We should require of prose what we expect of poetry: vividness, compression, and good sound. The last of these—good sound—is often neglected by prose writers, as if literature happens in a cone of silence, or sound was merely a decorative concern. Wrong. What Duke Ellington said of music—“If it sounds good it is good”—holds true for writing. So does the converse: if it isn’t music, it can’t be wisdom.

This one-hour craft talk will present how vital good sound is to fiction and nonfiction writing—providing examples, and techniques for improving the sound of your prose.

FREE for Paragraph Members*

Diana Goetsch is the author of eight collections of poems, dozens of nonfiction features and columns, and the memoir This Body I Wore, which The New York Times Book Review called “achingly beautiful.” Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, Poetry, The American Scholar, The Washington Post, the LA Times, Best American Poetry, the Pushcart Prize, and on NPR. She’s received honors and fellowships from the NEA, NYFA, Yaddo, and The New School, where she was the Grace Paley Teaching Fellow. Goetsch’s online course Actually Writing was attended by thousands of writers from five continents, and is now available on video.

*Paragraph Members: you will be auto-registered for this event. Check your inbox (spam/junk/promotions/etc) a few days ahead for the Zoom link.