Writing at the Centre

2012-02-05T12:04:00.000+08:00

The T.A.G. Hungerford Award is a biennial award that celebrates literary merit and originality, and is given for a full length manuscript of fiction or creative non-fiction, by a Western Australian author unpublished in book form. In addition to the cash prize, the Award also provides publication of the winning manuscript with Fremantle Press.

The Hungerford Award has now moved into a new era with the recent announcement that the 2012 Award will go forward with the generous support of the Friends and Family of the late Bill Warnock; the family donating a cash prize of $12,000.

Closing date: 5pm, Tuesday, 31st July 2012

View guidelines @ WritingWA

Saturday Poetry at the Grove Library 4th Feb

2012-02-01T23:28:00.000+08:00

Helen Hagemann’s Saturday Poetry commences this week 4th February @ 1.30pm-3.30pm in the beautiful Flax Room at the Grove Library. The class will look at how the subject of “skin” can be border country. Whether animal or vegetable ‘skin’ shares its borders between inside and out, where one person ends and another begins. Class involves writing exercises, reading and discussing poems by Michael Symmons Roberts (UK), Tracy Ryan, Ivy Alvarez, Sarah French and Jean Kent, to name a few. For class fees and details about the Grove visit our two pages on Blue Navigation Bar - Classes & Saturday Poetry @ the Grove.

Prose Class Friday 3rd Feb @ Fremantle Arts Centre

2012-01-29T12:47:00.000+08:00

Helen Hagemann's Friday Prose Class at the Fremantle Arts Centre
Our Prose class on Friday, 3rdFebruary, 2011 continues with “Australian ShortFiction”. This week we will be looking at Tim Winton and his short storycollection ‘The Turning’. There will bea close reading of the story “Commission”, writing exercises, and a discussionon Winton’s use of colloquial language, the protagonist’s point of view, andhow characters are redeemed or transformed during moments of “turning.”

All welcome!

Venue: Room 2 (was Room 9), Upstairs, North Wing, Fremantle Arts Centre

Time: 10.00am til noon

Cost: $20 OOTA member, $25 Non-OOTA member

Classes are casual with no booking required. We run all year, and alternate Poetry with Prose. Click on "Classes" to view dates.

Want to join OOTA? click here on Membership Page

Friday Poetry with Shane McCauley

2012-01-24T08:30:00.000+08:00

Poetry this Friday, 27th January with Shane McCauley at the Fremantle Arts Centre. 10-noon. All welcome. Ask at reception or head to Room 2, now renamed from Room 9. Here's one of Shane's poems published in Famous Reporter.

Fallen Leaves on Lake Chuzenji

At first as if a school of red fish
on blue pointed apices
the to-ing and fro-ing wavelets
of this almost breathing lake

but the trees are naked and flame
saturated leaves are writing
themselves upon the slate of water,
the sun bowing low to read:

kanji burnt red – an entire
season gathers here
to celebrate, and to drown.

Castaways Poetry Competition

2012-01-21T12:58:00.001+08:00

The City of Rockingham is pleased to announce that submissions are now open for the 2012 Castaways Poetry Prize, with almost $500 in prizes. Submissions are open until March 13th, 2012.

Guidelines
The body of your email must include your name, address, phone/mobile number, email address, and the title & line counts of your poems. To ensure anonymity, do not include your details on your entered poems themselves.
Do not post entries. Only entries received via email will be accepted.
Each poem must be no longer than 24 lines.
Poems must be original, unpublished, not have received an award in another competition, and not be under consideration elsewhere from the time of entry in the awards until the official announcement of the winners.
To ensure anonymity no writers names to appear on MS. Winners able to attend will be invited to read their poem at the Castaways 2012 Opening Night Awards presentation on Saturday 12 May 2012.
Employees of the City of Rockingham and their family members are ineligible to enter.
The judges’ decisions are final, and no correspondence will be entered into. Any attempt to lobby judges or City of Rockingham employees, or influence decisions, may result in disqualification.
Entries close 13 March 2012, and winners will be contacted by phone or email prior to the public announcement at the Castaways 2012 Awards night presentation.

The 1st prize winning entry will be published in the Castaways 2012 catalogue.

1st PRIZE: $250 + 2 copies of the Castaways 2012 catalogue
2 COMMENDED PRIZES: $100

For further information contact Lee Battersby, Community Development Officer (Culture & Arts) on 9528 0386 or lee.battersby@rockingham.wa.gov.au
City of Rockingham not listed yet!

Prose Class, Friday 20th @ the Fremantle Arts Centre

2012-01-15T19:52:00.002+08:00

Join Helen Hagemann for the first Prose Class for 2012. Friday 20th January sees Helen introduce a series called "Australian Short Fiction". The class will be looking at writers such as Tim Winton, Peter Carey, Helen Garner, Henry Lawson, Barbara Baynton, and many other Australian writers. Our first writer is Elizabeth Jolley. Writers will be inspired by her dense prose and after some close reading will spend time during class on several writing exercises.

Venue: Room 9, Upstairs, North Wing, Fremantle Arts Centre
Time: 10.00am til noon
Cost: $20 OOTA writers, $25 Non-OOTA writers

All welcome!

Our Writing Classes start early at the Fremantle Arts Centre

2012-01-02T12:37:00.000+08:00

Start your writing early this year!

Poetry with Shane McCauley commences 10.00am on Friday, 13th January, 2012
Later at midday join poets for coffee, conversation and camaraderie in the cafe courtyard. No booking required - Room 9, Upstairs, North Wing of the Fremantle Arts Centre. All welcome!
Cost $20 OOTA member, $25 Non-OOTA

The Prose class follows on Friday, 20th January
Helen Hagemann returns with "Australian Short Fiction".
Writers will be inspired to paint words on the page by looking at some of the best short story writers incl. Elizabeth Jolley, Helen Garner, Peter Carey, Marion Campbell, Robert Drewe, Tim Winton, Gail Jones, Danielle Wood, and many more.

Duration of course: 6 months—no booking required. These are casual fortnightly classes. Cost $20 OOTA member, $25 Non-OOTA.

Download our 2012 brochure here...

Last Creative Writing Class for the Year!

2011-12-12T10:35:00.002+08:00

Our last prose workshop for the year on Friday, 16th December, 2011 is ‘Writing Exercises & Readings of your work'. The first hour will focus on the sensory elements of sight/sound, esp. in Edgar Allan Poe’s story The Tell Tale Heart. 2nd Hour is readings of your work. Anyone who has written during the year in any of the “series” based classes is welcome to come along. Depending on numbers writers are given 5-8 minutes each in the readings. If you want comments from other writers please print out enough copies to hand out. Not really for “Poets” but you are welcome to come along and read a prose poem.

Twitter & Facebook coming soon!

2011-12-10T10:45:00.005+08:00

Check out this site in 2012, Writing at the Centre will be on Twitter and Facebook. All blog posts will automatically transfer to these social networks.

Helen Hagemann is back at the Fremantle Arts Centre with a class on 'Australian Short Fiction'.

2011-11-25T18:24:00.009+08:00

Writing at the Centre
Helen is back at the FAC for the final two classes in 2011 [2/12 & 16/12/11]
The upcoming Friday Prose class on 2nd December will look at "Australian Short Fiction".
Texts used to stimulate writing exercises will be Peter Cowan's The Red-backed Spiders, Patrick White's Clay, Barbara Baynton's The Chosen Vessel and Cate Kennedy's short story Sleepers.

10.00am til noon, Room 9, Fremantle Arts Centre, 1 Finnerty Street, Fremantle. $20 OOTA : $25 NON-OOTA member. All welcome!

2012 Saturday Poetry Workshops at the Grove, Cottesloe

2011-11-19T10:11:00.009+08:00

Saturday Poetry Workshops were successful at the Grove Library in 2011 and OOTA will again offer this after-hours course in 2012. Tutor, Helen Hagemann.

