Australian Writing Workshops
Before I finally became a full-time professional writer, I was a senior executive and high-level business consultant, living most of my life in aeroplanes, hotels and corporate and government offices! Mostly, in recent years, I developed organisational strategies, business plans, disaster recovery plans and solved some complex organisational problems. The technique that I employed was to run workshops with people, from top executives through middle-management down to people who actually did the real work. My workshops utilised the advanced "brainstorming" methodology I learned in my MBA program which was the "Case-Study" approach used by Harvard Business School, Canada's Richard Ivey School of Business (my alma mater!) at the University of Western Ontario and other top business schools. This required skilled facilitation of a group to exploit the synergy available by providing an open, free environment in which all ideas were encouraged. Later, I realised that the same methodology applied equally well to the process of writing a book.
This metho
dology has been documented in my book, "The Business School Approach to Writing Your Novel." The book uses a case study of a single comment overheard in a restaurant developed into a framework that could result in a number of different books of varying genres. It also covers the critical aspects of developing strong characters, controlling events and objects and managing the development project to avoid the common errors that almost all beginning writers make. The Second Edition now provides strong theoretical frameworks with diagrams and key requirements for all the main genres.
I first ran such a writing workshop with 15 bright young people at St Joseph's High School in Albion Park, NSW and was startled at how effective it was, resulting in an excellent sci-fi series for Young Adults, "The Mickie Dalton Trilogy." I ran an exciting class with a University of the Third Age class and then repeated the school workshop, this time with ten children at Rolland Plains Upper Primary School in NSW to produce a well-received children's adventure story, "The Julie Malloy Gang & The Smugglers." The results with the kids have been startling, showing great engagement and excitement and newly enriched approaches to reading and writing.
I have also run a private workshop for a writer aiming to produce a children's book but did not have the idea developed well enough to start, and I run a weekly writing class in South West Rocks, NSW, in which the objective is to have as many of the class write a complete novel, play or short story.
I have now completed two more projects at primary schools, one with seven children, one with ten, both resulting in a published novel within four months. At Comboyne Public School we produced a thriller in which one child is kidnapped off a school bus by unknown gangsters. Why this little girl? Is it a case of mistaken identity? At Byabarra, we wrote an adventure in which a new student arrives in a limousine, always accompanied by two large armed guards who sit in the classroom during lessons and let nobody near their charge. Who is he? And what is the role of the young American "Goth" who started at the school in the previous term? The two groups displayed the extraordinary soaring imaginations that I have begun to expect and I am delighted with the results. The school principals have both reported greatly enhanced reading and writing scores in the students. See the book covers below.
I can be engaged to run such projects with schools or with individuals trying to get their books started, managed and developed and avoiding the common problems that nearly all beginning writers encounter. Fees will be negotiated individually.
This is what has been said about my workshops.
"Before I worked with Michael I only had a vague idea of what I wanted to write about. After spending only a couple of hours with him, Michael's skilled facilitation made me crystal clear and gave me direction and motivation moving forward. Thanks Michael, I look forward to sending you a copy of my first book!"
Megan Zentgraf, writing her first children's book.
"As part of the 'Mickie Dalton' project, not only did I see the sheer power of the process at work, but I was able to realise creative capabilities that once would only have been a figment of my imagination."
Vincent Muller, one of the class that developed the 'Mickie Dalton' Trilogy
"Michael's technique harnesses the imaginative energy of everybody in the group and applies it purely to the creation of the story. To see the ideas that discussed and considered together in our group develop into a novel was incredibly engaging and fascinating to see."
Sam Troutman, one of the class that developed the 'Mickie Dalton' Trilogy.
"Michael began a project with ten primary school students aged 8-11 intent on writing a group-constructed kids' adventure story. Within two sessions we had the characters drawn in some depth, a quite sophisticated plot outlined and ten very excited and engaged children with ideas tumbling out of them. We will have a complete novel published by year's end...." (Note: From a start date in early August, the book was published on schedule in December, 2009)
Leanne Parker, Principal, Rolland Plains Upper Primary School, NSW
Other on-going school projects:
This project was completed ahead of schedule and the book was published in late June, 2010. The project team at Byabarra consisted of ten children aged from seven to eleven who developed a remarkably advanced story line involving international espionage, and diplomatic issues that have ASIO and the CIA both involved. This book, like the one written with the children of Comboyne is more aimed at the 15-16 aged group which indicates the capabilities of children when given an atmosphere of free creativity.
This project was conducted simultaneously with that at Byabarra and had the same publication date. Seven children aged between ten and eleven developed an equally sophisticated story line involving kidnapping, international espionage and the hunt for ancient crown jewels. Already, the children have responded with enhanced engagement in their reading and writing and showed huge excitement over the project.