I’m not sure why, but women writers always seem to outnumber the men in writing groups, so I’m always secretly delighted when there are a few male writers in the workshops.
Are women more willing to share writing experiences? Are women more open to exploring new avenues or maybe admitting they don’t always know it all? I wonder…
This morning’s workshop, however, was graced by the presence of two of those elusive creatures known as male writers, bringing with them an extra dimension, and I have to say it, an extra spark of humour.
We examined story shape, and the vital elements needed for good story beginnings, middles and endings. It’s a tough class. I do more talking than I normally like to, and there’s a lot of information to get to grips with.
By the end a little light relief is badly needed, so we finished with a fun and spontaneous exercise on writing story endings. The writers are given a line of fiction to end with, and the task is to write the closing paragraphs, finishing with that given line. Everyone gets a different line and the end results are inevitably funny, entertaining and highly individual.
Last to read was one of the men. Out comes a ribald little tale involving chastity belts and lost keys. It was hilarious and had the room in uproar, even earning the writer a round of applause!
Well done to you, you know who you are, and thank you for making everyone laugh out loud at the end of what was quite an intense workshop.
PS. If you fancy trying the exercise with your own writing group, it’s here.
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