Writing Workshops

Convincing Characters with Omer Friedlander (December 2024)

$175

2 Sessions

Out of stock

Saturday & Sunday 12:00 pm EDT - 3:00 pm EDT December 14 to December 15, 2024

The Center for Fiction

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In this intensive weekend masterclass, we will learn how to craft convincing fictional characters and bring them to life on the page. What makes a fictional character compelling and complex? How do you physically describe a character? How do you get them to walk across the room? How do they gesture and talk? How do you accurately capture a character’s innermost thoughts and internal monologue? How does their past influence their present? What role does family play in a character’s personality? We will answer these questions and more in this intensive masterclass about character.

We will also discuss narration, voice, and point of view, and learn from the best by reading and dissecting the work of great writers such as James Baldwin, Claire Messud, Jhumpa Lahiri, Edwidge Danticat, Zadie Smith, and Colm Toibin. Along the way, I will provide writing prompts to help you understand your characters, discover their secrets and fears, and learn what they most desire.

This course is held in person at The Center for Fiction.

Led by

Omer Friedlander

Omer Friedlander

Omer Friedlander is the author of the short story collection The Man Who Sold Air in the Holy Land, winner of the Association of Jewish Libraries Fiction Award, and a finalist for the Wingate Prize. The book was shortlisted for the William Saroyan International Prize, chosen as an American Library Association Sophie Brody Medal Honor Book for outstanding achievement in Jewish Literature, and longlisted for the Story Prize. Omer has a BA in English Literature from the University of Cambridge and an MFA from Boston University, where he was supported by the Saul Bellow Fellowship. He was a Starworks Fellow in Fiction at New York University. His collection has been translated into several languages, including Turkish, Dutch, Italian, and Slovak. His writing has been supported by the Bread Loaf Fellowship and Vermont Studio Center Fellowship. He currently lives in New York City and teaches creative writing at Columbia University.

About this series

Writing Workshops

We strive to make our classes the most inviting and rewarding available, offering an intimate environment to study with award-winning, world-class writers. Each class is specially designed by the instructor, so whether you’re a fledgling writer or an MFA graduate polishing your novel, you’ll find a perfect fit here.

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