Creative writing classes in English in Israel
Israel Writers Studio: a home for English-language creative writers and a hot cup of tea in my grandma’s floral teapot. A safe, supportive place to learn the craft, play with words, and be part of a writing community. A space that offers ongoing classes, half-day workshops, and one-on-one mentoring with Jennifer Lang, writer, instructor/coach, editor.
Writing Auto-Fiction, or How to Write about Yourself without Writing about Yourself with Janice Weizman
You want to write about the life you’ve lived, the experiences that shaped you, the hard-won insights you’ve gained along the way. But what if rather than just telling your story, you want the freedom to explore it without the constraint of “the facts”? How can you write truthfully about your life while rejecting memoir’s insistence of remaining faithful to “the truth”? The genre of Autofiction offers a way of writing a protagonist that shares key traits with the author but ultimately, and importantly, is not the author.
In this workshop, we’ll look at works of autofiction by Rachel Cusk, Chris Kraus, Ben Lerner, and Teju Cole, examining how these writers fictionalize themselves and their experiences. The writing exercises in this workshop will provide an opportunity for participants to experiment with material drawn directly from their own lives, while making use of the creative flexibility which the genre unlocks. and facilitating the first steps toward writing a work of autofiction.
Date: Thursday, October 28 from 10:00 – 13:30
Cost: 400nis if you register by October 1 and 450nis subsequently
Location: Central Tel Aviv, assuming it is safe to meet in person and on zoom if we are unable. Must have a valid green pass or negative PCR test within 72 hours of each class.
JUST WRITE!
This course is for anyone and everyone who wants to write but doesn’t know where to begin, how to carve out the time, or what to put on the page. It will provide you with in-class exercises, guidance, and a safe environment to explore various narrative elements, play with your voice, and share your words. Each week you will have the start of one or two new stories. Open to all levels, all genres.
Dates: 10 Tuesdays from 18:30-20:00 on Nov. 2 & 16; Dec 7 & 21; Jan 4 & 18; Feb 1 & 15; March 8 & 22, 2021
Cost: 1350nis if you register by October 2 and 1500nis subsequently
Location: Central Tel Aviv, assuming it is safe to meet in person and on zoom if we are unable. Must have a valid green pass or negative PCR test within 72 hours of each class.
Writing your Emotional Truth: An Essential Guide to Writing Memoir
How can you write the truest, most emotionally accurate story of your life? What should you leave in and what should you leave out? How much of the family history should you tell? And what about those family secrets?
This one-time workshop provides in-class exercises to get you thinking about real-world solutions to the challenges memoir writers face. Learn the tools needed to find the emotional core of your story. Open to all levels, all genres, everyone, everywhere.
Date: Wednesday, November 17 from 18:30 – 21:00 Israel/11:30 – 1pm EST/8:30 – 11am PST
Cost: 400nis/$130 if you register by November 1 and 450nis/$150 subsequently
Location: zoom
Writing the Body: How to mine your treasure chest for memories with Nina Boug Lichtenstein
Open to all levels, all genres, everyone, everywhere. More details to follow.
Location: Central Tel Aviv, January 20, 2022 from 10:00 – 13:00
Cost: 400nis if you register by January 2 and 450nis subsequently
Location: Central Tel Aviv
Writing Our Roots
In this class, we will write about roots and religion, family trees and traditions, immigration/migration and home. We will write to be able to answer the question: what’s your story? Open to all levels, all genres, everyone, everywhere.
Dates: spring 2022
- Israel Writers Studio meets in central Tel Aviv or on zoom. Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/israelwriterstudio.
- Pre-registration required for all workshops. Call 054 256 7157 or email to sign up.
- Group classes/camps/one-day workshops are non-refundable if you cancel within one week of the start date and your place cannot be filled.
- If you are interested in a class that has already started or is full, please contact me.
Words of praise
Anyone who has read Jennifer’s work can tell she’s a gifted writer – refreshing, perceptive, precise. She brings the same qualities to her teaching with rich, insightful lessons that encourage students to explore different ways of writing, all in an informal setting that allows them to open up and have fun. As a result, each writing session effectively stretches into the space between the lessons – impacting the writing life, and beyond.
Taking a course in a museum is so unique! I really, really enjoyed going into the exhibits and using them as bounce-off points for inspiration and ideas. The class where Jennifer introduced Yoga while we were in an exhibit was wonderful.
Since working with Jennifer, in her classes and as a private writing coach, I have been more creative and more productive than ever before. She pushes and challenges me in a loving and respectful way to do the best.
