Amitava Kumar
is a writer and journalist. He is the author of several works of nonfiction and three novels. His last novel, Immigrant, Montana, was on the best of the year lists at the New Yorker, the New York Times, and the Globe and Mail. His latest book is A Time Outside This Time: A Novel will be out from Knopf in October, 2021. He has been awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship and residencies from Yaddo, MacDowell, and the Lannan Foundation. He has taught at the writing conference at Sewanee, the Lighthouse Writers Festival in Denver, and the Norman Mailer residency in Provincetown. He is a professor of English at Vassar College.
Master Class
Amitava Kumar
Online
Saturday, November 6, 2021
Registration is now closed for this class.
”Plots are for dead people but voice—oh, voice is how you know you’re alive!”
This class will be about how different writers use voice on the page. A review says: “Gornick’s voice does not just tell the story, it is the story.” What does that mean? Voice is an important way that writers put the stamp of their personality on their writing, yes, but we can also use voice as a way of understanding structures of address and style. The use of the second person by Claudia Rankine to force her reader to identify with the subject of racist violence; the use of the third person by J. M. Coetzee even in his autobiography to acquire distance; as a part of a flamboyant reaching for writerly freedom, the direct appeal to the reader made by Vladimir Nabokov in his memoir, Speak, Memory, sections of which were also published as fiction in the New Yorker. With the essay “On Voice” as a point of departure, we will do a couple of writing exercises before turning to W. G. Sebald and Joy Williams to consider how voice can be used to achieve a difficult ambiguity and even ambivalence in our writing.
Course Schedule
Saturday, November 6, 2021
3:00–5:00 p.m.
1 session
Online on Zoom
Where are the Master Classes and workshops located?
Currently, all Master Classes and workshops are held online on Zoom or Google Meet.
I registered but did not receive a link. What do I do?
Details for your class, including any reading assignments and the Zoom link, will be sent one week prior to the start date—to the email account connected to your registration. Please confirm the email with which you register is accurate. Please contact .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) with any questions.
Can I receive a recording of a past or upcoming workshop or class?
No. The only way to attend a Master Class or workshop is live.
Is closed captioning available?
Yes. Otter.ai live notes are available for all Master Classes held on Zoom and Google Meet, and on a case-by-case basis for workshops. (If you are signed up for a workshop, please discuss closed captioning with your instructor.) To view the notes, look for the red LIVE dropdown menu in the top left of your Zoom screen and select View Stream on Otter.ai.
Are scholarships available?
Scholarships are available for all Master Classes. Scholarships are not currently offered for workshops. To apply, please email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) with the subject “Master Class Scholarship Application” and include 1) a short statement outlining your interest in this class, and how a scholarship would benefit you as a writer or a reader; and 2) a short bio. Scholarships are awarded on a rolling basis.
The Master Class or workshop I want to join is sold out. Is there a waitlist?
Yes. Please email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) to be added to the waitlist for an upcoming Master Class or workshop.
I signed up for a class but can't make it. Can I be refunded?
Full refunds are offered if requested at least two weeks prior to the start date of the class. After that, before the start date, we are able to offer a 50% refund. We cannot refund day-of cancellations, and we cannot refund or partially refund tuition once the class has started. Please email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) if you need to cancel your registration.
But I signed up for a class after the cut-off point for a full refund had passed. Can I still be eligible for a full refund?
No. Please be aware of our cancellation policy upon registration.
I'd like to transfer my registration to someone else. Is this possible?
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Cancellation Policy
If you need to cancel your enrollment in an Academy class, please let us know as soon as possible. We can only offer full refunds if you cancel two weeks prior to the start of class. After that, before the start date of class, we can offer a 50% refund. We cannot refund day-of cancellations, and we cannot refund or partially refund tuition once the class has begun.