Courses

Many have been struck by a great idea for a novel; fewer have sat down to actually write it. This class invites the aspiring novelist to take their first plunge into long-form storytelling, breaking novel writing down into approachable and nonintimidating narrative elements. It’s for writers who’ve started and abandoned one too many stories and for those with a dozen great ideas they’ve never quite committed to paper.

We’ll work on how to move from inspiration to a fleshed-out, usable concept to a gripping first chapter and beyond. We’ll troubleshoot issues that often make writers want to abandon a first draft—from characters who don’t behave the way we want to unwieldy plots, low stakes, and lackluster scenes. We’ll study our individual writing habits (plotting versus pantsing, discovery drafts, when and how to process critiques) with an eye toward making the most of how each writer writes best. We’ll read one craft book and one short novel. In the first five weeks of the course, students will work on developmental exercises, planning their novels; in the last five weeks, students will submit portions of their beginning novel (up to 1,000 words per week) to small groups for light and constructive peer and instructor feedback.