THE HEART OF THE MATTER:
FINDING YOUR STORY AND TELLING IT WELL
ON THE PAGE OR ON THE STAGE
Taught by Nina Wise
An 8-week Writing Adventure
Tuesdays: September 6 – October 25
10:00–11:30am, Pacific Time
This eight-week live online class will give you the tools you need to tell your story in a way that is emotionally moving and intellectually engaging either on the page or on the stage.
Designed for anyone wanting to experience writing as a tool for personal transformation as well as for writers and performers wanting to enhance their ability to tell a good story, this online class will explore the universal elements of storytelling that capture hearts and minds.
Through Nina’s masterful process, as you learn to unveil the deeper meanings that lie hidden in everyday things, not only will your storytelling improve but also you will gain insights that can transform your life. You will leave with a collection of tools you can use at will as you develop a writing project, a performance, a presentation at work, website copy, or simply engage in conversations with friends, family, and colleagues.
During this workshop you will learn the basic tools that will:
Help you find your story
Enliven your characters
Unpack the layers of meaning that might not be immediately apparent
Structure a coherent narrative
“Purely enjoyable and uplifting. I feel much happier.
The workshop provided tools that were incredibly useful and absolutely fresh.”
Each week, we will meet for 90 minutes and focus on a particular element of the craft. I will give a teaching and then you will write following prompts designed to support you in the exploration of that element. You will be given assignments to do on your own or with a cohort during the week to continue the practice.
During our 8-week session, we will focus on the following:
Week 1: The Heart—identifying the story you want to tell
Week 2: Character Development—Who is telling the story and who else is in the story
Week 3: Dialog—How to write compelling dialog that moves the story along
Week 4: Going Deep, Deeper—How to find the deeper layers of the story that might not be evident at first glance
Week 5: Transformation—What transformation do you or others experience and why this is important
Week 6: Point of View—When to be intimate, when more panoramic
Week 7: Finding the Scenes—Which scenes tell the story best
Week 8: Structure—Stringing it all together
“Nina created an atmosphere of trust, authenticity, connection, and warmth which enabled each of us to become more aware of our truth, to be brave and overcome shame and shyness.”
What is so remarkable about writing is that in following the needs of the art form, one is led down a path of self-discovery. Not only do we see ourselves more clearly, we also see others from a more empathetic point-of-view. In this way, the act of writing changes our lives in the best of ways: creating insight and generating compassion.
We will meet on Zoom, recordings of each session will be available following each meeting.
Tuesdays: September 6 – October 25
10:00–11:30am, Pacific Time
8 weeks, $275 ($250 for former students)
“Nina’s teaching is like a symphony or an intricate dance. It is layered and all the parts work together to guide the student into her own creative expression. I have taken many writing workshops, and I teach writing, but Nina taught me how to go further in and express the truth in a deeply real and interesting way.”
Refund Policy
We do our best to keep our fees very affordable and hope you understand that there are many administrative hours and costs that are involved in running our programs. We also understand that things come up for people and want to accommodate your change of plans as best we can. So here is our refund policy:
The registration fee for Motion’s online events is non-refundable. If you withdraw within one week prior to the first session, the fee you paid can be applied to a future Motion Theater workshop within one year (less 20% processing fee).
* All workshop sessions are recorded and available for 4 weeks after the final workshop session. The links will be sent to you each week (only for those registered for a multi-week series).
* Motion will consider refund requests due to an extraordinary circumstance or emergency on a case by case basis if you withdraw within one week prior to the first session. To request a refund of this nature, please contact us and explain your situation.