I Just Lost My Glasses - Portraits and Oral Histories of People who have been In and Out of Mental Institutions).

Geoff Haye’s "Writing for Children’ workshp could be categorized as fiction or nonfiction, and also includes information about marketing/publishing. "Into the Deep," taught by Judy Reeves, is a craft class that’s relevant to any genre of writing. Terrel Seltzer’s "Intro to Screenwriting" is a genre unto itself. And Janis Cooke Newman’s "General Revision Workshop" is for any genre of writing except poetry. Ditto for my "Round Robin" class; actually, the Round Robin can even accommodate poets, although most people who take it seem to lean toward writing personal essays and memoirs.