Italy was the cradle of the Renaissance – a fitting locale for a workshop that blends writing and photography, practice and theory, a historic city and the latest storytelling techniques ....

Please join Amanda Castleman and Marcus Donner in Rome from April 20–26, 2008.

Sunday April 20
6:00-8:30pm
Opening night reception at the classroom in Monti: wine, antipasti and a warm welcome. Light eaters can probably graze dinner from the selection of snacks.

Monday April 21
9:00am
Discussion: genre overview

10:00am
Photo seminar: shooting like a pro

Noon
Break for lunch (on your own) and exploration

4pm - 5:30pm
Discussion: story pitches

8:15pm
Excursion: Birth of Rome celebration (optional)
Meet in front of the Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II ( also know as “the Vittoriano” and “the wedding cake,” this Fascist-built monstrosity dominates Piazza Venezia). We'll take a short walk to the see the candle-covered Capitoline Hill. Fireworks will explode over the Tiber River later that evening. Feel free to join us or explore alone.

Tuesday April 22
Morning
Field reporting: fact-gathering for the afternoon writing clinic. Sleuth down your own topic or chose from our shortlist:
Campo dei Fiori (the famous farmers' market runs dawn-noon)
The Vatican (go extremely early for the Sistine Chapel. The dome tour is panoramic, but a monster stair workout, even with the elevator).
Trastevere (atmospheric quarter on the west bank of the Tiber)
The Forum (free) and Coliseum (purchase a combination ticket at the Palatine, where lines are much shorter)
The Pantheon and Tor di Nona area

2:00pm
Debrief on morning field work

3:00pm
In-class exercise: a lede, nut graf and two paragraphs based on the morning's reporting

3:30pm
Photo seminar: travel image tips and techniques

4pm-4:30pm
Writing clinic: share and critique

4:30-5:30pm
Discussion: self-editing and redrafting

Overnight Homework:
redraft your in-class exercise

Wednesday April 23
Field assignment: prepare a "front of the book" article of 250-500 words with one accompanying photo. The day excursion includes the Testaccio neighborhood and Ostia Antica: the city's old port is now the most extensive collection of Roman ruins outside of Pompei.

9:00am
We'll visit the Pyramid of Cestius and the Protestant Cemetery (the final resting place of Keats and Shelley's heart). At Volpetti, one of Rome's most famous deli's, we'll pick up a picnic lunch (provided by TWC). Time-permitting, we'll also visit the Testaccio market.

Travel Catch the Rome-Lido train from Porta San Paolo (30 min)

Noon Picnic lunch

12:30pm Writing clinic

Afternoon
Explore the ruins of Ostia Antica: streets, temples, baths and forums.

Thursday April 24
Morning
Writing time: develop your "front of the book" story

3:00pm
Writing clinic: "front of the book" assignment

4:00pm
Discussion: discovering your voice

5:00pm
Photo seminar: shooting for the web and blogs, magic hour and night photos

6:45pm Photo safari: We'll take a stroll from the Capitoline toward the Tiber River to capture the day's best light. Early birds may enjoy the panorama from the Capitoline Museum Cafè. No admission ticket is required: a separate entrance lies on the left side of the Palazzo dei Conservatori. Dismiss the sensation of sneaking into the museum - it's truly OK: just clamber up the stairs to the bar.

Friday April 25
10:30am
Hack skills 101 Interviews, investigations and research

Noon
Break for lunch (on your own) and exploration

4:00pm Literary techniques
Plot, structure and pacing tips from narrative nonfiction
• Q&A (photo and text) and final notes. Slide show of student work.

Please note: April 25th is Liberation Day. Museums, businesses, public transportation and government offices may be closed or on Sunday schedule. Don't attempt any ambitious travel on this holiday.

Saturday April 26
9:00am-1pm
Critiques: Private consultations, up to 30 minutes with each instructor, of your photos and text from the week's work.

8:00pm
Closing dinner at Remo in Testaccio. The pizza's thin crust peters into charcoal here – the true mark of wood-fired, Roman authenticity. Indeed, Remo is as real as it comes. The hum of happy customers grows loud in this blue-collar neighborhood favorite. Superb produce makes even a simple bruschetta al pomodoro (toast, brushed with garlic and olive oil, topped with tomato and basil) pleasurable. Serious gourmands should sample the eggplant parmesan and filetti di bacalà (salted, battered, deep-fried cod), however. The tablecloths may be paper, but this pizzeria has both class and credibility.

Please note changes may be made to the schedule based on student proficiency, for weather, train strikes (not uncommon in Italy) and other unforeseen circumstances.

Experience and erudition
As full-time freelancers, we provide the sort of mean-streets, real-time advice many students crave. Our resumes range from travel guides, to Internet startups, metro dailies, and travel and entertainment magazines. We can advise on a variety of writing goals – from insider and outsider perspectives.

We back more than 40 years of collective journalism experience with a high level of scholarship. Classes source the latest criticism and writing manuals, from Marc Weingarten's The Gang That Wouldn't Write Straight to Ben Yagoda's The Sound on the Page, Perseus Publishing's We've Got Blog and Roy Peter Clark's 50 Writing Tools. Instructor Amanda Castleman contributed to the genre with several chapters in the first U.S. collegiate travel writing textbook.

The combination is powerful. We can answer nitty-gritty questions about story pitches or converse about Jack Hart's theories of narrative arc. The effect – we hope – is to help folks take those first steps, while inspiring them to become long-distance runners.

Process, not product
“Sometimes the victory is just coming to the mat,” one of Amanda's yoga teachers often intones. The same philosophy applies to writing: simply starting can be the hardest part … followed by continuing. An author's work is never done, just abandoned.

New markets emerge. Styles evolve. Growth is continual, like a rat's tooth: we forever deepen our understanding of the world – and how we interpret it.

Dedication to that process is what separates a writer from someone who merely can write. No diploma or publication credit confers this status. Authors earn it daily – from an unknown poet toiling on a first chapbook to bestsellers with gilded names.

The self-motivation and lack of benchmarks can be frustrating. As teachers, we help students set realistic goals, while awakening them to the larger journey.

Given gentle encouragement – and truly detailed commentary – many students have launched professional careers; several even debuted in national publications like National Geographic Traveler and The Christian Science Monitor. Others have decided to remain passionate amateurs, laying escapist fantasies to rest: success of another sort.

Either way, we have a lot of laughs.

Distinctive voice
Every writer has a distinctive voice – and compelling, unique stories. A good instructor guides students in this discovery, while nudging them towards professional standards.

The job is part cheerleading, part diagnostics and a large measure of explanation. Why change something? And where to begin? Such advice is essential to authors new to a genre. Amanda supplies detailed feedback, while respecting each student's ambitions and personal style.

An eye for storytelling
Starting out, most writers shoot their own art. Sometimes having a few key photos can secure a commission. Marcus walks students through the basics of composition, as well as strategies for travel shoots. Explore techniques such as framing, the rule of thirds and shooting pictures for your blog. Learn how to edit your images to best tell a tale. Then expand your skills with our "magic hour and night photography" seminar.

Travel Writing Class.com invites students' companions to join the photo classes for $US 350.


Good bedside manner
Humor helps, we firmly believe – especially in creative endeavors, involving oft-fragile egos. For example, perhaps some of the sting dissolves if Amanda can laugh at her legendary abhorrence of non-purposeful word repetition.

Both our Rome instructors, Amanda Castleman and Marcus Donner – are respected for their clarity, wit and energy in the classroom. Read more about their backgrounds and students' evaluations here.