Quick Fiction, sometimes known as Flash Fiction,
is a very short piece of writing of around 300 words. It could just be a
written image, a memory or perhaps a thought that has been on your mind for a
while. As a starting point for writing your own Quick Fiction, you will be
turning to your favourite literary characters for inspiration. After all, one
can certainly feel that fictional characters are as alive to us as our real
friends are. Charles Dickens, for instance, reputedly received an angry stream
of letters blaming him for the death of Little Nell in The Old Curiosity Shop.
Please bring along your favourite extracts from literature to share with the
group.
What is it that
fires our imagination, beauty or love, joy or hatred, rivalry or friendship,
truth or lies? Bring along your
favourite extracts from literature to share with the group. It may be sections from a particular novel,
poem or play or even lines that have stuck in your head since school. Expect
lively discussions as a springboard for your creativity and inspiration to
write our own quick fiction.
Each day we will
focus on two or three extracts, why they are important to us and how they might
inspire our own writing.
Questions on
writing style or technique will arise naturally out of our own ideas, the
material brought to the group and the work itself. I will not be imposing any
creative writing exercises.
I will bring along
my own favourites too:
·William
Blake - 'The Little Black Boy'.
·William
Shakespeare- Romeo and Juliet, scene in the tomb.
·Macbeth - Lady Macbeth washing her hands
·Charlotte
Bronte, Jane Eyre - scene in the red room.
·William
Trevor - short story 'Ballroom of Romance'.
·James
Joyce - final scene from Ulysses.
You will also
need, pen and paper and/or a laptop if you prefer.
Geraldine Gent
About Geraldine
Geraldine is currently studying with the Faber Academy while
working on her debut novel. She
completed her MA in Creative and Critical Writing at the University of Sussex, 2018.
She taught English Language and
Literature at Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys for twenty years where
she received the grade of 'Outstanding' from Ofsted. In her spare time, she wrote lesson plans for
the BBC website.
She promises to provide a
stimulating and lively environment enabling participants to write with flair
and creativity.
