Slow Story Workshop 4: Building an Immersive World
Workshop replay, slides and handout
This workshop is all about transforming your settings from simple backdrops into powerful storytelling tools that readers can truly inhabit. We'll go far beyond basic visual descriptions to create environments that engage all the senses and do the hard work of revealing character and advancing your story.
You'll discover how to apply Hemingway's Iceberg Theory to your worldbuilding—knowing your world completely whilst showing it selectively. Through practical exercises and analysis of masterful examples like "Hills Like White Elephants," we'll explore using light and shadow for emotional resonance, weather as a storytelling tool, and cultural context that shapes how your characters behave.
Whether you're crafting contemporary fiction or building entirely new worlds, this workshop gives you the tools to create settings that feel alive and essential. Every descriptive element should serve multiple purposes, and by the end you'll know exactly how to make that happen.