Reading Like a Writer

One day workshop

You may be used to reading in order to extract and distil information, but to really develop your writing you need to go a step further and read for technique. This kind of reading is structural; it pays attention to the building blocks of language and narrative.

In this workshop we introduce you to a forensic approach to reading. We’ll explore how the writers you admire capture and hold your attention, looking for what works – and what doesn’t work. In the process we’ll offer you an understanding of how sentences are internally structured, and how to appreciate the rhythm of language, paying attention to the way it builds within a paragraph, and across a whole chapter as paragraphs accrete. We will
look at how metaphor should be integral rather than just decorative, adding depth and resonance to your writing; how rhetoric needs to land in order to make an argumentative point; and how you can develop an awareness of tone. Together we will analyse a range of
examples, including your own work, and use these as a stimulus for writing.

You’ll come away with a sense of how to better guide a reader through your work using voice, and an improved narrative flow. Anticipate some rewriting!

• Analyse writing samples to identify the author’s techniques.

• Apply different writing techniques to your own academic writing.

• Strengthen your writing ‘voice’.

• Improve the flow and rhythm of your writing.

• Use concrete imagery and metaphor to better communicate your ideas.