It will consist of fortnightly Saturday Poetry Workshops for casual participants. Each Workshop will introduce contemporary poetry for those poets wanting to write contemporary poetry.

Participation in the Workshops will cover the study of poems, discussion and several writing exercises. In a recent survey the consensus was that most writers wanted to continue with the same 2011 format, with a minor introduction of the classics and traditional poetry and its forms. Poets wishing to attend can view the times and dates on the OOTA blog (Out of the Asylum Writers Group) and also here at Writing at the Centre. Classes are earmarked to start in 2012 on Saturday 4th February. 1.30pm-3.30pm.

It appears that the Grove Library now has a coffee shop and we will continue this social side of our poetry group, after class, for those wishing to do so.

OOTA (Out of the Asylum Writers Group) Click here for class times/dates.

Next Prose Classes: Creative Non-Fiction with Rosemary Stevens

2011-10-25T18:17:00.005+08:00

Turn your ideas into creative non-fiction with writer and teacher Rosemary Stevens. This series of two workshops is designed to explore the basic principles of this new genre that was once termed “the new journalism”.

What is creative non-fiction? According to Lee Gutkind, founder of the literary journal Creative Nonfiction, this genre deals with “factually accurate prose about real people and events in a compelling, vivid manner.” For those who have worked with Rosemary to bring their memories to life, this will feel like familiar territory. Creative non-fiction may also take the form of essays or journalism, combining research material with fictional devices, such as scene setting, dialogue and the use of sensuous detail. Find out more by coming along to Fremantle Arts Centre: Friday 4th November & Friday 18th November. Sessions may be enjoyed as a single unit or as a two-part series.

Rosemary Stevens has been facilitating creative writing workshops in Perth
since 2000, including at UWA Extension, Curtin University and TAFE. She has
worked for an international publishing company and well-known literary
agent, both in London, prior to becoming a free-lance travel writer in Asia.
Rosemary was the WA 2007 recipient of the Longlines Varuna residency in the
Blue Mountains and several of her short stories have appeared nationally.
She has an MA in creative writing and is currently completing a doctorate.

Classes are casual in this series with no booking required. Cost: OOTA $20, NON-OOTA $25. Classes commence (each Friday fortnight) at 10.00am-noon: Room 9 (North Wing), Fremantle Arts Centre, 1 Finnerty Street, Fremantle.

HELEN IS BACK FROM THE LAND OF THE LEPRECHAUNS!

2011-10-14T09:38:00.006+08:00

Return of Saturday Poetry for 2012

The Grove Library has offered its support to OOTA writers for our fortnightly Saturday Poetry Class for 2012. Once again this class will be held in the Flax room from 1.30pm to 3.30pm each Saturday fortnight. The class is a drop-in-style, no booking required. Saturday Poetry is suitable for community writers/ OOTA regulars, part-timers and casual attendees. So you can go off on holidays when you choose and we will still be there when you get back!
For those of you who are interested in attending I would be pleased if you would take the time to answer a poll which outlines further details of the coming 2012 workshops on my personal blog @ Evangelyne
Many thanks
Helen Hagemann

Our New Sept/Oct Series: Writing Long Fiction with Bruce Russell

2011-09-09T18:19:00.008+08:00

Classes in Long Fiction
Three classes September 23, October 7 and October 21 with Bruce Russell

The category of Long Fiction includes long stories (5,000 words or more), novellas and of course novels. In these three classes we will be exploring:
• Sustainable ideas and where they come from.
• Narrative techniques for longer prose works.
• Refining the narrator’s voice.
• Point of view.
• Self-editing for style and succinctness.
Participants are encouraged to bring story ideas to the first class and to work on a long story over the six weeks we have together.

Bruce L Russell is the author of Jacob’s Air (1996), The Chelsea Manifesto (1999) and Channelling Henry (2003), all published by Fremantle Press. He is currently engaged in a ghost writing project and in mentoring a number of long fiction writers.

Classes are casual in this series with no booking required. Cost: OOTA $20, NON-OOTA $25, $20 Concession. Classes commence (each Friday fortnight) at 10.00am-noon: Room 9 (North Wing), Fremantle Arts Centre, 1 Finnerty Street, Fremantle.

Writing Children's Literature with Andrew Lansdown

2011-09-01T16:25:00.000+08:00

Join Andrew Lansdown for the final class in this Series: Writing Children's LiteratureCommences Friday, 9th September, 10.00am-noon. Room 9, FAC. Always wanted to write children’s literature, but don’t know what or how? It is well known that authors such as Lewis Carroll, CS Lewis, Dr. Seuss, J.K. Rowling, Francis Hodgson Burnett, Tove Jansson, Roald Dahl and May Gibbs have been able to create wonderful worlds in their books and inspire the imagination of their readers. If these kinds of books hold a special place in your heart, you are already on the way to creating stories that children or teenagers will love.
It doesn’t matter if you have never written a children’s story or poem before, or if you don't know how to plot, characterise or write dialogue. Fine children’s stories and poems can be developed from ideas that may seem silly at the start. Come along with your ideas and aspirations to this series of three workshops by Andrew Lansdown and be inspired and instructed by the masters of children’s literature.

Andrew Lansdown is the author of eighteen books, consisting of novels, short story collections and poetry collections. He has published 3 fantasy novels and 2 poetry collections for children and teenagers: With My Knife, Dragonfox and The Red Dragon (Scholastic Australia), A Ball of Gold: Poems for Children (Artlook Press) and Allsorts: Poetry Tricks and Treats (Wombat Books).

Classes are casual in this series with no booking required. Cost: OOTA $20, NON-OOTA $25, $20 Concession. Classes commence (each Friday fortnight) at 10.00am-noon: Room 9 (North Wing), Fremantle Arts Centre, 1 Finnerty Street, Fremantle.

3rd Workshop is Friday, 9th September, 2011 – Poetry writing for children/teenagers (1)

SATURDAY POETRY CANCELLED

2011-07-29T12:40:00.004+08:00

Cancellation of Term 2 @ the Grove

Helen Hagemann advises that OOTA’s Saturday Poetry at the Grove Library will not continue for Term 2 – 2011. Helen has been successful gaining a residency at the Tyrone Guthrie Centre at Annaghmakerrig, Newbliss, Ireland, and will spend this time (September to October) on her writing projects. Please note: This is not the end of Saturday Poetry at the Grove and if your response is favourable we will continue with classes in 2012. Thank you for your past support and best wishes for your writing!

New Prose Series with Nandi Chinna at the FAC

2011-06-25T15:33:00.008+08:00

Four Hills and a Cloud - Writing on Walking

Poet Wallace Stevens writes:
‘In my room, the world is beyond my understanding;
But when I walk I see that it consists of three or four
hills and a cloud’ (Stevens, 1955, p. 57).

In these workshops, writers will investigate the practice of walking as a creative tool. From Basho to Wordsworth, Janet Cardiff to Richard Long, many artists and writers have used the practice of walking to inform their creativity. Participants will undertake short walks and will be instructed in the practice of ‘reading’ the environment with the senses. Writers will then do a series of writing exercises using our walking experiences as raw material for creating prose pieces. Classes are casual in this series with no booking required. Cost: OOTA $20, NON-OOTA $25, $20 Concession. Classes commence (each Friday fortnight) at 10.00am-noon.

1st Workshop is Friday, 1st July

2nd Workshop is Friday, 15th July

3rd Workshop is Friday, 29th July.

All welcome!

Saturday Poetry at the Grove, 18th June @ 1.30pm

2011-06-16T08:14:00.003+08:00

Helen Hagemann’s Saturday Poetry Class on 18th June will look at “The Poetry of Travel”. The class will look at how travel highlights and frames distinctions between home and away, and offers the chance to record a world elsewhere. Prior to writing exercises the class will look at the many tips for writing ‘travel poetry’, especially entering a poem prismatically. Poets cited: John Forbes, Elizabeth Bishop, Fleur Adcock, Bronwyn Lea, Billy Collins, Mark O’Connor, Diane Fahey and more. 1.30pm-3.30pm. Details of time/cost/map to the Grove on side panels. All welcome!

