What better time than now to hunker down and write that novel? The Year of the Novel workshop series, facilitated by author Sarah Armstrong, will now take place as a combination of online and face-to-face classes.

The 12-week course is made up of three terms of four-week blocks, with a total of 36-course hours during which Sarah will give you practical guidance, tools and tips.

A long-term, structured approach to the often daunting task of novel-writing, this workshop series offers creative connection and support during a time of isolation. This course is designed for writers with a story in progress or an idea to develop.

Course Outline:

TERM 1
Dates: Wednesday 20, 27 May & 3, 10 June from 5.30pm
Delivery mode: Online
Explore how to come up with ideas, planning, how to build a first draft, and some fundamentals of fiction: character, plot, point of view, scene and summary. Sarah will also talk about how to tackle procrastination and writer’s block.

TERM 2
Dates: Wednesday 12, 19, 26 August & 2 September from 5.30pm
Delivery mode: TBC Pending COVID-19 restrictions
We drill down into narrative tension, character development, how character drives plot, secondary characters and structure. This is the term where you’ll get individual, written feedback from Sarah on 3000 words of your first draft.

TERM 3
Dates: Wednesday 28 October & 4, 11, 18 November from 5.30pm
Delivery mode: Face-to-Face at Byron Writers Festival Office
This term is all about how to tackle rewriting and editing: beginnings and endings, structure and themes, and a discussion about where to go from here. Course participants will be invited to a closed Facebook group where Sarah will post writing tips and answer questions, and where you can connect with each other between terms.

Cost: $950 Member / $1050 General

About Sarah Armstrong

Sarah Armstrong has written three adult novels, including Salt Rain which was shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award. She’s just completed her first novel for kids and is working on a fourth adult novel. Sarah is an experienced writing teacher, mentor and manuscript assessor. She teaches creative writing at university, in schools, for writers festivals and on retreats. In a previous life she was a journalist at the ABC where she won a Walkley Award. She’s passionate about giving writers the practical tools to find and tell stories.

Testimonial

‘Working with Sarah was the best thing I could ever have done for my manuscript. I got great, constructive advice and critique as well as the kind of encouragement every budding writer needs. I would recommend working with Sarah Armstrong to anyone. In a word: fantastic.’ – Jana H.