Class Description
Phone rings.
HER: Hello?
HIM: Hey, it’s me.
HER: Oh, hey. How are you?
HIM: I’m good, and you?
HER: I’m doing well.
US, the reader: YAWWWWNNN.
Although this is how phone conversations in real life may often begin, in a piece of fiction it reads as a complete snooze fest. Writing great dialogue for your stories usually involves skipping the bread and jumping right into the meat of the sandwich. More than quick tricks, writing realistic speech is about developing and/or refining your creative skills to build compelling, action-driving, thought-provoking, familiar yet unique and memorable dialogue. Using examples from popular novels and dialogue masters (such as Toni Morrison, Judy Blume, Elmore Leonard, Jane Austen, Cormac McCarthy, and others) as guides, this workshop will help students understand the key elements of writing provocative speech and how shape their tools to build dialogue rooted in the real world that leaps off the page, keeping readers wanting more.
Thanks to the excellent literary citizenship of our donors, scholarships are available for all GrubStreet classes. To apply, click the gray "APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIP" button. In order to be considered for a scholarship, you must complete your application at least one week before the start date of a class. Please await our scholarship committee's decision before registering for the class. We cannot hold spots in classes, so the sooner you apply, the better. Scholarships cannot be applied retroactively.
For more detailed information about GrubStreet scholarships, including how to contribute to scholarship funds for other students, click here.
This class will take place using Zoom videoconferencing. About 15 minutes before your class is scheduled to begin, you'll receive an email from your instructor with a link to join the class meeting!
Zoom Participation:
Students are not required to turn their camera on, but are encouraged to participate any way they feel comfortable through functions such as the live chat, emoji reactions, and unmuting the microphone. Learn more about using Zoom here.
Zoom Accessibility:
We ask that instructors enable closed captioning and send a transcript of the session after class. You can also enable closed captioning at any time during the meeting. If your instructor forgets to send the transcript, just send ’em an email!