Writing workshop 2 – Prompts and dialogue – Álvaro de Campos
Some excellent cultural activities, music, dance, theatre, related to the 125th Anniversary of Álvaro de Campos have continued in Tavira during October 2015.
As part of the festival, local school students from the Biblioteca Esjac, Tavira, have produced artwork. They were tasked with creating images of Pessoa’s heteronym, Álvaro de Campos. Their creative efforts need to be acknowledged and memorialised. I have included a few at the end of this update.
The second writing workshop met on Thursday 29 October, at Tavira library.
There was not an overall theme to the workshop, although building on the first workshop, Álvaro de Campos, the heteronym of Pessoa, was resurrected as a writing dialogue prompt exercise. The idea was to have one heteronym/character discuss and or disagree with another unique heteronym/character. It probably sounds more complex than it is. Writing dialogue tends to flow once the imagination kicks in.
A few writing tools were suggested as aids for focus. I tend to be either a stream of consciousness (pants of your seat) type of writer or if I am writing a research article I then spend a long time planning the sections and information. I use Scrivener as a writing tool, as it lets the writer, organise ideas, scenes and characters. If you use a MAC, this package may be on offer during November for NaNoWriMo. It is not necessarily for everyone, but it has helped me organise my thoughts. It is also not necessary to have specific writing tools, but, if, like me, you are easily pulled away from focusing on getting the words down, then just the process of being in a writing package aids concentration and creativity.
Another writing prompt used in the workshop was to document what we see in a mirror or what your character sees when looking in a mirror. This was a quick three minute prompt. It was another useful exercise in building confidence in the writing process.
Writing – our work in progress was shared. One or two people are exploring memoir, another travel writing and I am writing a novel through the eyes of a cat. We touched on the concept of “point of view.” Who is “the voice” telling the story? How do you decide whether to write a memoir or fiction? Here is an article that explores that last question. 10 ways to tell if your story should be memoir or novel
The writing group will next meet on the Monday 9 November at 2:30pm and then again on Monday 23 November at 2:30pm in Tavira library. Bring some words, but it is not essential, the purpose is to learn from each other and explore the process.
Let me know if you want to join us during NaNoWriMo in November.
Sue@suehall.net
