Beginners Intensive Writing Short Course
Course description
Course overview
This course will look at the elements that make up short fiction from prose poems and vignettes to flash fiction and short stories. We will look at examples from the best writers in the genre (Lydia Davis, Dave Eggers, Denis Johnson, Shirley Jackson, Sherman Alexie and others).
We will read, write, and workshop stories in progress, and by the end of the two days students will have a piece of writing they are proud of. We will discuss the writing journey and the process of sending your work out into the world. Students will receive guidance with how to structure their ideas into words on the page.
Who this course is for
The course is aimed at beginners or those who have done a small amount of writing. A good grasp of spoken and written English is essential.
Key information
Topics covered
- An exploration of styles and a variety of writers of literary fiction, with an emphasis on the short story and flash fiction
- A discussion of published works of literary fiction
- Key technical aspects of the craft of writing
- How to analyse and engage with writing in a way that helps students contextualise their own work
- The importance of fitting writing into one's life using tools and approaches we will practice in class
- How to build your more confidence as a writer
- How to develop the skills to give and take criticism of literary work
- How to create a workshop atmosphere in order to create a dynamic, supportive and safe environment
- An exploration of the place of literary fiction on the literary landscape
Learning outcomes
- Receive guidance with how to structure their ideas into words on the page
- Leave with a piece of writing you are proud of
- Digital badge and certificate of attendance.
Materials
- Paper or notebook
- Pens
- Any dazzling examples of flash fiction you would like to share
- A book you love
Tutor
Joanna Pocock
Joanna Pocock is the 2018 winner of the Fitzcarraldo Editions Essay Prize for 'Surrender', her book-length memoir and meditation on the American West, its land and its people. 'Surrender' has been compared to the writings of Rebecca Solnit, Lauren Elkin, Garnette Cadogan and Iain Sinclair and described as a 'necessary read for our times'. The book has been published in the UK, US and Canada, and been translated into French and Spanish. Joanna is an Arts Foundation Fellow, a 2021 winner of the Arts Foundation Prize in Environmental Writing and has been recently shortlisted for the Nature Chronicles Prize in Nature Writing. Her writing and photo essays have been published in a variety of outlets in the UK and US, most notably The Los Angeles Times, The Nation, Orion, The New Statesman, The Spectator, The Times Literary Supplement, Granta, Dazed & Confused and Tank Magazine. She has been teaching creative writing, both fiction and non-fiction, for two decades and brings a wealth of writing, editing and publishing experience to her classes. When she isn't writing and teaching, Joanna works as an editor at the Dark Mountain Project and for Verso Books. Her next book, 'Greyhound', is being published by Fitzcarraldo Editions (UK) and Soft Skull (US) in Summer 2025.
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