Openings and Omens (Virtual)

Ethan Canin frequently says, “Start the story where your POV would start the story.” But what does that mean? Where would a POV start a story, and how do we know that our opening is working? Typically, stories start because a character suffered something so impressive that it provokes a need to tell a story. In this class, we’ll delve into great openings, how they’re constructed, and what we can learn from them. We’ll focus on posing the narrator’s emotional question, the reason for telling the story. There will be exercises throughout, and we’ll end with writing or editing our own openings.