Master Class: Start with a Bang: How to Entice Readers from the Jump with Maurice Carlos Ruffin
Master Class: Start with a Bang: How to Entice Readers from the Jump with Maurice Carlos Ruffin
1 Session: Tuesday, October 22
7:0-9:00pm ET
Maurice Carlos Ruffin
Maurice Carlos Ruffin is the author of three books. His most recent book is the novel is The American Daughters (One World, 2024). Other books include the story collection, The Ones Who Don’t Say They Love You (One World, 2021), a New York Times Editor’s Choice, a finalist for the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence, and longlisted for the Story Prize, and We Cast a Shadow (One World, 2019), which was a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and the PEN America Open Book Prize.
This class will provide examples from successful literary fiction books that show how to grab the reader's attention immediately. The discussion will also include examples from other mediums such as films and music to show how early decisions can lead to success. We will discuss specific techniques for your work.
Workshop Highlights:
Review examples of how successful authors start books
Discuss how a powerful start works in other media
Tips for how to start strong in your fiction
Maurice Carlos Ruffin’s most recent book is the story collection, The Ones Who Don’t Say They Love You (One World, 2021), a New York Times Editor’s Choice, a finalist for the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence, and longlisted for the Story Prize. His first book, We Cast a Shadow (One World, 2019) was a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and the PEN America Open Book Prize. It was longlisted for the 2021 DUBLIN Literary Award, the Center for Fiction Prize, and the Aspen Words Literary Prize. The novel was also a New York Times Editor’s Choice. Ruffin is the winner of several literary prizes, including the Iowa Review Award in fiction and the William Faulkner–William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition Award for Novel-in-Progress. His next novel is The American Daughters, which will be published by One World in February 2024. His work has appeared in the New York Times, the LA Times, the Oxford American, Garden & Gun, Kenyon Review, and Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America.
