Class

So What? Your Story and Historical Context

You know the “what” of your story. How do you answer the “so what” question? Discover how your story becomes richer and reaches a larger audience when placed within a broader historical frame, or historical context. By sharing your stories, you will become more aware of your global historical context and practice linking your story to other stories. At the end of class, you will have experience widening your historical frame to include stories that might not have appeared before.

The first two sessions explore how writers convey historical context. Writing prompts and discussion will help you fit your story within a larger historical frame. We will also learn how stories relate to other stories through historical trends such as industrialization and decolonization. The third and fourth sessions focus on how your story relates to those of other participants. We will also reflect on how to write about our awareness of interconnected stories. Between sessions we will have optional online discussions to continue our conversations.

This class is suitable for writers of any level. This includes marginalized writers and writers who want to explore how to be more self-aware and inclusive in their storytelling.

All Classes listed on the Loft website take place in Central Time.

No class on November 26 due to Loft office closure.

Instructions for Accessing This Online Class

In order to access live class meetings, you must have the Zoom application downloaded to your computer. You will also need a WiFi/Internet connection throughout the duration of your scheduled meeting and a computer with audio and video capability. The information to join your Zoom classroom will be provided in your confirmation email upon registration. Please check spam folders if you do not see this email upon registration. For more information on how to use Zoom, please see our training manual here.

Some classes use a supplemental Google Classroom page. Should your teaching artist use Google Classroom, you will be invited to join the classroom via email at least 24 hours in advance of your class (check spam folders if you are not seeing this invitation). Please note that Google Classroom requires a Gmail address to access the Classroom. If you do not have a Gmail account, the email invitation will be sent to the email address we have on file and will prompt you to create a free account or enter an existing account to join the classroom. If we are unable to send an email invitation to your non-gmail account, you will be contacted by a staff member to provide a Gmail address. If you do not have a Gmail account, you can create a free account here. Should you have concerns about this, please contact a Loft staff member at [email protected] or 612-379-8999. For more information on how to use Google Classroom, please see our training manual here.