Writing as the Inquisitive Reader

Class Description

As artists, we are often so steeped in subjectivity that we lose the capacity to engage with our writing as the expectant and imaginative reader. Literature as a resource can help us reconnect with the inspired and inquisitive writer-reader within us. In this class, for writers of short and long fiction, we’ll read a series of writings by African authors, testing our ability to place ourselves in a completely different time and place, challenging ourselves to imagine new narratives. African literature is indeed relatively untouched, though, through brilliant authors, vibrant cultures, and gripping histories, its impact is potentially far-reaching. As much as it has to offer us, it also welcomes our perspective, offering another avenue to connect with ourselves, as writers, and as humans. Whether read by members of the diaspora or simply students of humanity, African literature opens a door onto our past and, if navigated with skill and empathy, a portal to the future.

We’ll read excerpts from Chimamanda Adichie, Maaza Mengiste, and Chinua Achebe. All together we’ll anticipate sentences, extend ideas, and complete storylines. Through painful stories of societal disruption, namely the Ethiopian-Italian war of independence and the Biafran-Nigerian war of secession, we’ll imagine histories untouched by colonialism, and futures unaffected by infighting. Confronting a series of writing prompts, we’ll ask ourselves what comes next, in a sentence, a paragraph, or a story. In this seminar, we will connect to and write with a human understanding of people and place, and nourish our innate capacity to “flip the script” in our quest to become better writers.

Bring the writer you are and the writer you hope to become. Be prepared to read and generate writing. This class is open to all writers interested in African literature.

Class Format

This class will take place using Zoom videoconferencing. About 15 minutes before your class is scheduled to begin, you'll receive an email from your instructor with a link to join the class meeting!

Scholarship Information

Thanks to the excellent literary citizenship of our donors, scholarships are available for all GrubStreet classes. To apply, click the gray "APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIP" button. In order to be considered for a scholarship, you must complete your application at least one week before the start date of a class. Please await our scholarship committee's decision before registering for the class. We cannot hold spots in classes, so the sooner you apply, the better. Scholarships cannot be applied retroactively.

For more more detailed information about GrubStreet scholarships, including how to contribute to scholarship funds for other students, click here.