Writers’ class tackles the art of dialogue

Published 9:59 am Saturday, October 19, 2013

Bestselling novelist Jennie Shortridge will teach a class on how to write effective dialogue this weekend at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art.

Written dialogue can sound stilted and unnatural, can bog down a work’s narrative and pull readers out of a story. Shortridge will guide students through practicing the basic tenets of writing dialogue, “moving into artistic mastery and nuance.”

Students are asked to bring a few pages of dialogue from a current project, or write a scene with dialogue before class.  Students will analyze their work and work on ways to make it more effective.

The class is 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 20.

Shortridge has published five books, including her latest, “Love Water Memory” (Gallery Books – Simon & Schuster).

She has studied writing craft with some of the country’s best writers and editors, including Pam Houston, James McManus and Tom Jenks, who opened her eyes by saying, “Dialogue is a sword fight.”

Shortridge is a co-founder of Seattle7Writers.org, a nonprofit collective of Pacific Northwest authors whose mission is to foster and support a passion for the written word. She is a popular writing teacher in the Northwest.

The class is presented by Field’s End. Tuition is $100 and students may register online at www.fieldsend.org. Financial help is available through the Jack Olsen Memorial Tuition Assistance Fund. See the Field’s End website to learn how to apply for a class scholarship.

For those with questions or can’t register online for a class, contact the Field’s End registrar for help at registrar@fieldsend.org.

The class is scheduled for Classroom No. 1 at the new Museum of Art, 100 Ravine Lane NE.

Field’s End, an affiliate of the Bainbridge Public Library, offers workshops, classes and other events focusing on the art, craft and profession of writing.