October 21, 2023 – October 29, 2023
From Inkling to Impact: Discover the twelve cornerstones of non-fiction writing to conceive, craft, and publish your true stories.
“There is nothing to writing,” wrote Hemingway, “All you do is sit at a typewriter and bleed.”
How much though? I’ve always wondered – and how will I know if I’ve bled enough and right? Also, what blood group do publishers prefer?
All writing, including non-fiction, is difficult because of the mystique that surrounds it.
Writers say writing is an art, and most courses point you to their texts, demanding that you “read like a writer” to write well. But is that all there is to learning writing? No.
To build great literature, the art of writing needs to be demystified and in this course, award-winning journalist and author Puja Changoiwala does just that.
She breaks down the mysterious art of telling true stories into twelve steps, an actionable science that leads you from ideation to publication – and helps you tell stories in ways that matter.
An acclaimed writer and journalist, Puja has penned non-fiction books, investigative journalism, think pieces, and personal essays – and in this course, she covers non-fiction writing across a range of these formats, teaching you everything she’s learnt over the course of her rich career.
Who is this course for?
Beginners and Intermediate level writers will benefit from this course. It offers essential tools for anyone looking to write true stories. It will be useful to those looking for non-fiction ideas as well as writers who have started developing their ideas, but need guidance to progress, whether it’s with their research, structure, voice, style, editing, or publication process.
This course will not cover writing Memoir – that is covered in our Creative Writing Course.
From finding ideas to finding publishers, this course has comprehensive insights into the art of telling true stories, focusing on the fundamentals of non-fiction writing as well as how to push its boundaries.
The online course is not one way communication. It is live. Interactive. Personal. Only the Himalayas are replaced by your bedroom window. But the teaching and the camaraderie remain unchanged.
This workshop is spread over two weekends:
21-22 and 28-29 Oct, 2023. 10 AM – 1:30 PM IST each day.
During these four days different aspects of non-fiction writing. (Day-wise detailed program is shared in the section given below)
Participation in this workshop is limited to 12 only and we enroll approved participants on a first-come first-served basis. To enroll, please fill out the form below. It helps us get to know you better as a writer, and also as a fit for this workshop.
About the Instructor
Puja Changoiwala
Puja is an award-winning journalist and author of three books — Homebound, Gangster on the Run and The Front Page Murders. A critically acclaimed writer of both fiction and non-fiction, she has won over a dozen Indian and international awards for her work.
Puja is drawn to stories that spotlight lives on the bladed fringes of Indian society — from the sewer divers of Mumbai to the water-starved villages of Odisha to those riding the ‘Internet Express’ trains in Kashmir. Previously a senior correspondent with Hindustan Times, her work investigates the intersections of gender, crime, social justice, human rights, science and technology in India. Puja’s reportage has been published across the likes of BBC, CNN, The Hindu, The Guardian, The Washington Post, National Geographic, Al Jazeera, Foreign Policy, Scientific American, and The Wire, among dozens of other publications across the world. Her books, meanwhile, have been published by HarperCollins and Hachette India.
A former fellow of the Global Investigative Journalism Network, Puja is a recipient of the International Centre for Journalists’ Covid-19 Reporting Award, the Journalism for an Equitable Asia Merit Award, the British Council’s Alumni Award, the American Society of Journalists and Authors’ (ASJA) Writing Award, the South Asian Journalists Association’s (SAJA) Journalism Award, a Red Ink Special Mention for Excellence in Indian Journalism, the Laadli Media Award for Gender Sensitivity, the Iceland Writers Award, among others.
Two of Puja’s three books are currently being adapted for the screen. She has been a speaker at journalism and literature events across the world, including the International Journalism Festival in Italy, the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival in Mumbai, the Ullapool Book Festival in Scotland, and the Lagos Poetry Festival in Nigeria. Interviewed for audio and video documentaries by platforms like VICE, Netflix, and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, dozens of publications have written countless articles about Puja’s work, terming her writing both ‘powerful’ and ‘humane’. Related press coverage is available on Puja’s website here.
Detailed Program
The following are the twelve elements of nonfiction writing that Puja will cover in her workshops:
Day One:
- Introductions and a discussion on the importance of true stories, the changing market trends, etc.
- Where does one look for non-fiction ideas? Traditional and unconventional sources.
- How do you know if your idea is worthy of a book/story?
- The Reporting/Research Process: People, places, documents, data, and the humanisation of it all.
Day Two:
- The Art of the Interview: Everything you need to know about conducting the perfect interview, from choosing the place of the interaction to seeking help from translators and fixers to ethical considerations.
- How to Structure your Book/Story: Playing with time in your narrative, understanding and breaking away from traditional form, and choosing the right narrative point of view.
- Voice and Style: How to find your voice, develop your style, and make your writing as unique as your fingerprint!
Day Three:
- Lessons from Fiction: From character biographies to descriptions to universal themes.
- Developing a Writing Process.
- Editing and Revision: The three-draft process, the various kinds of editing, what to look for when revising, and working with editors.
- The Road to Publication: Query Letters, blurbs, synopses, finding agents and publishers, and working with them.
Day Four:
- Practical writing advice that will see you through the worst of your writing days, and get you to the end of the book.
- Upon Publication: Marketing, promotions, maintaining and betraying expectations, dealing with backlash.
- An ‘Ask me anything’ session with your tutor.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Why should I choose HWR Workshops?
- Personal Attention: We don’t take more than 15 students in a class. You get a lot of personal attention and feedback. No classrooms of 20-30 people or one-way pre-recorded videos here.
- Class Quality: For most courses, we filter our participants. You can’t just pay and sign up. We need to see a writing sample (in our application form) to ensure the class is of a uniform standard.
- Cost per hour: Our courses are long and intense. As an example, the Creative Writing course is 18000 for 24 contact hours (3 days, 8 hours each day). The cost per hour = 750 / hour. That is comparable to many of the “cheaper” courses.
- Quality of faculty: No lightweights here. Many of our faculty are award-winners. All are experts and great teachers. We don’t settle for average.
- Feedback scores: Across courses, we are rated 4.5/5, or higher. You can read our reviews HERE.
- Do I get a certificate of participation?
Yes, certificates are available on request.
- Any discounts for students / other categories?
At the Himalayan Writing Retreat, we follow a strict No-Discount policy.
- Is the workshop fee refundable?
Our cancellation policy is as follows:
- Online Writing Workshop: 100% refund if cancellation 2 weeks before the event start date, 50% if cancellation one week before the start date, 0% if less than one week before the start date.
- Creative Writing Workshop at the Himalayas: 100% refund if cancellation 4 weeks before the event start date, 50% if cancellation two weeks before the start date, 0% if less than two weeks before the start date.
- Is the Himalayan Writing Retreat a business or an NGO?
The Himalayan Writing Retreat is a social enterprise. It works closely and actively with two local NGOs in its community work initiatives: Chirag and Alaap. In 2020, HWR raised INR 6.1 Lakhs to support the Chirag School.
Have more questions? Feel free to write to us at info@himalayanwritingretreat.com or connect with us at +91 73035 16665 (Call/ WA/Signal).
Event Summary
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