Prose Writing at the Centre - Friday, 17th June

2011-06-15T20:37:00.002+08:00

The prose class, Friday, 17th June is the final workshop in the series sui generis with Lucas North. The class will look at the “poetry of violence” ie. language which enters into the fictional universe of itself, risky, rich, bawdy and violent. Prior to writing exercises, the class will be exposed to further writing of sui generis, looking at writers such as Boston Teran, Cormac McCarthy, Harry Crews, Larry Brown and Kathe Koja. Friday, 10am-noon. OOTA members: $20/$15; others: $30/$20 conc. Venue: Upstairs Room 9 (North Wing) Fremantle Arts Centre. No booking required, just come along!

Saturday Poetry at the Grove, 4th June @ 1.30pm

2011-06-01T08:12:00.006+08:00

Helen Hagemann’s Saturday Poetry Class will meet again at the Grove Library on 4th June, 1.30pm-3.30pm. In her “Workshop on Creatures”, Helen invites you to write about another species in three different ways. Poets cited: Stanley Kunitz, Elizabeth Bishop, Les Murray, Shane McCauley, Kate Llewellyn, Mallery Koons and more. Details of time/cost/map to the Grove Library on our side bars. All welcome!

Par écrit: poetry of the feminine & The Joyous Lake by Helen Hagemann - two e-books of poetry http://members.iinet.net.au/~helen.hagemann
Check out this new e-Publishing here

Creative Writing in Fremantle - Top Classes, top tutors!

2011-05-31T15:51:00.003+08:00

The prose class, Friday, 3rd June at the Fremantle Arts Centre continues with the 2nd workshop in the series sui generis with Lucas North. The class will look at the indefinable, and contemplate how certain writing defies cataloguing. Is it an art unto itself? Does this art transcend genre? Prior to writing exercises, the class will revue writers of sui generis. They include John Shirley, William Gibson, J.G. Ballard, Patricia Cadigan, Greg Bear, Greg Egan and more. Friday, 10am-noon. OOTA members: $20/$15; others: $30/$20 conc. Venue: Upstairs Room 9 (North Wing) Fremantle Arts Centre. No booking required, just come along!

Saturday Poetry at the Grove, 21st May @ 1.30pm

2011-05-20T08:05:00.005+08:00

Helen Hagemann’s Saturday Poetry Class this week 21st May at the Grove Library is called “Writing the Night”. What is it about the night that calls to our imagination? Whatever its effect on you, it’s a very rich time of day for poets. Poets cited: Ted Hughes, Robert Frost, Ted Kooser, Sharon Olds, Lorna Crozier, Billy Collins and Bronwyn Lea.

Exciting New Creative Writing Classes at the FAC

2011-05-14T12:03:00.010+08:00

Friday's Prose class at the Fremantle Arts Centre introduces workshops that are series based. Commencing Friday May 20th, at 10.00am, Lucas North will lead the first workshop of the 2nd Series called sui generis
You can also download our new brochure from the side panel.

2nd Series—sui generis with Lucas North.
Friday 20th May, 3rd & 17th June
Often an unknown (and frequently known) writer produces a fresh, well-written, original novel that doesn't fit neatly into any identifiable genre or category. This is sui generis. Lucas North will introduce you to the unclassifiable genre, as well as some great US writers of the Deep South. A great series for those interested in speculative fiction, experimentation, the indefinable.

3rd Series—"Four Hills & a Cloud" with Nandi Chinna
Friday 1st, 15th & 29th July
Nandi will take you through the practice of walking as a creative tool. Many artists and writers have used the practice of walking to inform their creativity. Participants will undertake short walks and will be instructed in the practice of ‘reading’ the environment with the senses. Writers will then do a series of writing exercises using their walking experiences as raw material for creating prose pieces.

4th Series—Writing Children’s Literature with Andrew Lansdown
Friday 12th & 26th August, & 9th September
Always wanted to write children’s literature, but don’t know what or how? Learn a range of creative writing techniques in this series of three workshops by Andrew Lansdown. Andrew is the author of fifteen books including 2 novels, many children’s stories, poetry and poetry for children.

5th Series—Writing Longer Fiction with Bruce Russell
Friday 23rd September & 7th & 21st October
Bruce Russell, university lecturer, teacher and award winning author of Jacob’s Air (Hungerford 1995 & WA Premier’s Awards shortlist 1996), takes you through the creative process of story outline, utilizing the techniques of this genre. This series will help you on a path to understanding and completing longer works of fiction.

6th Series—Creative Non-Fiction with Rosemary Stevens
Friday 4th November & 18th November
Turn your ideas into creative non-fiction with writer and teacher Rosemary Stevens. This series of two workshops is designed to explore the basic principles of this new genre that was once termed “new journalism.”

Saturday Poetry at the Grove, 7th May @ 1.30pm

2011-05-04T18:00:00.006+08:00

Helen Hagemann’s Saturday Poetry Class this week 7th May at the Grove Library is called “Writing Commodities: clothes/ fashion/ accessories”. This workshop will study certain poets who have included ‘clothes’ in their work yet have gone beyond the facts and the mere superficial. Poets cited: Raymond Carver, John Ashbery, Anne Carson, Andrew Taylor, and many more. During writing exercises we will also look at the haiku, tanka and cinquain for brevity. 1.30pm - 3.30pm. Flax Room at the Grove - 1 Leake St (cnr Leake St & Stirling Hwy), Peppermint Grove. Check side bars for further details. All welcome! Why not join OOTA for class discounts. http://www.ootawriters.blogspot.com

Prose Writing at the Centre -Friday, 6th May

2011-05-01T08:36:00.003+08:00

Releasing the Writer Within

Friday, 6th May, 10.00-noon

Final in the Series - Workshop #6 – Developing your Craft
We will REVISE Goldberg’s teachings, and prior to writing exercises, we will look at:-

1. Writing beyond your comfort zone. Kerouac said, ‘blow as deep as you want to blow.’
2. Taking your writing practice into the novel, short story, essay, non-fiction or poetry.
3. A brief look at Roland Barthes’ theory ‘The Death of the Author’.
4. Learning theories in practice: Developing your sensory perceptions through images.
5. Developing your craft

Writing at the Centre Notices

2011-04-14T12:19:00.004+08:00

Happy Easter to all our writers!

Friday, 15th April: Poetry with Shane McCauley, 10.00-noon.
Friday, 22nd April: No class - Easter Good Friday
Saturday, 23rd April: No class - Easter Saturday

Classes resume thus:
Friday, 29th April: Poetry with Shane McCauley
Friday, 6th May: Prose with Helen Hagemann, Natalie Goldberg Series #6
Saturday, 7th May: Poetry with Helen Hagemann at the Grove Library

Saturday Poetry at the Grove

2011-04-07T08:11:00.003+08:00

Saturday Poetry 9th April, 1.30pm-3.30pm at the Grove Library. This workshop will look at "The Beauty of Collisions”. We might think of aeronautical or marine collisions, the physical collisions of people. However, the idea is to imagine how opposites work together and how interesting language is when it collides from two different polarities. Poets cited: Mary Oliver, Dorothy Porter, Bronwyn Lea, Ian Duhig and Christopher James. We will also briefly look at alliteration and assonance (from Mary Oliver’s A Poetry Handbook). Check out our side panels for costs and directions to The Grove.

Friday Prose at the Fremantle Arts Centre

2011-04-05T11:13:00.003+08:00

WRITING AT THE CENTRE

Prose this Friday – 8th April continues with the Natalie Goldberg Series Workshop #5. We will briefly revise the class on Jack Kerouac, then look at: 1. Learning to By-pass Your Internal Editor. 2. Creator/Editor. 3. Trusting in Yourself.

Prior to writing exercises there will be a discussion on “the sensation of space”, the influences of the two-dimensional on our writing as opposed to the way we experience the world three dimensionally.

