2nd workshop of the Okayama Writer-in-Residence in 2023

The 2nd workshop of the Okayama Writer-in-Residence was held on Saturday, December 16, 2023 at  Nishigawara Plaza.

The Writer-in-Residence program invites a writer to stay in Okayama City and conduct interviews and writing. Yusuke Norishiro, winner of the 37th Joji Tsubota Literary Award and the 40th Oda Sakunosuke Award for his latest work has been staying in Okayama City for three terms.

The 2nd workshop started in a lecture room. Mr. Norishiro explained participants’ unique expressions and interesting viewpoints from handwrites of them. The participants seemed to realize that different writers could produce very different works even though they had spent the same time in a same place..

After reading Mr. Norishiro's advice and other participants' works, they all walked up along the banks of the Hyakken River until we reached Seseragi Park. They started writing sketches wherever they liked. Unfortunately, the weather was windy and rainy, but participants were able to sketch landscapes in the changing weather.
After 40 minutes of landscape sketching, they walked back to the lecture room and started modifying and re-writing. Everyone was working diligently to improve their work.

Some participants commented that they were able to write better than the first time, while others said that they became more conscious of landscape sketching in their daily lives, and that it changed the way they see things.