Arvon Online Masterclass: Sci-Fi, Speculative Fiction and the Unknown with Liz Jensen
There are a thousand reasons why we want to explore the unknown, and take others with us on the journey. Speculative writing imagines societies and worlds that resonate with our own, but are wildly and thrillingly different.
Every science fiction story and every work of speculative fiction is a challenge to its readers, who must be able to feel, viscerally, that they are in a strange place – but not an alienating one. While original, daring propositions and compelling world-building are crucial to the genre, so is character.
Through writing exercises, group brainstorming and text analysis, Liz Jensen’s masterclass asks: does it help to know the genre inside out? What is the role of research? How do you go about creating the “rules” of your invented world? And how can you make sure that what’s in your head lands clearly on the page?
Liz Jensen is the author of eight novels including the Hollywood-adapted The Ninth Life of Louis Drax. Her work, which spans speculative and historical fiction, comedy and psychological suspense, has appeared in anthologies, been broadcast on radio, and translated into 20 languages. She has tutored regularly for Arvon since 1997 and in 2005 was awarded Fellowship of the Royal Society of Literature. Her two most recent novels are the climate thrillers The Rapture (a TV Book Club Best Read) and The Uninvited.
Date: Friday 29 July 2022, 11:00 - 13:00 BST
Location: Online
Cost: £35 / £17.50 Concs
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