Saturday Poetry at the Grove

2011-03-25T17:55:00.007+08:00

Saturday Poetry 26th March, 1.30pm-3.30pm at the Grove Library. The class will look at ‘Writing to a Theme of Home” and in particular the subject of "furniture". Quite often journals or poetry competitions invite submissions that revolve around theme. How do we get in the mood to write something with a theme in mind? The idea is to start by narrowing down such a large theme as “HOME” to the sum of its parts. What are those parts when it comes to poetry? We might start by splitting ‘home’ into its broader sections such as Outdoors/ Indoors. Poets cited: Seamus Heaney, Les Murray, Carol Ann Duffy, Fleda Brown, Jacob Polley and more. We will also briefly look at that pesky comma. Where does it go, if at all? Check out our side columns for costs and map to the Grove. All welcome!

Creative Writing Series, "Releasing the Writer Within" at the FAC

2011-03-23T07:38:00.003+08:00

Prose this Friday – 25th March continues with the Natalie Goldberg Series Workshop #4. We will briefly revise previous notes before an introduction to the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics/ Kerouac’s - First Thought, Best Thought/ His List of Essentials & Spontaneous Prose. Prior to writing exercises there will be a discussion on the term “disembodied poetics” and a reading from Kerouac - his book “On the Road”.

An Advanced Easter Notice

2011-03-15T10:08:00.005+08:00

The Friday Prose Class and Saturday Poetry at the Grove Library will be cancelled due to the Easter Holidays. The Library is also closed). Please make a note in your diary - Friday 22nd April - no class at the Fremantle Arts Centre. And Saturday 23rd April - no Saturday Poetry at the Grove Library. These classes will resume again on Friday 6th May and Saturday 7th May. Many thanks.

Saturday Poetry at the Grove

2011-03-10T09:34:00.002+08:00

Saturday Poetry 12th March, 1.30pm-3.30pm at the Grove Library. The class will look at ‘Writing the Uncertainties in Poetry”. In particular, we will look at the work of Tony Curtis, an Irish Poet and recent visitor to Perth. While we do not have the uncertainties of Irish life, there are still uncertainties in the Australian landscape & lifestyle. Prior to writing exercises, we will listen to poetry by Tony Curtis, a reading of William Shakespeare's sonnet No. 18, and William Wordsworth's 'Composed upon Westminster Bridge'. Thus briefly looking at ‘iambic pentameter’ in the traditional sonnet. All welcome!

Creative Writing at the Fremantle Arts Centre

2011-03-09T10:53:00.007+08:00

RELEASING THE WRITER WITHIN
Workshop #3, Friday 11th March, 10.00am-noon

We will REVISE Workshop #2 and (along with writing exercises) we will look at

1. The Power of Detail/ Original Detail
2. Zen Meditation
3. Western Ideas meeting Eastern Ideas
4. Releasing Your Wild Mind
5. Style

Prior to using Taro Cards for inspiration, Leanne Searle will give a brief talk about the subject of Tarot Cards.

Cost per class: OOTA $20/$15 NON-OOTA $30/$20 Concession. Venue: Upstairs Room 9 (North Wing) Fremantle Arts Centre

Saturday Poetry at the Grove

2011-02-22T08:58:00.007+08:00

Helen Hagemann’s Saturday Poetry on 26th February is called “Lineage/Names”. We will briefly look at ‘turning the line’ in free verse, and then explore the layers of meaning to be found in that obscure but crucial component of identity: your name. Names that we are given at birth become an integral part of our social identity, whether we like it or not. We will look at such poets as Les Murray, Andrew Taylor, Kevin Hart, Anna Akhmatova, Sharon Olds, and more..[works cited A Poetry Handbook by Mary Oliver/ What's in a Name by Colette Bryce] 1.30pm-3.30pm in the Flax Room at the Grove Library. Please note: Parking is available under the library, however you must move your car before 4.00pm! View side columns for map/costs, etc. All welcome!

Creative Writing Series, "Releasing the Writer Within"

2011-02-21T11:07:00.009+08:00

Next Class Friday, 25th February, 10.00-noon

Workshop #2, Friday 25th February, 10.00am-noon

We will REVISE Workshop #1 and (along with writing exercises) we will look at

1. Dredging Stuff from Your Mind/ Being the Judge of Your Own Private Knowledge
2. Journal writing –v–Blog writing as writing practice
3. Writing rituals/ the Mystifying Mind
4. Writing the Big Sky
5. Style

Cost per class: OOTA $20/$15 NON-OOTA $30/$20 Concession. Venue: Upstairs Room 9 (North Wing) Fremantle Arts Centre

Saturday Poetry at the Grove Library

2011-02-08T09:44:00.002+08:00

Term 1 commences this Saturday 12th February, 1.30pm-3.30pm at the Grove Library. The class is called “Epistolary Poetry”. Through study & writing exercises we will look at the various styles of “verse letters” by such poets as Ezra Pound, Rainer Maria Rilke, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Donald Hall, Mary Oliver and many more. Check out the blog for increased costs for NON-OOTA writers.

New Series of Writing Workshops at the FAC

2011-02-04T11:33:00.013+08:00

RELEASING THE WRITER WITHIN

Helen Hagemann introduces Releasing the Writer Within into her prose classes. Six workshops commencing 11th February – 6th May (fortnightly) will cover the teachings & philosophy of Natalie Goldberg - author of Writing Down the Bones & Wild Mind.
Workshop #1 – 11th February
An introduction into Natalie Goldberg’s teachings on Writing Practice/ Enlightenment /Releasing the Imagination/ Making that kamikaze leap.
Workshop #2 – 25th February
Dredging stuff from your mind/ Being the judge of your own private knowledge/ Style.
Workshop #3 – 11th March
Some thoughts on Zen Meditation & how to discover original detail. Class looks at ways of tapping into ORIGINAL DETAIL/ releasing your wild mind.
Workshop #4 – 25th March
Introducing the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics.
Workshop #5 – 8th April
By-passing your internal editor.

NO CLASS 22nd April – Easter Good Friday

Workshop #6 – 6th May
Developing your craft. Writing beyond your comfort zone. Hemingway once wrote, “Write hard and clear about what hurts.”

Friday (fortnightly) 10.00am-noon. Cost per class: OOTA $20/$15 NON-OOTA $30/$20 Concession. Venue: Upstairs Room 9 (North Wing) Fremantle Arts Centre

Creative Writing at the Fremantle Arts Centre for 2011

2011-01-25T08:50:00.004+08:00

Helen Hagemann's first prose workshop on Friday, 28th January is ‘Writing Drama in Fiction’. This class will focus on the elements of drama such as suspense, action and withheld information. Prior to writing exercises, the class will discuss your goals for 2011. Please Note: writers who are attending are advised that we have moved from the Function room to Room 9, North Wing of the Fremantle Arts Centre.

Classes resume for 2011

2011-01-18T17:18:00.015+08:00

Poetry this week with Shane McCauley. Friday 21st January, 10.00am - noon, upstairs Room 9 at the Fremantle Arts Centre, 1 Finnerty St. Fremantle. No booking required.

Saturday Poetry
Join Helen Hagemann for her after hours Saturday Poetry Class (fortnightly) at the Grove Library. 1.30pm - 3.30pm. Term 1 commences on Saturday, 12th February and finishes on Saturday, 2nd July 2011. The class will again meet in the Flax Room of the Grove - 1 Leake St (cnr Leake St & Stirling Hwy), Peppermint Grove. Under-croft parking is also available off Leake Street. All welcome!

12/2; 26/2; 12/3; 26/3; 9/4; 23/4; 7/5; 21/5; 4/6; 18/6; 2/7

Please note: Non-members fees for poetry have increased; Waged $22, Unwaged $17

Prose & Poetry Classes for 2011 at the FAC

2010-12-22T09:17:00.001+08:00

Advance Notice:

The Function Room is unavailable for classes next year, and we will be in Room 9 in the North Wing, upstairs in the Fremantle Arts Centre. The tables and chairs we normally use will be in that room. More information next year. Poetry commences on Friday, 21st January and Prose the following week, 28th January, 10.00am - midday.
We hope to see you in the New Year for more writing inspiration!
Best wishes for Xmas, Shane & Helen.

