(West Palm Beach, FL.) – Attention all aspiring authors! The Kravis Center for the Performing Arts invites writers of all backgrounds to participate in its Writers’ Academy, led by Pulitzer Prize-nominated biographer, novelist, playwright and educator Julie Gilbert. The Writers’ Academy nurtures and develops creative writing skills in most genres of expression, offering participants four courses to refine their skills.
“At the Writers’ Academy at The Kravis Center, I’ve been privileged to witness the blossoming of immense talent,” says Gilbert. “The writers here are not just gifted but audaciously brave in their craft. Their ability to marry raw talent with a bold spirit makes me profoundly proud. Each session offers a unique outlet to delve deep, unearthing and expressing the emotions that often remain hidden.”
Students who have participated in The Writers’ Academy classes have found their own literary acclaim as a result of Gilbert’s teachings. Diane Bergner, local author and Kravis Center’s Vice President of Development, went on to write the novel“Royal Coconut Beach Lunch Club,” published by Meridian Editions LLC. The Kravis Center has also published two books written by Writers’ Academy members: “Driving Woodie: Tales From the Home Front During World War II” by Martha McMullen and “Verbal Snacks” by Nancy Sims.
“At The Writers’ Academy at The Kravis Center, it’s more than just a class – it’s a community,” said Bergner. “As a former student, I experienced firsthand the magic of seeing my ideas take shape and breathe life. This academy is a place where experimentation is celebrated, and every writing style is not just accepted but enthusiastically encouraged. It’s where the seeds of imagination are cultivated and bloom brilliantly.”
Gilbert was nominated for a National Book Critic’s Circle Award for “Ferber: A Biography of Edna Ferber and Her Circle”and a Pulitzer Prize nomination for “Opposite Attraction: The Lives of Erich Maria Remarque and Paulette Goddard.” She has taught fiction writing and playwriting at New York University and Florida Atlantic University, as well as running The Writers’ Academy at the Kravis Center.
Classes with Gilbert are offered for every stage of writing, from beginner to advanced, starting January 9, 2024, at the Eunice and Julian Cohen Pavilion. The classes include Kickstart Your Writing Ability to Advanced Technique II,
- Advanced Technique I – January 9 through March 19, 2024; by invitation
- This course of six sessions of 2 hours each is by invitation only. It is for dedicated writers who have worked with Gilbert in establishing voice, technique, style, work habits, projects and durability. Advanced Technique I is for the writer who has decided upon the ‘writing life.’
- Advanced Technique II (Virtual via the Zoom Platform) – January 16 through March 26, 2024; by invitation
- This course has the same requirements and follows the same format as Advanced Technique I but is offered via Zoom.
- Kickstart Your Writing Ability – January 11, 2024 at 1:30 p.m.; tickets $30
- An experience for the curious and adventurous, Kickstart is for those about to take the exciting leap into writing. Learn how to release the writer within and how to unlock your very own muse with Julie Gilbert.
- Writers’ Launch – January 25 through February 29, 2024; tickets $325
- Writers’ Launch is just that – a pad from which to raise written expression. Within every person, there are unspoken thoughts and memories, there is buried treasure. This course is designed to alchemize this unexpressed bounty into a discipline of form, content, technique and style, resulting in a story. The focus and goal of this is toward a fictional story.
“We are deeply grateful to the Cornelia T. Bailey Foundation for their generous support towards our education programs at the Kravis Center,” said Diane Quinn, CEO of the Kravis Center. “Through their invaluable contribution, we continue to ignite the spark of creativity, curiosity and love for the arts, fostering a future where these virtues are celebrated and cherished.”
The Kravis Center is a not-for-profit performing arts center located at 701 Okeechobee Blvd. in West Palm Beach, presenting a diverse schedule of national and international artists and companies of the highest quality, by offering comprehensive arts education programs; by providing a Palm Beach County home for local and regional arts organizations to showcase their work; and by being an economic catalyst and providing community leadership in West Palm Beach, supporting efforts to increase travel and tourism to Palm Beach County. For general information about the Kravis Center, please visit www.kravis.org.
For more information about The Writers’ Academy and to register for the different courses, please visit www.kravis.org/performance-calendar/writersacademy.