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INTRODUCTION TO
CHANCE, SYNCHRONICITY & MIND-WRITING
31-May: 2015
Painting by Paul Klee, Museum of Modern Art, NYC.
Dear Friends ~
This is a short letter telling you more about the class I'm about to begin, Chance, Synchronicity & Mind-writing. Here are a list of points that may answer questions you have or at least inform you further:
Please listen to Bill talk about the points below
(see the e-mail I sent you for audio MP3 attachment).
Scheduling: Due to my experience teaching I Ching and the Human Body online last year, I've realized that having a full class each week is too much for most peoples schedule. I will offer something each week, but things will be staggered, so we will essentially be on a bi-weekly schedule, with video-conferencing every other week and writing experiments and audio lectures on the weeks we don't have video meetings. My goal is not to overwhelm you in your busy lives, but to gently support your creative process.
Classes: The bi-weekly classes will be presented through web-pages (see example) and audio lectures sent out as MP3 files.
Type of writing: You can feel free to write in any form you wish (poetry, prose poem, prose, etc.) and the writing experiments will be fluid enough to encourage any type of writing. The writing examples I'll send out will primarily be drawn from non-fiction or memoir sources, both because this is mostly what I read and write, but also because creative non-fiction is probably the most universal language of writing.
Shame: Shame or embarrassment goes had in hand with writing. No matter how long we've been writing, there is a tendency to think what we just wrote is no good. And if we are new to sharing creative writing a lot of shame can come up (probably due to the fact that our creativity was often shamed in school or by our parents). In my twenty years as a writing teacher I've found ways to help make the process gentle and accepting. One of the main ways of doing this is simply to look for what it strong in a piece and point that out first. Then what is weaker is seen naturally and without shame and people are inspired to better the craft.
Craft: It is incredibly satisfying to improve as a writer and our class will offer many examples and ways of bettering our craft.
Community: I've taught online creative writing classes before and I know what a strong and rich community can develop through sharing our work, reading each other's work, and meeting online. I will make every effort to see that this promise is fulfilled. I always write along with the others in classes I teach, in that way not holding myself back as "teacher" but residing more in the role of participant (one who takes part).
Blog: I've created a blog where we can post our writings and give responses to the writings of the others in our community.
Cost: The class is $90 per months and can be paid during the first week of class through PayPal (just use my e-mail account to make a payment). If you don't use PayPal, just e-mail me and I can give you an address to send your check.
Hope this answers some of your questions. If you have more, please just e-mail me and I will respond promptly.
Gratitude,
Bill
Be fascinated by the phenomenal universe - Allen Ginsberg
