Extracurricular Activity: Sunday Workshop w/Kate Asche: Desire as Purpose

DESIRE AS PURPOSE: A CHARACTER-BUILDING WORKSHOP (All genres)

Back by popular demand! Kate Asche, M.A. (www.kateasche.com), returns to offer another one-day fundraiser workshop. This workshop is part of Kate's 30/30 Project. What is that, you say? Well, 100% of your $20 at the door goes to Tupelo Press, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) literary press. Each month, a new group of volunteer poets runs the equivalent of a “poetry marathon” on behalf of Tupelo, writing 30 poems in 30 days, while their friends, family and writing communities “sponsor” and encourage them every step of the way. Sponsor Kate by participating in this workshop! For full details on Kate's 30/30 "run," visit http://www.kateasche.com/march-2015-the-3030-project/.

THE WORKSHOP:

As David Corbett writes in his excellent craft book, The Art of Character, “Desire is the crucible that forges character because it intrinsically creates conflict. [...] There may be no more important question to ask of a character than: What does she want?” We all want something, don’t we? In fact, we all want MANY things–and often, all at once! We want love, acceptance, freedom…and we also want a cheeseburger and fries, right now, while we’re supposed to be doing that report for the boss. These desires, so constant within us, are essential to our humanity. It’s through them that we know each other–and ourselves. In this workshop, we’ll explore the power of abstract and concrete desires and the importance of giving both to our characters. We’ll explore how this craft concept plays out in fiction, creative nonfiction and poetry, focusing on the genre interests of the students in the class. Most importantly, we’ll write something new! (And, after the workshop, Kate will email participants a PDF of a selected reading on the topic of character desire, to keep you inspired as you continue in your writing practice!)

Specific location info will be messaged to all who RSVP before 1:00 pm the day before the workshop. If you RSVP after 1:00 pm the day before the workshop, email Kate directly at asche(dot)kate(at)gmail(dot)com for location info. Please plan to pay the $20 at the door!