Narrative Non-Fiction Masterclass - Life Writing, Memoir and Narrative Non-Fiction

In Searching for Charlotte, two of Australia’s celebrated contemporary writers Belinda Murrell and her sister Kate Forsyth, collaborated to write the story of the extraordinary life of Charlotte Waring Atkinson, one of Australia’s earliest female writers and artists, an early feminist and a pioneer in the fight for women’s legal rights, who was also their great-great-great-great grandmother. This book is a bibliomemoir – combining elements of biography, memoir, family history and literary analysis. Belinda will discuss how she drew upon her journalistic skills of research, crafting true stories and analysis; together with her creative writing background as an historical novelist to transform true life into compelling narrative non-fiction. 

Engaging stories, photographs, lightning writing exercises and Q&A inspire students to take their writing to the next level.  

• Inspiration and ideas from real life, memory and family stories
• planning 
• plotting and drafting
• creating dynamic characters 
• worldbuilding and vivid settings
• themes and messages
• emotive writing
• narrative arc and story structure 
• show not tell
• Editing and Polishing
• lightning writing exercises 
• tips for short stories
• Q&A