Good ol’ Agnes.  Always writing in the present tense…

Daren Wang sends along word that the second installment of classes in his “Agnes Writes” program have officially been announced.

This season’s classes begin the third week of April and feature authors Joshilyn Jackson, sommelier Gil Kulers and fiction writer David Fulmer.  For more details and to sign up for the class, click here.

Detailed listings for each course are available after the jump.

Agnes Writes, a program of creative writing courses taught by some of Atlanta’s finest writers, has announced a new series of classes starting in April. Taught on the campus of Agnes Scott College, these fun and practical classes are the perfect forum to kick-start that novel you’ve been thinking about, refine that draft in your desk drawer, or polish that journal into something really memorable.

Classes start in mid-April and run for eight weeks.

The three courses offered are:

* Fiction Shop with David Fulmer. Now in its third successful year, Fiction Shop covers the nuts and bolts of the craft of fiction. Progressing step by step through setting, dialogue, characters, plotting and editing, and other essential elements, with short exercises to push the learning curve, Fiction Shop steers writers to their next skill level – whatever that might be. All the lessons work for non-fiction writers too. Also included is a discussion of the publishing market and effective strategies for communicating with agents and publishers. Mondays 6-8 pm, April 13 through June 1. (No class on Memorial Day, May 25; that week’s class will be held on Tuesday, May 26.)

* Eat, Drink, Travel and Write about it with Gil Kulers. “So you drink wine for a living?” That’s the first question Gil Kulers gets when he tells people that he is a wine writer and critic. While tasting wine comes with the territory, writing engaging and thoughtful reviews of wines does not come so easily. Gil takes students through the process from tasting wine to putting down something more insightful than: “It’s good. It’s really, really good.” Gil also explores writing about food, dining and travel. An accomplished chef, Gil will demonstrate recipes and reflect on how to transform a mundane, step-by-step food article into something that feeds one’s psyche. The class will also visit a restaurant and get a handle on why there are scant few dining critics worth their salt. Tuesday 6-8 pm, April 14 through June 2. Course Fees Do Not Include Restaurant Outing.

* The Art of Revision with Joshilyn Jackson. This course is designed to equip you with tools that can make the revision process easier and even a little more fun. Drafting a novel is like going to a riverbed and digging out clay—it’s how you shape the clay that matters. Through exercises, class discussion, peer editing, and learning to “read like a writer,” you will learn to spot and fortify your own weak points and make best use of your strengths. Whether you have just free-written your first chapter or are staring at the daunting task of revising a completed draft, bring your raw materials and we’ll work on ways to turn them into finished products. Wednesdays 6-8 pm, April 15 through June 3.
Agnes Writes was conceived of and is led by Daren Wang, with the collaboration of Tom Bell and David Fulmer. Wang is co-founder and executive director of the Decatur Book Festival (decaturbookfestival.com), the publisher of “Verb: An Audioquarterly” (verb.org) — a literary magazine in audio format — and former producer of “The Spoken Word,” a nationally syndicated public radio show. Bell is co-founder and program director of the Decatur Book Festival, production editor of The Duck & Herring Co.’s “Pocket Field Guide” (duckandherring.com), and the former book editor at Creative Loafing. Says Fulmer, “I’m excited to be a part of this exceptional new series of writing classes. It’s run by professionals who have track records of supporting the writing craft and who will bring in a slate of classes taught by first-rate instructors. I’m happy to be a part of it.”