Join me in this live, two-hour class and discover the Five Things I’ve Learned about how to bring the characters, conflicts, and plot points that keep you up at night from your heart to the page.

I’ve been writing stories ever since I read Little Women when I was in second grade. But I grew up in a town that didn’t know what to do with a kid who dreamed of being a writer. When I graduated from college, I thought I needed adventures to be a writer, so I went to work as a TWA flight attendant. I certainly had adventures! But as I tried to find the story I wanted to tell, I realized that Eudora Welty was right when she said that all a writer has to do is “sit on her own front porch.” Once I learned that, I stopped forcing my ideas and started to look inward. I went on to write fourteen novels, five memoirs, a ten-book series for middle readers, three YA novels, a short story collection, and many essays and stories.

What I’ve learned after all this time is what I’m hoping to share with you in my upcoming two-hour class for writers, Five Things I’ve Learned about Finding the Story Growing in Your Heart.

I know you have a story in your heart that is trying to be told. Maybe you are worried about what people will say if you write it. Maybe you aren’t sure how to fit all the characters and ideas you have into a story. Maybe you have too many stories bumping into each other, and you aren’t sure which one you should be writing. Maybe you are having trouble putting pen to page — or fingers to keyboard — at all. Believe me, I have had all those concerns, and more. But after experiencing them all myself, and teaching fiction and memoir at universities and writing conferences all over the world, I have lots of ways to help you discover and get started with your story.

Although I will share my own experiences with you, we will also have discussions about you and your story. We’ll read some examples of published works, and do a fun but practical writing exercise. As the poet Richard Hugo said, sometimes the hardest part is finding the difference between the story you think you’re writing and the story you need to write. So, I can promise you that there will be surprises as we search for your personal story.

The most important thing is that you will leave our two hours together not just with inspiration, clarity, practical advice and tips. You’ll also have a clear way forward.

I can’t wait to meet you and help you find your story!

-Ann Hood