The first in a series of workshops for writers is scheduled to begin this Saturday, January 17th at the San Ignacio Public Library. Being brought forward by the Belize Book Industry Association BBIA, the Workshops are intended to further expand an already thriving writing community. At the first lecture, the ABCDE of Short Fiction will be presented by Dr. Virginia Hampton, who is a lecturer of English at the University of Belize.
There will be further workshops on the ABCDE of Short Fiction for this year, but in March and April, Dr. Hampton wants to do more sophisticated versions, such as talking about character development, publishing and playwright writing. Her presentations on the Playwright’s Craft will further be developed at the University of Belize.
“You don’t just write something and hand it in, it needs to be revised; whether it is a poem or a play or a story, and so that’s one reason for the workshop,” says Dr. Hampton.
“It is just to help people understand the process [of writing] and to encourage people who want to be writers that they can do it.”
There will be other workshops in drama and short fiction under the BBIA throughout the year, in different locations, with the deadline for the Belizean Prize for Literature being June 30, 2015.
Last year’s prizes under the BBIA were won by both Kalilah Enriquez and Jorje Awe, two noted Belizean writers, who have already produced several works of their own. In her recent address to the BBIA Book Launch and Literature Prize, Kalilah Enriquez asked, “Where are the stories of our generation of those who grew up in the 80s’, 90s’ and even the early 2000s’?”