LAST CLASSES FOR 2010!

2010-11-28T09:44:00.002+08:00

Writing at the Centre

Last Prose class for 2010 is Friday, 3rd December 10.00am - midday. Class involves writing exercises and readings of your work. 1st Hour writing. 2nd Hour Readings. Writers have 5-8 minutes for their prose. Members are free to join us at 11.00am either as audience, or as readers if we can fit you in. All welcome!

Saturday Poetry at the Grove Library

Last poetry class for the year is Saturday, 4th December at 1.30pm - 3.30pm.
1st Hour writing exercises with writing prompts. 2nd Hour: readings of your work. Come along and read your best work for enjoyment and discussion (5-8 minutes each). Anything Christmassy or themes of summer/holidays would be great to put us in the mood! All welcome!

Sue Clennell teaching at the FAC & Grove Library

2010-11-04T12:09:00.001+08:00

Sue Clennell will be teaching at the FAC & Grove Library during Helen's absence.

Saturday 6 November at the Grove Library will be: Spicing up your poetry, writing sensually.

Friday 19th November the Prose Class at the Fremantle Arts Centre is called: "Creating Interesting Characters". We will be looking at the techniques of Peter Carey and E. Annie-Proulx.

Saturday 20 November at the Grove Library will be: Looking at Prose Poetry. We will be examining the style of Chris Fontana, a past winner of The Josephine Ulrick Poetry Prize, and other prose poets.

Sue Clennell has had short stories published by The West Australian, Imago, Idiom 23 and in various anthologies. Her poetry has been published by The Weekend Australian, The West Australian, Quadrant, Studio, Southern Review, Creatrix, Speedpoets and the school text books Appreciating Poetry and Secondary English. Sue's prose poems 'The Moon is an Ice Cream' was runner-up in the 2006 Josephine Ulrick Poetry Prize, and 'Loquats Must be Ripe' commended in the 2007 Josephine Ulrick Poetry Prize. She has published a poetry book The Ink Drinkers and has recently released a poetry CD titled 'The Van Gogh Cafe.'

Helen Hagemann's Prose Class at the FAC

2010-11-01T11:44:00.003+08:00

Friday’s Prose class on 5th November is called “An Overview: Conquering the Short Story”. Using our text Creating Short Fiction by Damon Knight, the class will go through Knight’s list of ‘controlling a short story’ using his related exercises, including Surprise, Voice & Persona, Setting as Mood, Dialogue, etc. Please note: Sue Clennell will be teaching 19th November class while Helen is away. See further details of Sue’s OOTA classes on this blog and @ www.ootawriters.blogspot.com

Saturday Poetry 23rd October, at The Grove Library, Peppermint Grove

2010-10-20T21:57:00.002+08:00

Helen Hagemann's Saturday Poetry class on 23rd October, 1.30pm-3.30pm, will look at the “Contemporary Avant Garde“. This is not L=A=N=G=U=A=G=E poetry, but rather a contemporary view of poetry that is sklent, playful and fresh. This is a form of writing that Les Murray defines as “slightly off the page”. We will look at poets such as Les Murray, Gig Ryan, John Ashbery, and in particular Chinese poet Xue Di. All welcome!

Helen Hagemann's Prose Class at the FAC

2010-10-17T15:16:00.005+08:00

Friday’s Prose class on 22nd October is called “What makes the Winning Story a Winner?” We will look at Sarah Evans’ Spilt Ink winning story Burying the Button in order to discover the elements of a 1st Prize winning story. Through creative writing exercises, and in conjunction with Damon Knight‘s Creating Short Fiction, we will re-discover the ten best steps towards creating publishable and winning stories. OOTA members who will be attending on the day can download Sarah’s story in pdf format at the top of OOTA's blog page. Check our Sarah's story here

Poetry with Shane McCauley at the Fremantle Arts Centre

2010-10-13T08:11:00.003+08:00

It's poetry with Shane McCauley this Friday, 15th October 10.00am-midday. Please note: the Function room is booked for another event and writers are to meet in Room 9, upstairs in the old Museum. Please inquire at the front desk for directions.

Saturday Poetry 9th October, at The Grove Library, Peppermint Grove

2010-10-06T11:04:00.000+08:00

Helen Hagemann's Saturday Poetry class on 9th October, 1.30pm-3.30pm, is called “The Question in Poetry”. We will look at various questions and why particular poets ask these questions throughout the poem. Poets’ works cited: M.S. Merwin, Wallace Stevens, May Swenson, Tric O’Heare, John Mateer and Les Murray. Check out the blog for directions and map to The Grove on our map below. All welcome!

Creating Writing at the Fremantle Arts Centre Friday 8th October

2010-10-05T07:40:00.001+08:00

Friday’s Prose class on 8th October is called “The Expository Lump & How to Avoid it”. Sounds like some affliction doesn’t it? However in short fiction it’s best to check this out! Using our text to the end of the year, Creating Short Fiction by Damon Knight, the class will look at “background and setting” in stories and how much of it can be conveyed through the character. Knight suggests we must learn the art of what Robin Wilson calls “furnishing the world on a budget.”

Saturday Poetry at The Grove Library, 25th September

2010-09-21T09:16:00.003+08:00

Helen Hagemann's Saturday Poetry class on 25th September, 1.30pm-3.30pm, is called “Ekphrastic Poetry “. Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats is a famous example of ekphrastic poetry. We will especially utilize the library, looking at works by Monet, Hans Heysen, Demuth & others. In a special section we will view the artwork of our class member Joanna Wakefield. Poets cited: William Carlos Williams, James Wright, Robert Hayden, Andrew Lansdown & yours truly. All welcome!

Creating Writing at the Fremantle Arts Centre

2010-09-21T08:45:00.005+08:00

Join Helen Hagemann's Friday Prose class on 24th September. This workshop is called “All Roads Lead to…” Continuing on with our two character story, and using Creating Short Fiction by Damon Knight, the class will look at further "intersections" in the short story form, including the introduction of a 3rd character. The story set for this week to read and discuss in class is Ernest Hemingway’s Hills Like White Elephants, and for those who are thinking of coming on the day, you can download the text here...

Poetry this week, 17th September at the FAC

2010-09-15T09:01:00.001+08:00

Poetry is our Next Class at the Fremantle Arts Centre
Friday the 17th September is our poetry class with Shane McCauley. So why not come along and learn with Western Australia's top published poet. Class commences at 10.00am to midday. Poets also meet after class for coffee or lunch at the FAC's Coffee Shop. All Welcome!

Saturday Poetry at The Grove Library, 11th September 2010

2010-09-06T15:56:00.005+08:00

Saturday Poetry at The Grove Library, Peppermint Grove
Join Helen Hagemann's Saturday Poetry class at The Grove, 11th September, 1.30pm-3.30pm. This workshop is called “Personification: Minimal or Extension in Poetry”. The class will look at the use of personification that is not mere decoration but the very essence of an intuitive language. Poets cited are Rainer Maria Rilke, Sylvia Plath, Raymond Carver, Vernon Scannell, and using a model of one of Billy Collins' poems we will write a personified poem on the day. The Grove Library is situated at 1 Leake Street, Peppermint Grove (just around the corner from Stirling Highway). All welcome!

Prose with Helen Hagemann, Friday 10th September

2010-09-02T08:03:00.007+08:00

The Prose class on Friday 10th September is as follows:-

1st Hour - Creative Writing Exercises, looking at "intersections" in the short story form.
2nd Hour - Readings of Your Work. Writers have 6-8 minutes to read their work, either from a novel, short story, flash fiction or a vignette.

Writers wishing to read are asked to advise Helen @ hagemann.helen@gmail.com in order to determine the order of readers and allotted time.

