Writing with Humor, Heart, & Grit
Writing and Music I am currently SOLD OUT for my one-on-one sessions are available in creative writing, manuscript coaching, songwriting, ukulele, and performance. PLEASE ADD YOUR NAME TO THE WAIT LIST (right column, underneath updates form). All private lessons are booked on a month by month basis. When you book a class, you’ll be asked (more…)
Award-winning author Mary Amato will lead small-group online sessions in her writing studio. Maximum six students. Classes will meet either once or twice per week. This will be a project-based experience, meaning we will be writing stories, poems, songs, plays, and more. Classes will be a mix of instruction, discussion, and in-class writing. We’ll cover (more…)
Join award-winning author Mary Amato in her writing studio every Friday from 1:00 to 1:30 EST pm. for $5.00 per class. Each week, Mary will choose a different topic related to some aspect of the writing process and give a short, energized talk and then lead a writing exercise on the spot. The experience will (more…)
Grab your notebook and pen and join award-winning author Mary Amato in her writing studio every Wednesday from 4:00 to 4:30 EST pm. for just $5.00 per class. Each week, Mary will choose a different topic related to some aspect of the writing process and give a short, energized talk and then lead a fun (more…)
Find out more about each of these experiences below.
Through College Park Arts Exchange, join authors Mary Amato and John Feffer and fellow colleagues for an energizing mix of lectures, facilitated discussion, and forced time to write! As Shawn Achor points out in his book, Big Potential, studies show that people are more productive when they know that others are working, too.
Amato and Feffer are both discipline-crossing writers who are simultaneously working on novels, plays, essays, and poetry. These writing retreats will be focused on novel writing, but we welcome explorers of any genre—fiction, non-fiction, poetry, screen or stage play, etc.
Use these inspiring virtual retreat days to take a work-in-progress further or to write something completely new.
10:00 am-5:30 pm EST
$40 per person per retreat or $20 per person per half-day retreat. You may sign up for one retreat or as many as desired. Once you have registered, you’ll receive three Zoom links for each of your retreat days. Each retreat day will include three Zoom sessions with writing time in between. PLEASE NOTE: Registration for full day occurs through College Park Arts Exchange. If you can only attend half day, contact the instructors to register.
Sat Sept 26 Tense & Time
Pros and cons of writing in the past or present or a combination of both. Are you writing in the best tense to tell your story? Are you telling your story chronologically? What are your options? What role does time play in the lives of your characters? How can keeping track of chronological time in your story can make a huge difference in the revision process? Are you using your time as a writer most productively?
Sun Nov 1 Voice & Point of View
Establish authenticity, commit to a POV or multiple POVs , and know when to come in for a close up and when to pull back. What are the various voices and POVs in your work?
Sat Nov 21 Recurring Symbolism & Surprising Metaphors
Identify and explore symbols and metaphors and determine how and when they should repeat. What are the symbols and metaphors that are already in your work? Are you doing all you can or do you need more?
Join award-winning author Mary Amato in her writing studio every Friday from 1:00 to 1:30 EST pm. for $5.00 per class.
Each week, Mary will choose a different topic related to some aspect of the writing process and give a short, energized talk and then lead a writing exercise on the spot.
The experience will be designed for adults and teens who are serious about writing. What we cover will cross genres and can be useful in writing fiction, poetry, essays, plays, and creative nonfiction.
All classes and private lessons are booked on a month by month basis. When you book a class, you’ll be asked to pay for that entire month. You’re welcome to register for as many months as desired. Payment is made through a credit card or a Paypal account online. After your invoice is paid, you’ll receive a zoom link that will be the same for each class that month. There are no make-up lessons and no refunds. I will not cancel. If for some reason, I cannot teach a session, I will arrange for a qualified guest teacher. There is no limit to the number of participants, which means there will be no one-on-one interaction. However, the energy and the quality of instruction will be high. Register here.
Mary Amato is a novelist, poet, essayist, songwriter, and playwright, who has a great day-job writing fiction for young adults and children with 22 published books. Her creative non-fiction has appeared in The Washington Post, Education Week, Mothering, and more. A passionate teacher with a master’s in fiction writing from Johns Hopkins, she is also co-founder of Firefly Shadow Theater and founder of several organizations that promote creative networking and artistic growth. www.maryamato.com.
