Legendary author Ernest Hemingway once described the difficulties he faced with telling story:

“I was trying to write then and I found the greatest difficulty was to put down what really happened in action; what the actual things were which produced the emotion that you experienced…the real thing, the sequences of motion and fact which made the emotion and which would be as valid in a year or ten years or, with luck and if you stated it purely enough, always.”

The key to storytelling in any medium, whether it be fiction, nonfiction, short story, journalism, memoir, screen, or otherwise, rests with not only what happens and how it happens, but how what happens affects characters that we, the reader/viewer, identify with and care about. There is a fine balance in telling story that must be maintained between action/reaction, cause and effect, motivation and stimulus that does not come easily to the average writer. Establishing this balance, and using it to generate emotion within the reader, through the creation of believable characters and truthful story motivation, is what this workshop is all about.

Through a detailed analysis of the keys to storytelling, structured classroom instruction, and precise critiquing of workshop writing, I aid writers in mastering the building blocks to creating psychologically believable characters and scenes in story that greatly move the reader. All of my students have improved their writing over just one weekend, with some of them going on to get their books published.

Here's what these former students had to say:

"Of the countless seminars, workshops, classes and clinics I have attended in the craft of writing fiction, only Michael Mehas has been able to encapsulate the organic nature of the fiction writing process. His unique Yin and Yang concept incorporates with simultaneous effort the zen experience desired for the reader. A simple, easy to remember methodology for creating a powerful story, and learning how to orchestrate an engrossing reading experience with compelling characters and psychologically believable scenes."
--Francisco Zapiain, author

"Michael's teaching and enthusiasm are infectious. They both helped to provide me with the energy I needed to finish my first book, and then to get it published. I don't think I could have finished the job without him."
-- Gary Ryan, author of Blessing in Disguise

"I couldn't wait to begin rewriting my book with the help of the writing tips I learned from Mr. Mehas. The skills he's taught me and his guidance in writing has also helped enhance my songwriting abilities. It's helped my music skyrocket!!!"
--Nicholas Purkheiser, singer, songwriter, author

In addition to teaching the Yin and Yang of writing at Ventura College and Bank of Books in Ventura, California, I have written for the big screen, an award-winning novel, and my journalism has been published internationally.

My novel, Stolen Boy, has recently garnered nine prestigious fiction awards, including, an IPPY Gold Medal, Best Book of the Year in fiction from Books-and-Authors.net, and Best New Fiction from National Book Awards. Stolen Boy provides a riveting exploration of character and motivation behind the youngest man ever on the FBI’s Most Wanted List, Jesse James Hollywood. My unprecedented research on the case enabled me to piece together the story depicted in the major motion picture Alpha Dog, starring Justin Timberlake, Bruce Willis, and Sharon Stone, and Stolen Boy.

The mass media has praised my work. Chris Summers of BBC News wrote about Stolen Boy: “I thought it was excellent. I like the way it built quite slowly into a powerful climax, although I was glad I knew the back story because the ending is sort of a cliffhanger, isn’t it?”

David Conter of the Santa Barbara News-Press also shed heart-felt praise for my book: “Deeply detailed and scatalogically entertaining, ‘Stolen Boy’ lays bare the consequences of callow thrill-seeking–and how the world of senseless excitement is one of the foundations on which rests cheaply available annihilation.”

Other reviewers have labeled Stolen Boy as a “very powerful book”, “a page-turner,” “un-put-down-able,” and, “a wonderful, heartbreaking story.” So, if you’re tired of messing around in the fog that is storytelling, you won’t want to miss this rare opportunity to learn the skills that make bestsellers.

THE CRAFT OF BUILDING EMOTION INTO STORY
(and Yin and Yang of writing)

By popular demand, the weekend writing intensive of the year is back at Ventura College, and you can’t afford to miss it. Whether you’re an aspiring writer, or an established vet looking to gain the competitive edge, then come to my Weekend Writing Intensive and:

• Learn the “trade secrets” to creating characters with great emotional depth
• Study how to plot an emotionally packed story
• Discover character emotional development through scene study
• Practice writing scenes that trigger emotional switches within the reader
• Understand how the Yin and Yang of writing mirrors the Yin and Yang of life

The Ventura College Weekend Writing Intensive will run Saturday and Sunday, March 28th thru 29th, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., at Ventura College, Room 3A, 71 Day Road, Ventura, California 93003.

There is nothing like this class available anywhere. So if you're interested in learning the techniques selling writers use, and improving your writing game beyond belief, you won't want to miss this incredible weekend of literary thrill!

To enroll, please go to www.communityed.venturacollege.edu or call 805.654 6459. For more information about Michael Mehas, please visit www.MichaelMehas.com and www.StolenBoy.com, or write to Michael@StolenBoy.com.

Peace, Love, and Blessings to all,