All welcome!

Saturday Poetry now meets at The Grove Library, Saturday fortnightly

2010-08-26T13:06:00.006+08:00

Saturday Class 28th August, 1.30-3.30pm

This class will look at the inclusion of “MOTIF” in poetry and ways of making your contemporary verse richer with wider references. Prior to writing exercises we will look at the work of Andrew Marvell, Nathan Curnow, Kate Llewellyn, Michael Ondaatje and Andrew Taylor. The Grove Library is situated at 1 Leake Street, Peppermint Grove (just around the corner from Stirling Highway). All welcome!
Please note: The Library has advised that we are free to take in coffee/tea if you purchase on the way.

How to Get to "The Grove" Library

2010-08-23T11:25:00.003+08:00

View Larger Map

Saturday Poetry now meets at The Grove Library

2010-08-22T10:28:00.016+08:00

Dear poets,
WE HAVE MOVED!
I have booked our next Saturday Poetry @ The Grove Library, situated at 1 Leake Street, Peppermint Grove (just around the corner from Stirling Highway). Thank you for bearing with me in regards to change of venue. I was absolutely amazed that the Bookcaffe (Swanbourne) did not want extra business with a much larger group! Times have certainly changed since poets/writers/artists met in cafés and were valued culturally. See details of our next class (below) at The Grove!
Parking: Available under the library. If closed there is parking in Leake Street and two-tiered parking (opposite) behind the shopping centre.
Train Station: Cottesloe, then a short walk down Napolean Street which emerges into Leake Street.

Saturday Poetry, Ways to the Metaphor

2010-08-08T08:47:00.012+08:00

Saturday Poetry at the Bookcaffe Cafe, Swanbourne
Join Helen Hagemann's Saturday Poetry for Term 2 at the Bookcaffe, Swanbourne on 14th August, 2.15pm - 4.30pm. The first workshop entitled "Ways to the Metaphor" will help poets move away from "images that are just images" to metaphor that makes a comparison like Michael Ondaatje's grasshoppers as "dolphins of drought". Poets are advised that as the cafe supports our class each Saturday fortnight, there is a stipulation that the group purchase coffee/tea/soft drink or food on the day. I hope you can all make it at 2.15pm for beverage orders first, then the class will commence at 2.30pm or thereabouts. OOTA $15, Non-members $20. All welcome!

View Larger Map

Prose Workshop - Friday, 30th July, 2010

2010-07-27T09:39:00.003+08:00

AT THE FREMANTLE ARTS CENTRE
Workshop: Looking at the Work of Lynda Barry with Helen Hagemann
The prose workshop on Friday, 30th July will look at the work of Lynda Barry and her book “What it is”. Lynda Barry is an American cartoonist, graphic novelist, and award-winning author. Her books include The Good Times are Killing Me, The Greatest of Marlys, The Freddie Stories, Cruddy: An Illustrated Novel, One! Hundred! Demons! and What It Is. She has also written Everything in the World, The Fun House, It's So Magic, Naked Ladies Naked Ladies Naked Ladies, Shake a Tail Feather, Down the Street, Big Ideas, Come Over Come Over, Girls and Boys and My Perfect Life.
The class will look at Barry’s unique approach to writing, re-writing & editing, and how her creative insights into childhood experiences can serve our creativity. Prior to writing exercises the class will discuss Carole Johnson’s Memorial to a Name from Indigo #4, 2009. All welcome!

Writing Faction / Historical Fiction - Friday 16th July 2010

2010-07-13T12:37:00.003+08:00

This workshop with Helen Hagemann explores the differences between "faction" & "historical fiction". The class will look at famous people/ famous events and the creative aspect of writing what has not been previously treated. Prior to writing exercises writers will discuss Jane Durkin’s The Harder You Work the Luckier You Get from Indigo #4, 2009

Great News!

2010-07-08T15:32:00.008+08:00

Dear Saturday Poets,
I'm pleased to announce that we have a venue for Saturday Poetry. The Bookcaffe Swanbourne as you will read are happy to have us meet in the book cafe each fortnight. However, there is a proviso that we must support the cafe with the purchase of coffee/ tea + cake/sandwich, etc. The class fee will cover the cost of the class and orders for coffee/ tea will be taken prior to the commencement of class. I hope that most of you will come along, on Saturday 14th August commencing at 2.15pm for a class start @ 2.30pm - 4.30pm.
Address: Bookcaffe, 137 Claremont Crescent, Swanbourne. WA

Hello Helen,

We would be delighted to welcome your group at the Bookcaffe every second Saturday from August 14th, 2.30-4.30pm. We do appreciate your reciprocal support of the café and we are sure you will all enjoy our superb coffee and delicious selection of cakes which are baked in our own kitchen. We only have a small poetry section in the bookstore but we are always happy to order in particular titles if required.

Warmest wishes,

Geraldine @ Bookcaffe

Renga, Hunters in the Snow by Saturday Poets

2010-07-04T11:57:00.015+08:00

This Renga was written by OOTA's Saturday poets who were inspired by images from William Carlos William's poem, Hunter in the Snow.

Hunters in the Snow (Peter Brueghel, 1565)

Snow packed roofs and frozen fields
Sunset shadowing the land

The hunters trek past the bonfire
Past the women, past the bare trees
That leave no shadow on the snow

Through the stark trees
The hunters trudge

Their stooped backs weary
Dragging numb feet through snow
Even the dogs droop

Amongst the black dogs
A red one, the colour of wine

Skaters fleck the slabs of ice.
Winter has slowed the rivers
And stripped the trees

Sticks in the foreground
A tangle of black

The kettle whistles on the stove
A bottle of schnapps is passed
Along cold men's lips

Only a hint of night lies beyond this image
The sun folded down with the artist's box

by Mags Webster, Mary Jarzabkowski, Eve Stromback, Julie Watts & Helen Hagemann

Saturday Poetry Takes a Break!

2010-06-28T12:54:00.000+08:00

Saturday poetry with Helen Hagemann has finished for Term 1. In the interim we will be changing venues from the Fremantle Library and possibly holding our workshops in the Bookcaffe Swanbourne. Stay tuned until early August when further details will be posted!

Saturday Poetry with Helen Hagemann, 19th June

2010-06-17T08:52:00.002+08:00

Saturday Poetry Class, 19th June at the Fremantle Library

This workshop will focus on writing "place". Do we name places in our work? Can place be fiction or must it be factual? What does this do historically in the writing of the poem? We will look at the way poets such as Walt Whitman, Seamus Heaney, Jo Shapcott, John Mateer, Andrew Taylor, and Lorna Crozier write about place. This is our last class for Term 1 at the Fremantle Library, until 14th August. 1.00-3.00pm at the Reference Table. All welcome!

Prose Class at FAC - Friday 18th June

2010-06-15T19:51:00.003+08:00

WRITING AT THE CENTRE
The prose workshop on Friday, 18th June is called "Writing your Own Genre". This class will revise the genre list and look at cross-genres, hybrid forms that combine all forms of writing. We will especially look at ways in which short fiction, poetry, biography and non-fiction can be combined together. In creative writing exercises we will use lines and paragraphs from authors & poets’ works, such as Virginia Woolf, Thomas Pynchon, Germaine Greer, Sharon Olds to work on our narrative mix. Prior to writing exercises, the class will discuss A Tough Story for a Sparkling Morning Like This by Linda Bradbury from indigo #4.

Saturday Poetry, 5th June at the Fremantle Library

2010-06-01T10:46:00.002+08:00

Writing Two Forms: The Villanelle & the Renga
Saturday Poetry Class, 5th June at the Fremantle Library
This workshop will focus on writing two forms that includes one traditional form: the Villanelle & a Japanese form that evolved from the Tanka, known as the Renga. Poets cited: Dylan Thomas, Sylvia Plath, Theodore Roethke, Steven Cramer, Wallace Stevens, & William Carlos Williams. 1.00-3.00pm at the Reference Table. All welcome!

