RBWG Fall 2024 Classes
In Person and Online Tutorials via Email
Weekly Calendar
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Register Here Please register first with Maribeth at [email protected] to make sure that the class is running (at times we do not have enough participants to make the class work) or is not already filled. Maribeth will respond to you within a day. Pay Here Because we are committed to keeping our classes small and because we can only continue to do this if participants commit to and pay for all classes, we ask that ONCE WE CONFIRM THE CLASS WILL RUN, you pay for the full class amount up front. If you are interested in a class and cannot pay for it up front, just send Maribeth an email and we’ll work out a payment plan. Please do not pay prior to hearing from Maribeth that the class is running and a seat is available. We are unable to make full refunds if payment is received without confirmation from Maribeth first.
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Our Instructors
Click here to read brief biographies for each of our instructors.
Writing Challenge
Our Own Little World—Ten-Day Writing Challenge – Maribeth Fischer (2 weeks)
When: Monday-Friday, September 23-27 and September 30-October 4
Where: Online Tutorial via Email
Cost: RBWG Members $50; Non-Members $75
I think there’s a real virtue to that secret period when you’re developing your work and no one has read it. To me that’s the best time...You’re in your own little world. No one is commenting on it (the work) or misunderstanding it or praising it.
—Meghan O’ Rourke, MFA vs. NYC.
For the next ten days (yes, we will take weekends off) let’s give ourselves permission to write big and messy and not worry so much about the final product. Let’s begin this autumn by burrowing into our own little world and write what we need or want to write, exploring as we go, even if that means writing things we’ll never use. Who knows? Those things might lead us to the descriptions, details, plot twists that we WILL eventually use. I believe in this: writing what we don’t need to get to what we do need.
Every morning, you’ll receive an email with words of inspiration to encourage and remind you that even in your own little world, you aren’t alone—other writers have been in your shoes. You’ll also get a prompt that you can use or not. Your only goal is to try to write 500 words every day—and then email me with me your wordcount. That’s it. At the end of our ten days, you’ll have generated 5,000 words and whether you use the words or not in your novel, essay, memoir, or story, you will have generated valuable material and ideas.
When: Monday-Friday, September 23-27 and September 30-October 4
Where: Online Tutorial via Email
Cost: RBWG Members $50; Non-Members $75
I think there’s a real virtue to that secret period when you’re developing your work and no one has read it. To me that’s the best time...You’re in your own little world. No one is commenting on it (the work) or misunderstanding it or praising it.
—Meghan O’ Rourke, MFA vs. NYC.
For the next ten days (yes, we will take weekends off) let’s give ourselves permission to write big and messy and not worry so much about the final product. Let’s begin this autumn by burrowing into our own little world and write what we need or want to write, exploring as we go, even if that means writing things we’ll never use. Who knows? Those things might lead us to the descriptions, details, plot twists that we WILL eventually use. I believe in this: writing what we don’t need to get to what we do need.
Every morning, you’ll receive an email with words of inspiration to encourage and remind you that even in your own little world, you aren’t alone—other writers have been in your shoes. You’ll also get a prompt that you can use or not. Your only goal is to try to write 500 words every day—and then email me with me your wordcount. That’s it. At the end of our ten days, you’ll have generated 5,000 words and whether you use the words or not in your novel, essay, memoir, or story, you will have generated valuable material and ideas.
Fiction
Short Story Tune-Up – Sarah Barnett (4 sessions)
When: Thursdays, 10a.m. - Noon; October 3, 10, 17, 24
Where: Lutheran Church of Our Savior, Rehoboth
Cost: RBWG Members $200; Non-Members $240
“A short story is a love affair, a novel is a marriage.”
— Lorrie Moore
Begin a new short story or work to improve one you’ve already begun. Each week will feature a short story to read and learn from, an assignment focusing on different elements of the short story, and workshopping of your short story in progress.
Week 1: Good Beginnings
Week 2: Dialogue; What Happens Next?
Week 3: Setting; Details
Week 4: Finding the Perfect Ending
When: Thursdays, 10a.m. - Noon; October 3, 10, 17, 24
Where: Lutheran Church of Our Savior, Rehoboth
Cost: RBWG Members $200; Non-Members $240
“A short story is a love affair, a novel is a marriage.”
— Lorrie Moore
Begin a new short story or work to improve one you’ve already begun. Each week will feature a short story to read and learn from, an assignment focusing on different elements of the short story, and workshopping of your short story in progress.
Week 1: Good Beginnings
Week 2: Dialogue; What Happens Next?
Week 3: Setting; Details
Week 4: Finding the Perfect Ending
Mixed Genre
Object Permanence - Ethan Joella (4 sessions)
When: Mondays, September 16, 23, 30, and October 7
Where: Online Tutorial via Email
Cost: RBWG Members $200; Non-Members $240
Objects are the limits we desperately need. They show us where we end. They dispel our sadness, temporarily.
—Don Delillo
There are no live meetings for this class; new work is given to you every Monday, and weekly assignments are due the following Sunday.
What would The Glass Menagerie be without the unicorn figurine? What would William Carlos Williams have done without the wheelbarrow and plums? Can you imagine Holden Caulfield without his red hat? In this four-week online tutorial, we will study the importance of objects to prose and poetry and what a well-placed object or objects in your writing can do for characterization, symbolism, conflict, epiphany. Each week, participants will have an assignment that requires using objects in different ways (as distraction, as redemption, as symbols of grief, etc.) to enhance your poetry, fiction, or nonfiction.
