Writers’ Room: Developing Character with Claire Fuller

In this two-hour session, award-winning novelist Claire Fuller will break down the key components of character, sharing her own tried and tested tips for creating real and rounded characters, as well as delving into passages from the Women’s Prize library to examine the secrets behind beloved characters in contemporary fiction.

Through a blend of discussion and interactive writing exercises, you will:

• Discover techniques for exploring your characters to bring them to life on the page.
• Understand the five methods of presenting character in fiction.
• Learn practical tips for creating convincing inner lives and outer appearance of your characters.
• Be guided through a range of character creation exercises during the class, which you can continue to use back at your desk.

No matter what stage you are at in your writing journey, join us to explore your creativity and come away feeling inspired and better equipped to conjure up characters that will capture your readers’ hearts.

The Mistressclass will be delivered via Zoom webinar (18:30-20:30). Sessions are also recorded so if you are unable to attend live, you will have access to the recording for a month afterwards.

Claire Fuller was born in Oxfordshire, England, in 1967. She gained a degree in sculpture from Winchester School of Art, but went on to have a long career in marketing and didn’t start writing until she was forty. She has written five novels: The Memory of Animals, published in 2023, Unsettled Ground, which in 2021 won the Costa Novel Award and was shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, Our Endless Numbered Days, which won the Desmond Elliott Prize, Swimming Lessons, which was shortlisted for the RSL Encore Award, and Bitter Orange. She has an MA in Creative and Critical Writing from the University of Winchester and lives in Hampshire with her husband.

Five free places are available for women on a low income whose financial situation prohibits them from attending the event, resident in England or Wales, prioritising those from marginalised backgrounds (writers of colour, disabled writers, LGBTQ writers and other under-represented groups).

To apply, please email info@womensprizeforfiction.co.uk with the subject line: ‘Mistressclass subsidised place’, with a little bit about yourself, why you are interested, how you think you will benefit from the session, and attaching any relevant paperwork you have. We will aim to reply to you by 13/09/2023.

If you are not sure what low-income means, the Citizens Advice Bureau has some useful guidelines here, and there are some helpful calculations here to show how these margins are measured by the Government across the country. If you are a full-time student or pensioner, or in receipt of any kind of Universal Credit, you are eligible to apply. You may also submit HMRC self-assessment paperwork to show you are low-earning if you are self-employed and not in receipt of income support.