Prose Class 4th June - Fremantle Arts Centre

2010-05-31T14:48:00.002+08:00

Join Helen Hagemann at the Fremantle Arts Centre

The prose workshop on Friday, 4th June is called "The Wide Open Road of Prose". This class will look at the incorporation of cultural references into our work. Much like today’s technology of the Internet “Cloud”, writers can draw on a vast array of signifiers that place a work of fiction in its cultural significance of time and place. We will look at the signifiers that do this, and the prime signifiers that can reach any reader from Baby Boomers to the now Gen-Y people. Prior to writing exercises, the class will discuss the story Skin by Helena Kadmos from indigo #4.

Term One - Final Sat Poetry Classes 5th & 19th June

2010-05-24T07:56:00.008+08:00

Dear poets
Many thanks to all those who have attended Helen Hagemann’s Saturday Poetry Class. As previously mentioned there are two terms per year and the class will soon close for a mid-term break. Two classes remain: Saturday 5th June, & Saturday 19th June. The break will occur from this last Saturday 19th June until 14th August 2010. This will give us plenty of time to secure new premises for the class. I am currently looking at two venues: The Glyde-Inn Community Centre and the Meeting Place, both in Fremantle.

I wish to advise also that there will be plenty of poetry happenings in July. The Fremantle Press are organizing a July Poetry Month with readings, & hopefully there will be some workshops you can attend. You can check out the details @ http://www.fremantlepress.blogspot.com/

In relation to the two classes left in the Fremantle Library, their support for the class ceases at the end of June. While we have enjoyed their great space in the reference section, I am really looking forward to a suitable venue that allows much writing, poetry conversation, tea & coffee in a relaxed atmosphere. I will keep you posted about the new arrangements. Until then, happy writing & I hope to see you for the last 2 classes for Term One!

Cheers for now,

Helen

Mobile: 0404666156

http://www.ootawriters.blogspot.com

Saturday Poetry, 22nd May at the Fremantle Library

2010-05-19T06:56:00.003+08:00

Writing Modern Forms
Saturday Poetry Class, 22nd May at the Fremantle Library
This workshop will focus on various modern forms that have emerged since the more traditional forms of the Sonnet, Villanelle, Sestina, Pantoum, etc. The class will look at the way the poem appears on the page, and how each form works from the first line to the final. Now famously known as the Ezra Pound couplet, Pound’s two lines work by comparison. His famous poem In a Station of the Metro was originally created by looking at blank faces in a Paris underground station. Writing exercises will have you experimenting with modern forms. Poets’ works cited: Ezra Pound, Robert Adamson, Alex Skovron, Carol Ann Duffy, Sheryl Persson and Fay Zwicky. $15 OOTA members/unwaged - $20 Non-member/waged. All welcome!

Prose Class 21st May - Fremantle Arts Centre

2010-05-18T06:53:00.003+08:00

The Liminal Zone
The prose workshop on Friday, 21st May will be conducted by Lucas North, while Helen is attending the launch of WA poets’ CD 22, published by writingWA/ Educ Dept. By using examples of authors’ works, Lucas will look at how writers construct liminal space. What types of spaces/places are represented in their works? How are received notions of space/place interpreted, accepted, or contested? Please note: This week’s reading of Skin in indigo #4 is postponed until Helen returns to class on Friday, 4th June.

Poetry is our Next Class at the Fremantle Arts Centre

2010-05-10T20:45:00.002+08:00

Friday the 14th May is our poetry class with Shane McCauley. So why not come along and learn with Western Australia's top published poet. Class commences at 10.00am to midday. Poets also meet after class for coffee or lunch at the FAC's Coffee Shop. All Welcome!

Saturday Poetry Class at the Fremantle Library

2010-05-06T21:56:00.003+08:00

Syntax & the Sentence in Poetry
Saturday Poetry Class, 8th May at the Fremantle Library
This workshop will focus on breaking out of controlled syntax and sentence structure. Using Natalie Goldberg's book Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within, we will look at ways of unlocking the usual sentence structure of "subject/verb/object" and also ways of joining nouns with verbs to see what combinations we can come up with. Poets cited: Judith Beveridge, Michael Farrell & Kevin Gillam. 1.00-3.00pm at the Reference Table. $15 OOTA members & unwaged. $20 Non-member & waged. All welcome!

Fremantle Prose Class - Friday 7th May 2010

2010-05-02T07:46:00.005+08:00

WRITING AT THE CENTRE

The prose workshop on Friday, 7th May is called "Jumping Crocodiles: The Leap from Short Story to Novel". In our writing lives we are often faced with negativity; danger crocodiles ahead! This class will discuss ways of jumping over the snares, hazards and precarious blocks that keep us from writing the "great Australian novel". The text used in class will be H.M. Brown's novel Red Queen - already winning awards as a first novel. Aurealis Award 2009 - Winner Best Horror Novel; FAW Award 2009 - Highly commended Christina Stead Award; Australian Shadows Award 2009 - Short-listed Long Fiction. Prior to writing exercises, the class will discuss the story Newly Born by Melissa O'Shea from indigo #4.

Creative Writing @ FAC & Saturday Poetry at Fremantle Library

2010-04-20T22:16:00.002+08:00

500 Words: Short Fiction: What Style, Voice and Structure?
The prose workshop on Friday, 23rd April will look at the various ways of writing effective short fiction that is 500 words or less. One of the greatest difficulties for writers is finding an idea for short fiction that has an impact on the reader in so few words. We will look at the most common concerns and narrative elements such as style, voice and structure. Class will also discuss Stingers by Richard Tunbridge from indigo #4.

Writing Space
Saturday Poetry Class, 24th April at the Fremantle Library
This workshop will focus on the experience of space and how certain spaces/places where we have lived, grown up from childhood to adulthood have roles in our imaginary lives. We will look at how writers construct literary space. What types of spaces/places are represented in their works? How are received notions of space/place interpreted, accepted, or contested. Writing exercises will cover the intimacy of places/spaces of confinement; spaces in the city/ country; bodies in space/sexuality and space; borders and boundaries, liminality, and textual spaces conveyed in writing. Poets’ works cited: Caroline Caddy, Zan Ross, John Kinsella, Mark Reid, and Graeme Miles.

Saturday Poetry on "The Image" - Fremantle Library

2010-04-06T06:46:00.004+08:00

Saturday Poetry Class with Helen Hagemann
On Saturday 10th April the workshop will look at "The Image". It seems at first glance that everybody knows what an image is, but in actuality the image is not so simple in poetry. It is a graphic description or representation of an object so vividly rendered that its reality seems immediate. All the five senses may be called into play, or the one or two whose apprehension of the image in question are most vivid; in particular, of course, visual comprehension is recreated. The class will look at the images in the poems by Amy Lowell, Wallace Stevens, Rob Wallis and Brendan Ryan, together with writing exercises. $15 OOTA members, $20 non-members. 1.00-3.00pm in the Fremantle Library - Reference Table. All welcome!

Prose Class - Friday 9th April at the Fremantle Arts Centre

2010-04-05T17:23:00.005+08:00

The Creation of Character: From Inside out/Outside in
This Friday Helen Hagemann's prose class will look at 'The Creation of Character' - From Inside Out and from Outside In. The workshop is about developing characters, understanding the differences of creating characters from opposite ends. Whichever method you use -- inside out, or outside in -- remember that character development is a process of discovery. Story to read this week from Indigo Journal #4 is The Visitor by Nadine Brown. All welcome!

Helen Hagemann's Prose on Friday, 26th March 2010

2010-03-25T13:46:00.004+08:00

Prose class this Friday, 26^th March is a workshop titled - 'Words, Language and the use of Motif in Prose'. The class will look at the use of figurative language and the consistency of motif, along with discussion and writing exercises. We will also briefly discuss Rosemary Stevens’ short story The Inheritance from Indigo Volume #4. 10.00am start til midday, upstairs in the Function Room of the Fremantle Arts Centre. All welcome!

