Masterclasses — Silk Road Slippers

Abdulrazak Gurnah

19 – 24 November 2023

Featuring 2021 Nobel Prize in Literature Laureate Abdulrazak Gurnah.

Abdulrazak is the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature 2021. He was born in Zanzibar and is the author of ten novels: Memory of Departure, Pilgrims Way, Dottie, Paradise (shortlisted for the Booker Prize and the Whitbread Award), Admiring Silence, By the Sea (longlisted for the Booker Prize and shortlisted for the LA Times Book Award), Desertion (shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize) The Last Gift, Gravel Heart, and Afterlives, which was shortlisted for the Orwell Prize for Fiction 2021 and longlisted for the Walter Scott Prize. He is Emeritus Professor of English and Postcolonial Literatures at the University of Kent. He lives in Canterbury.

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Upcoming Masterclasses

Schedule

Sunday

Welcome!
Participants arrive in Marrakech!
After settling in, meet the Silk Road Slippers team and your fellow participants at a friendly and relaxed welcome dinner at the Jnane Tamsna prepared using the freshest ingredients largely sourced on their 22 hectares of landscaped grounds.
Monday

STORY & STRUCTURE - Unpack the principles of storytelling; learn how to structure your work and create a compelling narrative.
CHARACTER & VOICE - Learn how to find your voice, how to create and grow your characters, and write dialogue.
CREATIVE PRACTICE AFTERNOON - Use this time for writing practice, nurture your imagination on the grounds of the Jnane Tamsna, or with a quick jaunt into the city.
Tuesday

FIND YOUR VOICE - The Star Writer of the week, Shehan Karunatilaka or Abdulrazak Gurnah, explains their process and shares how to find your creative style..
FIRST DRAFT: TECHNIQUE - Whether it's your first book or tenth, conquer the fear of the blank page.
Celebratory Dinner with our Star Writer - Enjoy a short reading by our Star Writer, followed by an opportunity to exchange ideas, share experiences and build connections at a candlelit dinner at Jnane Tamsna with the author and the whole team.
Wednesday

A CRUCIAL ELEMENT with our Star Writer and the Silk Road Slippers Team
The Star Writer will discuss an element they consider essential to their work. This may include Character, Dialogue, Sense of Place, Language, or any other aspect of writing, to be determined by the Star Writer.
WRITING WITH SIX SENSES with the Silk Road Slippers Team. Enjoy an insider’s tour of the Medina in Marrakech, to stimulate all your senses – with a focus on capturing a sense of place in your work.
Thursday

SECOND DRAFT: EDITING AND REWRITING - Using the writing from our Six Senses exercise yesterday, we look at revising and refining with Alexandra and Faiza. As Ernest Hemingway said, ‘writing is rewriting.’
FIND AN AGENT AND GET PUBLISHED - All the publishing insider tips and tricks with the British Book Awards Editor of the Year Alexandra and Faiza
PERSONAL FEEDBACK SESSIONS - Each participant will have the opportunity for a 30 minute one-on-one session with a member of the Silk Road Slippers team. This is a unique opportunity to discuss your personal progress and future aspirations, and to get tailored advice on how to achieve them.
Farewell Dinner at Jnane Tamsna with the Silk Road Slippers team.
Friday

After a final breakfast, participants depart for the next step on their writing journey!