2024 SiWC Diana Workshop “Focus”

Greetings Outlander fans!

This is my final post about Surrey International Writers’ Conference (SiWC) held in Surrey, British Columbia on Oct. 25-27, 2024.

I had a fabulous time. Got to hear Diana perform in two workshops, one panel and Michael Slade’s Shock Theater. Great fun!

This last post is a review of Diana’s workshop entitled “Focus.”

The room was filled to capacity even though it was the last day of the conference and some people had already left.  This is an obvious testament to the respect she commands in the field of writing.

She arrived wearing a beautifully embroidered top and a lovely smile for all!

Diana began her workshop by explaining that she writes slowly because she considers every word she adds to her story.

She thinks book 10 will be her last Outlander book so she is putting a lot of thought into tying up loose ends both for her characters and various unresolved situations.

She also is working on a new Lord John book titled, ‘Black Chambers!”

She also wrote two scripts for the new Starz series, Blood of my Blood (BomB).

Of course, she also does numerous events, has a family and two grandsons which require a bit of her “focus,” too. This all helps account for her “slow” writing. 😉

Moving to the meat of her presentation, Diana learned early on how to get people to pay attention to what she wants them to pay attention to  – this is the very definition of FOCUS! 🤗

Next, she explained how using the five points of journalism helps a writer focus a reader’s attention by using:

    • Who
    • What
    • When
    • Where
    • Why

As an example of focus, she read a new scene she has been working on. Will this excerpt appear in book 10, in the new Lord John book, or in another book? She does not say! 🤐

Minnie, wife of Hal and sister-in-law of Lord John, is the main character in this scene. She stands on the deck of a ship. She has a letter in her pocket from her second son, Adam.

Diana informs the attendees that that Minnie is a character in “Fugitive Green,” originally a short story from “Seven Stones to Rise and Fall.”  (Psst…..”Fugitive Green” is also now a stand alone novella!)🤭

She starts by telling the reader who Minnie is: She is a woman that likes uncertainty! She has a conversation with Irishman, Raph (Raphael) O’Higgens, a character from “A Fugitive Green.”  Then a whale arrives and the conversation focuses on the whale.

By the end of the scene, Diana has addressed all five of the journalistic points she discussed earlier!

She then explains several ways a writer can redirect a reader’s focus:

    • Change the subject
    • Create a loud noise
    • Distraction by something outside the convo
    • Add motion
    • Add alliteration
    • Use shiny objects 😄

She then elaborates on why motion is so effective at changing focus. Humans are highly responsive to movement because we evolved as both predator and prey. Motion attracted our attention because it was a matter of life and death. 😮

She explains that a writer must also write. As an example, various Outlander cast members have asked for advice on how to write a book.  She always recommends that they write for ten minutes every day for a week.  By the end of the week they will know if they want to write a book! 📖

She also noted that Sam Heughan is the only cast member who did write a book – all the rest fell by the wayside when faced with her challenge. 🤗

Someone asked her how much research she did to write about the whale. She modestly answered that, well, she does have a Master’s Degree in marine biology so she knows something about whales. Big laughter! 😄  

She also read the whale chapter from “Moby Dick” which she found highly useful.

She noted that she made a big deal of the whale in this scene because a whale features later in whatever book this scene is destined to appear. 🐳

She was asked about writing historical figures. Her rule is she tries not to make a historical figure do anything worse in her stories than the worst thing she knows about them!  🤩

She pointed out that if you present the reader with a question, they want an answer, so don’t take too long to address it. (I will reiterate what I wrote in an earlier SiWC post….. Diana has made her readers sometimes wait 10 years and two books for answers! 😜)

She reiterated the three types of characters she writes. Most fans know these already:

    • Mushrooms – characters that pop up, like Fergus
    • Onions – complex characters with many layers, like Claire and Jamie
    • Hard nuts – difficult to develop characters, like Bree

She also uses the rule of three…. For example, she always uses at least three senses to help the reader to focus and get into the character and what he/she is experiencing.

She believes she has a beneficial form of ADHD which has a huge impact on her writing and explains why she does not write in a straight line or follow an outline. Later, I asker her at lunch if she had been formally diagnosed and she has not but has read enough about the topic to deduct that it applies to her.

Diana ended her session by rereading a scene between Jamie and William. She has asked me not to share its contents. It is a very tender scene, I will say that.

The following is a recording of all of her workshop except that scene between William and Jamie – it was omitted. I hope you enjoy it.

Oh! There are 2-3 places where the recording is interrupted by extraneous noise. I think this was me shifting in my chair. I apologize. 🙄

After the presentation, I gifted her with a bee-themed book bag. Inside is a small encaustic painting by my oldest daughter. Book readers will recall that book nine, “Go Tell the Bees that I am Gone,” has an entire chapter about encaustic painting. 

All-in-all, Diana’s presentation was entertaining and enlightening. She always delivers useful information to the attendees and she does it with style and grace! 🤩

The deeply grateful,

Outlander Anatomist

Follow me on:

Video and Photo credits: Outlander Anatomy

2022 Outlandish Vancouver/Outlandish Adventures – Day 3

Day three and we were off and running!