John Feffer has published three novels, including the critically acclaimed Splinterlands. The final volume in the Splinterlands trilogy, Songlands, will come out at the end of 2020. He has written and produced ten plays, including four one-man shows, and is the author of several non-fiction books and numerous articles on foreign policy. He serves as the director of Foreign Policy in Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies. www.johnfeffer.com.
Please note that in addition to these retreats, both Amato and Feffer offer partial or full manuscript critiques on a rolling basis throughout the year. $30 per half hour. You can cap your investment at any amount. If you’re interested, contact either instructor individually.
Questions? Contact either of the retreat leaders through the contact forms on their websites.
My new educational video about the process of keeping a writer’s notebook.
Enjoy this free collection of stories. Perfect for ages 3-6.
When you’re little, even an ordinary day is filled with big troubles and triumphs—especially when you have two older sisters who win trophies, play tricks, and seem so brave. Four-year-old Henrietta struggles with her jealousies and fears as she finds her place in her funny and loving family. This audio collection, narrated by the author, includes five new stories plus The Chicken of the Family, the beloved picture book in which Henrietta was first hatched.
Written and narrated by Mary Amato. All rights reserved.
Original music by Amy Bormet. More about her at: amykbormet.com/about/
To listen on soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/mary-amato-author/sets/the-chicken-of-the-family-collection
Every year, I offer one free Skype day for schools and take reservations for time slots for 15-minute Q&A on a first-come, first-served basis.
To schedule a free Q&A session, please email me info (at) maryamato (dot) com from your school/library email address with all of the following info listed in one message:
If your session is approved, you will receive guidelines via email and your school name will be added to this schedule.
I also offer effective Skype workshops for classes, groups, and individuals. See more.
From Students:
Want information about actual, in-person visits with me? Go to: Workshops.
Kidlit TV asked me to talk about my Lucy McGee series and answer one very interesting question. Find out about my books and what I’d do if I found a whale in my bathtub.
How spirit-lifting it was to walk into Mary Ruth McGinn’s classroom at Stedwick Elementary School and see a circle of third graders with their ukuleles, ready to write songs.
Before my arrival, the teacher and I had already begun to give the students the experience of critique and revision—an essential part of the songwriting process. About a week before the workshop, McGinn emailed me a draft of a collaborative song, I wrote comments, made suggested edits, and emailed it back. She shared that with the students and together they re-wrote one of the verses and talked through why I had made the suggestions I had made.
During the workshop, we set those lyrics to music and practiced it. After that, we wrote an entire new song together. The focus for this workshop was on a trio of elements that are often employed in songwriting: rhythm, repetition, and rhyme. As we wrote, we tested each lyric line to a beat to make sure the rhythm of the words sounded right. Sometimes, we had to make a change, such as substituting a one syllable word for a longer word if the line sounded awkward.
When it was time to write our new song, I taught how I often start by writing down a lot of possible ideas, rather than just one idea for each line. For example, in the first four-line verse, when it came time to write the last line, I asked them for lots of ideas. I wrote them all down so we could pick the one we liked best.
If I built a wall,
I’d build three more
It would be a small house
With a door
(or one of these instead)
With four doors
With sixteen doors
With a floor
With a floor and a door
We ended up liking the humor and the symbolism of sixteen doors.
Next, we worked on the idea of establishing and repeating a pattern. In this case, the pattern for each verse was four lines with the second and fourth line repeating. We also worked on the idea that the chorus of a song can be simple and make use of repetition.
Here’s the whole song:
If I built a wall,
I’d build three more
It would be a small house
With sixteen doors
If I built a window
I’d look outside
I’d say, “Hello World”
To the bright blue sky.
CHORUS:
So many people can come inside.
So many people can come inside.
Come inside!
If I built a roof
I’d make it warm
It would keep us safe
From the big dark storm.
If I built a floor
I’d use it for my band.
Everybody come
And jump and dance.
CHORUS:
So many people can come inside.
So many people can come inside.
Come inside!
Come inside!
Thanks to Carpe Diem Arts, Inc., the non-profit arts organization that organized and funded the experience, to Busy Graham, CDA’s founder, Ms. McGinn, and all her students.
