I’m starting to quite excited about my trip to Newcastle for the AV Festival.

Rob & I are presenting a session on our work as the fictional XPT on Saturday 8th Nov. Then I’m putting together a Web writing workshop for Sunday. Never done anything like it before so will be interested to find out if it works. Here is my proposed schedule for the Sunday:

THE SETUP

Local MP Tarquin Wufnik is holding an open online chat so that everyone and anyone in the community can come and have their say about any issue that is bothering them.

You can turn up as absolutely anyone you like: policeman or prostitute, estate agent or school kid, local nutter or local newsagent. You can raise any issue you like – silly or serious.

Maybe you’re simply there with someone else. Maybe you’ve come to the wrong meeting. Perhaps you’re one of Tarquin’s spin doctors, his wife or his evil twin. Maybe you’ve come to raise a specific issue, or shout general abuse, or chat to someone in particular. Maybe you’ve wandered in by accident.

Anything is possible. The aim of the game is simple – to create a credible voice for your chosen character within 60 mins of entering the chat environment.

TIMETABLE

12:00
Gather and be assigned a computer

12.15
Scene setting. Get acclimatised to the chat environment with help from Tim/Rob. Think about the character you want to be.

12.45
Group chat with each writer masquerading as a fictional character.

13.30
15 minute break

13.45
Having developed a voice, writers have 15 minutes to write a 75-100 word character description.

14.00
Group run-through of characters. Pairings made for Messenger sessions, with characters chatting one-to-one. If it’s helpful they can discuss meeting, or planning to meet, at a pre-specified location. This is not compulsory. Suggested locations are:

• The Millenium Bridge
• The roof of the Sage Music Centre
• St James Park
• The maze at Saltwell Park
• Angel of the North
• The Tuxedo Princess
• Cullercoats beach

14.15
Messenger Sessions

14.45
Break – Printouts

15.15
Review & distribution of printouts & editable files.

15.30
Each writer will be asked to edit create a 3 minute scene based on a chat he or she did NOT take part in. A scene from the original group chat will also be edited.

16.30
Printing out of finished scripts

17.00
Scripts given to actors for casting, rehearsals, feedback

18.30
Break

19.00
Writers introduce themselves. No clues given about the characters they created. Actors read through/perform the 3-min scenes

20.00
Audience try to guess which writer developed which character.

20.15
Feedback & Questions
Summary & Thanks