(Janet won our quarterly Thurber House ticket giveaway. Make sure to sign up for our newsletter, to get your next chance to attend an event!)
The Thurber House has a valued reputation for presenting intriguing writing workshops, and none more so than Jen Knox’s Corporeal Creativity, presented March 11 from 6 to 7:30. I attended via Zoom, which was helpful as I live south of Dayton
. The class felt inclusive except for the inability to connect on a personal – more corporeal – level with the larger group. 🙂
Presenter Jen Knox created a welcoming atmosphere, asking all attendees to introduce themselves and share a brief description of where they are in their writing and what each hoped to gain from the class. The group was representative of the broad spectrum of writers, from those just starting out to others like me who are already published. Knox followed her instructional talk with examples from the writings of Lydia Yuknavitch, Richard Selzer, and Jeanette Winterson.
The class focused on helping writers get in touch and attuned to their physical bodies in a way that translates to the page. Creating characters and describing their actions through the use of the physical can enhance the story and bring the reader into a deeper connection with the work. The class included a meditative exercise and several writing prompts. Knox concluded the evening with a question and answer period that allowed attendees to explore additional areas or expand on what she presented.