with Chris L. Terry
Online
Two Saturdays
2:00 to 4:00 pm (Pacific)
June 15 and 22, 2019
In Writing Diversity, we will explore ways to sensitively and accurately portray characters whose race, gender, sexuality, or other forms of identity are different from our own. During this two-day online seminar, we will discuss strategies to ensure that our portrayals of others' experiences are well-considered, authentic, and engaging. In the first meeting, we will read and analyze examples of successful (and unsuccessful) character descriptions from published stories and novels. We will also complete writing exercises that consider our own motivations for writing a character and what we hope to achieve. In the second meeting, we will workshop submissions that put what we've learned into practice.
This class is open to students of all levels and will meet online in real time using the Zoom platform. We will contact you with details closer to the date of the class.
Enrollment limit: 8 students
$130 for new students; $120 for returning students
Chris L. Terry’s debut novel Zero Fade was on Best of 2013 lists by Slate.com and Kirkus Reviews, who called it "original, hilarious, thought-provoking, and wicked smart . . .not to be missed." His novel Black Card, about a mixed-race punk musician with a black imaginary friend, is forthcoming from Catapult in August 2019. Terry’s work has appeared in Best Small Fictions 2015, PANK, Very Smart Brothas, Apogee, Razorcake, and more. He has taught and created curriculum for PEN America Los Angeles and was a Lead Teaching Artist for assorted Chicago-based writing programs.
Reviews
"Kevin Phifer, 13, a black seventh-grader in 1990s Richmond, Va., and hero of this sparkling debut, belongs in the front ranks of fiction’s hormone-addled, angst-ridden adolescents, from Holden Caulfield to the teenage Harry Potter [. . .] Original, hilarious, thought-provoking and wicked smart: not to be missed. —Kirkus Reviews
"Chris Terry is a wise and hilarious writer. He has bestowed Kevin, the hero of Zero Fade, with an especially acute case of teenage angst, and the results are sweet, painful and very recognizable to anyone who has survived seventh grade. This is a wonderful book." —Audrey Niffenegger, author of The Time Traveler's Wife
"Zero Fade is a damn fine read with a resounding message that never preaches, but instead talks to you across the table like a friend and ally. Highly recommended. Chris L. Terry is an author to keep an eye on." —Razorcake