Tag: writing craft

Literary mentoring

Posted on by Martyna

LITERARY MENTORING

 

“So okay – there you are in your room with the shade down and the door shut and the plug pulled out of the base of telephone. You’ve blown up your TV and committed yourself to a thousand words a day, come hell or high water. Now comes the big question: What are you going to write about? And the equally big answer: Anything you damn well want.”
Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

 

Literary mentoring is designed for individual learning following a tailor-made curriculum at the convenient time. These individual consultations focus on writers of different types. Some of the former students sought for the basic knowledge of creative writing to start writing in general. Others simply wanted to improve their skills in private.
 
Photography: Shelby Miller
 
Often literary mentoring is necessary for the writers who want to discuss a
particular piece of their work (novel, short story or etc.). They intend to analyse, study and master writing with the help of the professional and the provided theoretical and practical literary knowledge.

⏰Duration of the regular consultation is 1 hour.
 

FEEDBACK

“I remember taking along a final draft of my latest text to the first literary mentoring consultation. I had a feeling that a story might lack some clarity, so I hoped that Gabrielė could help me edit the text and extract the main idea. I had developed the tendency to wrap the text in a way that it was becoming too complicated to the reader. I noticed it while attending creative writing courses with Gabrielė. She has always been honest and humbly advised me where to focus on, what to unwrap to make a story coherent and clear.

After our first individual meeting I left frustrated. Gabrielė advised me to try to divide my so-called final draft into two stories. I had a different feeling: dividing the narrative in two threatened with the loss of meaning. I had that feeling until I sat down to write. I kept meeting with Gabrielė for mentoring and after a few months I had two stories – ready-to-publish novels.”
Dovilė Raustytė, chief of communication at International Film Festival „Kino pavasaris“, writer

“Gabrielė provides literary mentoring consultations, where she actually embodies the subtle equilibrium. She manages to balance sensitive, empathetic and unconditional support with professional, careful and precise insistence. I think these are the qualities of the real teacher! What fascinates me is that Gabrielė also combines learning process with a game. I had even suprised myself coming to the realisation that this childish approach and the inner hazard enabled me to write hypnotic and profound stories.”
Rosita Pipirienė, psychotherapist

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❗ For more information contact Gabrielė Labanauskaitė ➡ [email protected]

Workshops ‘Iš Tylos’

Posted on by Martyna

CREATIVE WRITING WORKSHOPS ‘IŠ TYLOS’

 

Sometimes a simple getaway into the wild is not enough to restore one’s creativity and attract motivation. But an escape into the nature with the like-minded could do that. Participation in the creative writing workshop is an authentic experience combining self-reflection, writing, discussions, inspiration, experiments, tranquility and late night readings by the bonfire.

Writer Gabrielė Labanauskaitė started the project back in 2016. This initiative is focused on awakening of internal creative powers through writing, reading, conversation and silence. Participants of these workshops are really interesting and broad-minded people, who seek to realize and develop their passion for the written word. Some of them are aspiring writers already, others try to implement a habit of casual writing. It is a place for everybody.
Usually workshops take place once in a season and their locations vary. Each workshop has a theme giving a course of writing excercises and topics for discussion. There is none of academic theory, the chosen theme itself becomes an axis of focus. In the past chosen themes highly varied: water, dreams, rituals, archive of memories, archetypes, fata morgana, body. The main purpose of these workshops is not to draw any conclusions, but to recharge and leave the grounds in high spirits.

Writer and teacher Gabrielė Labanauskaitė conducts the workshops herself. Depending on the chosen topic, she also invites guest-speakers to share their experiences and knowledge with the participants.

WHAT TO EXPECT?

  • a dozen of creative writing excercises;
  • a flow of inspiration and creativity;
  • cozy and relaxing atmosphere;
  • peace in silence;
  • some time for self-reflection;
  • sharing of creation work;
  • a break from everyday life;
  • a numerous of individual experiences and relevations.

 

Photography: Viktorija Samarinaitė
Creative writing workshops ‘IŠ TYLOS’ is designed to help to develop writing skills, find the inner voice, rest and rejuvenate, introspect, have quality time in a group and individually and create.

“I am not a writing therapist and do not pretend to be one. But everyone, who has ever participated in these workshops, says that it surely has some therapeutical power. In these few days spent in Nida, Antalieptė or among the walls of monastery in the Old Trakai, we talk, we write, we share and express everything what bothers us. Whereas creative writing courses are more of academic orientation and focuses on theory, practice. It involves a spark of inspiration as well, but relies more on the particular storytelling elements such as characters, structures and dialogues.

After courses or workshops are over, I keep hearing that the former participants have changed their attitude towards creativity itself, writing and even – a lifestyle. I think this is how the real academy of life works!”
Gabrielė Labanauskaitė, organizer and teacher of creative writing courses and workshops

FAQ

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❗For more information about the upcoming workshops contact us ➡ [email protected] or follow social media page ➡ IŠ TYLOS