Cancelled due to Lack of Numbers

2010-03-24T08:02:00.003+08:00

The Joy of Facts with Bruce Russell

A 10-week course in creative non-fiction (incorporating ‘Get a Life’)

Friday April 9 to Friday June 11, 2010. 1-3pm

Fremantle Arts Centre

Creative Non-fiction is an exciting new development in the writing world. Its progenitors include ‘faction’, new journalism and the essay. The course is based on Mark Tredinnick’s popular Little Red Writing Book (UNSW Press). This text will be supplemented by exemplary readings from memoirists, landscape writers, war correspondents, biographers and exponents of ‘new journalism’. Each week there will be a presentation and discussion about the weekly topic. This is followed by in-class readings of short, exemplary works. Participants will then be offered a series of writing exercises, which they can commence in class and continue at home. At the end of the course participants will be encouraged to present their finished pieces and submit to literary journals.

OOTA Members $220. Full Price $250.

No drop-in rates, full course enrolments only. $100 deposit with enrolment. Include one page outlining your writing credits/experience. Please send to:

The Joy of Facts

Dr Bruce Russell

30 May Street

East Fremantle, WA 6158

or email brucer@iinet.net.au (and arrange to pay by direct deposit).

Poetry Class - Saturday 27th March, Fremantle Library

2010-03-21T18:13:00.006+08:00

Helen Hagemann's class on Saturday 27th March in the Fremantle Library is called "Memory is a Kind of Accomplishment". We will examine memory that has always been a useful resource for poets to excavate the subject of their poems. Even if you were in prison behind walls that did not let the sounds of the world come to your senses, wouldn't you still have your childhood, that precious, kingly possession, that treasure-house of memories? The class will look at poems by Robert Hayden, Theodore Roethke, Rita Dove, Stanley Kunitz, Andrew Burke and Morgan Yasbincek, together with writing exercises. $15 OOTA members, $20 non-members. 1.00-3.00pm All welcome!

Get a Life! - Change of Class

2010-03-14T11:07:00.003+08:00

Bruce Russell’s Creative Non-Fiction Class (The Joy of Facts) is taking a breather until after Easter. Look for further announcements in this bulletin. If you would be interested in signing up for a block of 10 weekly classes in this exciting new genre, please email brucer@iinet.net.au for further information, or talk to the man himself on 9339 2131.

Saturday Poetry resumes on 13th March at Fremantle Library

2010-03-02T11:39:00.005+08:00

Saturday Poetry in the Fremantle Library resumes on 13th March, 1.00-3.00pm. The class will be looking at the 'lyric', touching briefly on its history, changes, and the contemporary elements of lyrical writing. We will view poets such as Emily Dickinson, Sappho, William Carlos Williams, Judith Wright and Irish poet, Tony Curtis. We meet again in the reference section at the long table, so I hope to see you there for plenty of writing. All welcome!

Speculative Fiction & The Joy of Facts at the Fremantle Arts Centre

2010-02-24T11:36:00.002+08:00

WRITING AT THE CENTRE - this Friday, 26th February, 2010.

10am -12 noon

Helen Hagemann's Prose class this Friday, is a workshop titled - “Speculative Fiction – An Overview”. The class will look at SF’s literary genres, its sub-genres, and how to avoid clichés. Have you ever considered writing or submitting Speculative Fiction? Writing exercises using the “famous last lines of speculative fiction” will have you exploring this genre. We will also be discussing Nicole Sinclair’s short story ‘Undergrowth’ from indigo #4.

1pm-3pm - The Joy of Facts
This Friday, Bruce Russell’s life writing class changes its focus to Creative Non-fiction—a narrative approach to factual material. “Get a Life” participants are encouraged to attend and learn more about this exciting branch of the craft (and not be put off by the re-branding of the class).
Creative non-fiction is defined as a work of literature making a claim for the truth. “Trust me,” it says. “This work contains checkable facts”. Like memoir, it can be read as a non-expert discourse. Its popularity in recent years is reflected in this weekend’s Perth Writer’s Festival program, featuring writers such as Barry Lopez, William Dalrymple and others.
In his opening class on CNF, Bruce will focus on staking out the territory of this very broad genre—which includes life writing—and engaging with some of its leading lights.

Poetry Class - Saturday 27th February, Fremantle Library

2010-02-18T10:13:00.003+08:00

Cancellation of Class
Due to OOTA writers and poets wishing to attend the Perth Writers Festival, Helen Hagemann advises that her Saturday, 27th February class is cancelled. Saturday Poetry will meet again on 13th March at 1.00pm-3.00pm in the Fremantle Library. Stay tuned for the topic of the day!

Poetry Class - Saturday 13th February, Fremantle Library

2010-02-09T17:18:00.002+08:00

Join Helen Hagemann on Saturday 13th February 1.00-3.00pm in the Fremantle Library. $15 OOTA members, $20 non-members. Helen will be looking at "The Subject of Poetry" - finding inspiration in objects and the poetic images of Sylvia Plath, Tracy Ryan, Lorna Crozier, Kate Llewellyn and Anthony Lawrence. Just a note: Please bring a clipboard or hard back notebook to support your writing. All welcome!

Launch of Indigo Journal #5

2010-01-28T11:39:00.007+08:00

Tactile Books invites you to the celebration of indigo journal 5
Saturday 27th February 2010
6:15pm – 7:15pm
New Fortune Theatre
University of Western Australia
35 Stirling Highway, Crawley

Launched by Alex Miller, with guest appearance from Dr Carmen Lawrence and performance readings by Kate Hall and Murray Dowsett

RSVP 18th February 2010 to:
info@indigojournal.org.au
indigo journal will be on sale for $25

Download invitation...

Fremantle Saturday Poetry Class

2010-01-22T16:42:00.006+08:00

Helen Hagemann announces the commencement of a new Saturday Poetry Class
The new class will begin on Saturday 13th February, 1.00-3.00pm and thereafter each fortnight.
Venue: The Fremantle Library, (at the back area of the library). This venue may change in future months if not entirely suitable. OOTA members $15.00, non-members $20.00. Email Helen at hagemann.helen@gmail.com for further information. Hope to see you all there!
You can check out Helen's Poetry, Bio and Books here...

Date Change for Memoir Class

2010-01-19T09:30:00.002+08:00

Bruce Russell's class Get a Life! has changed to the alternate Friday after Prose, commencing on 29th January, 1.00pm-3.00pm

Creative Writing in Fremantle

2010-01-19T09:22:00.005+08:00

Our 2010 Classes Commence this Week!
Poetry with Shane McCauley, 22nd Friday at 10.00am, upstairs in the Function Room of the Fremantle Arts Centre.

Perth Writers Festival

2010-01-19T08:51:00.002+08:00

Writers' Festivals Far & Near

Right – time to get out your diary and make a note of this year’s two great writers’ festivals. They’ll be happening in Perth & Adelaide, so just a hop, step & jump to that cultural church city or take a leafy stroll around the grounds of University of WA, Crawley, WA.

And they've already announced a stellar line-up of international and Australian authors for Perth. Alex Miller, Amanda Lohrey, Andrea Goldsmith, Craig Silvey, Dianne Wolfer, Garth Nix, Kalinda Ashton, Morris Gleitzman, Linda Jaivin and many more. Check out the

Perth Writers Festival - 26 February to 1 March 2010

Adelaide Festival Writers Week - 28 February to 5 March 2010

The big festival for the year is the Adelaide Writers’ Week, which is part of the Adelaide Festival. Featured writers include Irvine Welsh (Trainspotting, Crime), Sarah Waters (2009 Booker Prize shortlisted The Little Stranger), Audrey Niffeneger (The Time Traveller’s Wife) and Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion) are just some of the international writers visiting. Australian authors appearing include Markus Zusak (The Book Thief), Cate Kennedy (The World Beneath), Brian Castro and Tom Kenneally.

Our New Site - for Writing Information

2010-01-18T17:23:00.000+08:00

Welcome to Writing at the Centre's blog.