Slowly Stepping In – Ellen Collins (5 sessions)
When: Mondays, October 14, 21, 28, and November 4
Where: Online Tutorial via Email
Cost: RBWG Members $250; Non-Members $300
This is a class for anyone who feels timid about writing. Maybe you have thought about taking a Guild class but thought you were too much of a “beginner.” Maybe you have tried to write in the past and your efforts were met with criticism. Maybe you feel confident writing prose, but the thought of writing a poem makes you break out in hives. Maybe you just need a jump-start!
The class is structured as a tutorial, with each student following their own plan to be worked out with the instructor. Assignments will be geared to your specific needs and wishes, and you will receive feedback for every writing piece that aligns with your goals. A goal might be as general as “I want to add more description to my writing,” or as specific as “I want to learn how to make line breaks in a poem.” You will choose whether to work in prose or poetry or a combination of the two. Because goal-setting can be confusing, you will be provided with a list of possible areas/topics after you register for the class.
If you took this class last spring, you can take it again, because there will be different assignments/projects.
When: Mondays, September 16, 23, 30, and October 7
Where: Online Tutorial via Email
Cost: RBWG Members $200; Non-Members $240
Objects are the limits we desperately need. They show us where we end. They dispel our sadness, temporarily.
—Don Delillo
There are no live meetings for this class; new work is given to you every Monday, and weekly assignments are due the following Sunday.
What would The Glass Menagerie be without the unicorn figurine? What would William Carlos Williams have done without the wheelbarrow and plums? Can you imagine Holden Caulfield without his red hat? In this four-week online tutorial, we will study the importance of objects to prose and poetry and what a well-placed object or objects in your writing can do for characterization, symbolism, conflict, epiphany. Each week, participants will have an assignment that requires using objects in different ways (as distraction, as redemption, as symbols of grief, etc.) to enhance your poetry, fiction, or nonfiction.
Slowly Stepping In – Ellen Collins (5 sessions)
When: Mondays, October 14, 21, 28, and November 4
Where: Online Tutorial via Email
Cost: RBWG Members $250; Non-Members $300
This is a class for anyone who feels timid about writing. Maybe you have thought about taking a Guild class but thought you were too much of a “beginner.” Maybe you have tried to write in the past and your efforts were met with criticism. Maybe you feel confident writing prose, but the thought of writing a poem makes you break out in hives. Maybe you just need a jump-start!
The class is structured as a tutorial, with each student following their own plan to be worked out with the instructor. Assignments will be geared to your specific needs and wishes, and you will receive feedback for every writing piece that aligns with your goals. A goal might be as general as “I want to add more description to my writing,” or as specific as “I want to learn how to make line breaks in a poem.” You will choose whether to work in prose or poetry or a combination of the two. Because goal-setting can be confusing, you will be provided with a list of possible areas/topics after you register for the class.
If you took this class last spring, you can take it again, because there will be different assignments/projects.
Nonfiction
Food, Glorious Food! - Elise Seyfried (4 sessions)
When: Mondays, October 7, 14, 21, and 28
Where: Online Tutorial via Email
Cost: RBWG Members $200; Non-Members $240
Join me for a delicious literary adventure this Fall! We’ll be crafting essays about food—our most memorable meals (at home and away), our childhood favorites, preparing food for those we love, shopping for food, growing food, etc. From soup to nuts, the writing possibilities are endless. Each student will receive a personalized assignment for each of the four weeks of class, based on a short bio they’ll share with me. Hope to see you around the kitchen table in October!
Creative Non-Fiction—Memoir and Personal Essay - Judy Catterton (5 sessions)
When: Tuesdays, 10:00 a.m. - Noon, September 17, 24, October 1, 8 and 15
Where: Lutheran Church of Our Savior, Rehoboth
Cost: RBWG Members $250; Non-Members $300
The literary magazine Creative Nonfiction characterizes its content as “true stories well told.” We all have tons of true stories we’d like to tell. But how do we tell them well? How do we turn interesting anecdotes into engaging pieces that explore our personal histories? This class will focus on literary techniques, sometimes thought to be unique to fiction, such as plot, character, dialogue and voice that are important in memoir and personal essays as well. Class members will critique each other’s writing, learning effective and artful ways to communicate their life experiences.
When: Mondays, October 7, 14, 21, and 28
Where: Online Tutorial via Email
Cost: RBWG Members $200; Non-Members $240
Join me for a delicious literary adventure this Fall! We’ll be crafting essays about food—our most memorable meals (at home and away), our childhood favorites, preparing food for those we love, shopping for food, growing food, etc. From soup to nuts, the writing possibilities are endless. Each student will receive a personalized assignment for each of the four weeks of class, based on a short bio they’ll share with me. Hope to see you around the kitchen table in October!
Creative Non-Fiction—Memoir and Personal Essay - Judy Catterton (5 sessions)
When: Tuesdays, 10:00 a.m. - Noon, September 17, 24, October 1, 8 and 15
Where: Lutheran Church of Our Savior, Rehoboth
Cost: RBWG Members $250; Non-Members $300
The literary magazine Creative Nonfiction characterizes its content as “true stories well told.” We all have tons of true stories we’d like to tell. But how do we tell them well? How do we turn interesting anecdotes into engaging pieces that explore our personal histories? This class will focus on literary techniques, sometimes thought to be unique to fiction, such as plot, character, dialogue and voice that are important in memoir and personal essays as well. Class members will critique each other’s writing, learning effective and artful ways to communicate their life experiences.
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