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The AWA Method
In 1987 Pat Schneider established a method of leading workshops that generated authentic writing from people of all backgrounds, experiences and education. The Amherst Writers & Artists Method grew up in her home in Amherst, Mass. It's now spread to hundreds of studios, workshops and retreats all over the world.
Schneider's work, detailed in her book Writing Alone and With Others, became the subject of a Florentine Films documentary, Tell Me Something I Can't Forget. It also serves as a true compass for a compassionate workshop experience where every member's experience and voice is honored and protected. As an AWA Affiliate member, I'm trained in these methods.
My AWA training and 10 years of workshop experience confirms this: Writing together, then reading that brand-new work aloud to each other — and experiencing having that work received only with affirmation of what stays with the listeners — revolutionizes the teaching and learning of writing.
The AWA Method has Five Essential Affirmations:
1. Everyone has a strong, creative voice
2. Everyone is born with creative genius.
3. Writing as an art form belongs to all people, regardless of economic class or educational level
4. The teaching of craft can be done without damage to a writer's original voice or artistic self-esteem
5. A writer is someone who writes.
The AWA Method uses Five Essential Practices
1. Our workshops and writing groups maintain a non-hierarchical spirit (how we treat the writing). At the same time the leader's appropriate group discipline (how we interact) keeps writers safe.
2. All writing is treated as fiction, unless the writer requests it be treated as autobiography. The confidentiality of what we write in the workshop is maintained. Writers are always free to refrain from reading their work aloud.
3. Absolutely no criticism, suggestion or question is directed toward the writer in response to first-draft or just-written work. A thorough critique is offered only when a writer asks for it — after the work has been distributed in manuscript form. Critique is balanced; there is as much affirmation as suggestion for change.
4. Teaching of craft is taken seriously in our workshops. It is conducted through exercises that invite experimentation and growth as well as through response to manuscripts and in private conferences.
5. The workshop leader writes along with the participants and reads that work aloud at least once in each writing session. This practice is absolutely necessary — for only in this way is there equality of risk-taking and mutual trust.
As workshop leaders, we are trained to protect the artist with these practices. This community we nurture gives writers a safe way to reach deep and tell stories in their own, authentic voices.
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