Jamie caught up with us in the vendor room and held us at gunpoint! We surrendered! 😍

Next panel was the guys! Just the guys! And, only the guys! 🤗

They got settled in and the questions began!

Jody stood at the mic and said she had been a teacher for 36 years and wanted to predict the type of student each had been. She Thought Tim and David were quiet. But, likely, Paul got into trouble. Yep, turns out, she was right.

David was studious. Tim also was quiet in school but did use humor to deal with bullying! 😮

And, Paul……  Weil, Paul got into trouble for talking too much! His punishment was to write many time what it was that he did that was bad!

Tim was asked if it was difficult to play Tryon.  His answer was candid, interesting and enlightening. He replied that it helps to understand that the British always think they are right! He said he put himself in that frame of mind when he played the part of Governor Tryon. He added that Tryon felt justified in all the decisions he made even though they were bad for the settlers. He was so good as a baddie!

Then, questions were interrupted for an surprise auction! An Outlander fan who was not named donated a rug to be auctioned  off to benefit the Wounded Warriors project. Koko explained that she goes by the moniker, “The Happy Hooker.” 😊 She is a disabled vet. The rug was made of wool that was hand dyed, hand carded, hand spun, and hand hooked! It really was a splendid piece of work!

Bidding began at $20. For a moment, Tim took over and did a perfect imitation of a bonafide auctioneer!

Bidding moved to $30, then $40, then higher and higher until it sold at $1600 to the highest bidder: Tina from Texas. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Sadly, time was up and the guys exited. Buh bye, guys! 👋🏻

Then the gals came in. Caitlin and Joanne took their seats and the grilling began anew. People are very curious! 🤔

Asked what male character of Outlander they would like to play, JoAnne wants to play Roger. Caitlin wants to play young Ian! (Psst…..I think she would make a swell young Ian)

Question: “What was filming like?”

Caitlin said, nothing is like what you would expect. Scotland is cold and wet. She was very scared at first. And, most importantly, she made sure she carried Tampons in her purse! 👍🏻

I asked how they liked the corset. Caitlin said not at all! She had trouble getting food through her esophagus into her stomach and it was very hard to use the toilet! They had port-a-potties, which were cramped with dirty floors.

But, JoAnne loved wearing a corset. She said it was the best her figure ever looked!

I have to agree. I wore one while walking the Royal Mile in Edinburg in 2016 and I liked my posture! 😇

Caitlin shared that any stories about how difficult children are on set, are true. She said at the S5 wedding scene , she was supposed to take care of Jemmy, but both twins were terrified of her. She was directed to lay Jem down in the basket but the baby kept standing up! Director, Stephen (Woolfenden), was signing to her to push him down in the basket which she tried to do but after that he screamed whenever she came near him. (moms know this wouldn’t work) 🫣

This is one reason Joanne was given a “plastic” baby to hold for her scenes as Amy.  The camera would cut away to a live baby for close ups. 👍🏻

Asked what was hard for Caitlin to play the role of Lizzy, she was very candid. For her screen test, she was asked to do the bit where she tells Claire about the wee curlies around Jo’s paps!
😜 It was hard to be serious, but then, she took it seriously because she loves Lizzie’s innocence and her wondrous exploration of her sexuality. She also looked forward to playing a polyamorous relationship which is a first for her.

The ladies left and then the whole crew re-emerged for the last panel of the event. And, we were able to posit our final questions.

When you joined Outlander, were you prepared for the fandom?

Caitlin, No!

Paul, No, but he is grateful and appreciative of us!

David, No. These experiences are not available to anyone outside this room (includes entire fandom). He really appreciates hearing and receiving the love of the fans.

Tim, No. At first, he only knew what the director told him. Soon, he learned that the fans know the books forward and backwards. (Of course we do! 😇)

Any fun fan stories?

David said he appreciated the gifts fans give to his son. He is very grateful for their thoughtfulness.

Caitlin was in Glasgow walking down the street with John bell. People would stop them and ask if she would take a pic of them with John! Puir lass! 

Tim said someone gave him a foot spa as a gift! 😁 He wondered if this was OK?

Joanne said someone knitted her a pair of fingerless gloves. One bore a picture of a bear and the other a cluster of grapes. She wondered what that meant! 😉

Last question was did you know about Outlander?

Paul did because he is Scottish and very aware of the influx of tourists. He shared this apocryphal story: Diana was on tour and stopped at a bookstore in a small hamlet. She picked out two books and took them to the counter to pay. The bookstore owner said they were on “the house!” Everyone in Scotland knows about Diana. 🥰

And then it was time to say goodbye for this event! Great time! Great guests! Great fandom!

We exited the event and even said goodbye to our strange security guard. It was asleep at its docking station! 😁


The
deeply grateful,

Outlander Anatomist

Follow me on:

Photo and Video Credits: Sony/Starz, Outlander Anatomy, Jody Kawamata-Chang, www.natgeo.com, www.secretseattle.com