Writers Network January 6 – Building Characters from the Inside Out

Gini Grossenbacher, M.Ed.

Award-winning Novelist, Poet, Editor, Publisher

Lisa Cron says, “A story is about how the things that happen affect someone in pursuit of a difficult goal, and how that person changes as a result.” Thus, story is what happens to our character internally, not externally. Our workshop will examine five key ways to deepen the character’s internal agenda and reveal her struggles through her inner lens. Writers will take away useful character-building strategies they can use crafting on their stories, memoirs, and novels.

Attendees will learn about:

• The Character’s Life You Will Turn Upside Down
• Your Protagonist’s World View
• Your Protagonist’s Past and Current Beliefs
• Your Protagonist’s Goals in both Scenes and Story
• Defining your Protagonist’s Overarching Plot Problem
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In addition to teaching writing, editing, and publishing the work of her fellow authors, Gini Grossenbacher loves writing historical novels. Madam in Lace, set in France, received a Reader’s Favorite Five-Star review and the 2022 Independent Publisher Silver Medal for Best European Fiction. Chinese American Madam in Silk was the Runner Up in the 2020 National Indie Excellence Awards for Historical Fiction. Her debut novel, a tale of Baltimore, New Orleans, and San Francisco, Madam of My Heart, won the 2018 Independent Publisher Silver Medal for Historical Fiction. She is currently celebrating the launch of her poetry collection, Glimpses. Founder of Elk Grove Writers & Artists, Gini leads weekly writers’ Zoom workshops on style and substance, the novel, poetry, and flash fiction. You may contact Gini at www.ginigrossenbacher.com