"Awkward is My Superpower: Writing Sex" at the Loft Literary Center
Bring a sex scene you're already sweating over or start from the naked blank page.
The class will explore techniques and strategies for writing about sex and will include close reading of examples (likely to include work by Amy Bloom, Carmen Maria Machado, Toni Morrison, and Colm Toibin) as well as concrete writing exercises to implement the techniques we discover.
Then we'll share. Yes, in this case, we must. Getting it out there, feeling your face go red--it's essential to the process. We'll discuss our sex scenes like adults. Well, it might be a bit awkward... But that's okay! Workshopping the sex will help make the scenes better. But it will also help us all get over ourselves, so we can write about sex a lot more confidently.
(I won't tell you what to write, but to keep the space safe for everyone, the scenes you share must be of consensual sex.)
Single session, Saturday, 1/18/25, 9am-12pm, OpenBook, Minneapolis MN
"Intimacy and Conflict: Creating a Scene in Fiction" at the Loft Literary Center
Bodies at rest tend to stay at rest; bodies in motion, well, they just keep going the same way. But in stories, most readers crave change. So let's make those bodies bump or even crash! This can happen through conflict or through intimacy.
Learn strategies to create both intimacy and conflict in your scenes, pushing the characters to reveal themselves and get things moving in your stories. Along the way, we'll look at other tools for making scenes both real and immersive. And we'll uncover ways to make real change happen in your stories.
Sample texts will include work by writers such as Kaitlyn Greenidge, Kiese Laymon, Kiley Reid, Laleh Khadivi, Madeleine Thien, and Z.Z. Packer. Expect close readings of vibrant scenes, lively discussion, and concrete writing exercises to put the ideas to immediate and tangible use.
"Narration: Finding the Right Voice" at the Loft Literary Center
I sometimes think that once I find the voice of the storyteller, my work is done. I can sit back and let the voice tell the story. But that makes it seem simple. Picking the voice is never easy.
This class will examine a variety of narration techniques, looking at different options a writer has, as well as the opportunities and challenges each style presents. We'll cover topics such as first- and third-person POV, filtering through personality, sensibility, reliability, secrets & mystery, omniscience, tense, narrative distance, curation of objects, and narrative strategy, as well as a few wilder, stranger options.
Sample texts will include (very short or excerpted) work by writers such as Rumaan Alam, James Baldwin, Sandra Cisneros, Roxanne Gay, Jamey Hatley, Kazuo Ishiguro, Edward P. Jones, Porochista Khakpour, Jamaica Kincaid, Jami Nakamura Lin, Veronica Montes, Ruth Ozeki, Grace Paley, Brenda Peynado, Salmon Rushdie, Yun Wei, and Hanya Yanagihara. Each session will also include concrete prompts and writing exercises to put the ideas to immediate and tangible use.
"Lit!Commons: The Networker" at the Loft Literary Center
Loft Lit!Commons is a new virtual gathering space designed to guide writers to achieve their most common writing goals. Your personalized, transformative journey will help you overcome barriers, sharpen skills, develop habits, connect with fellow writers, amplify your creativity, and explore publishing options.
Lit!Commons subscribers will find convenience, opportunity, and support through access to three major channels:
On-Demand Micro-Lessons: Regular, bite-size content that fits effortlessly into your busy schedule.
Live Appointment Sessions: Follow up, connect, and stay on track through live virtual sessions.
Shared Community: Subscribers will have access to a shared community to build networks and foster connections. Our subscriber community will help you find the support you need to make the writing life a little less lonely.
My role is The Networker, and so I will be building a path that is about connection and real community. Sure, we'll make the kind of relationships that will help our careers, but we can also connect in ways that will fuel our art and support each other as human beings.
I'll be leading sessions on craft and creativity, but we'll approach it through collaboration and connection. We'll have amazing conversations. (Writing IS conversation.) We'll inspire each other. And we'll build wisdom together.
But you don't only get access to my path; you get all of them. The Storyteller, The Muse, The Poet, The Revisionist, The Catalyst, the Inner Child, the Navigator, and The Builder, and The Vocalist.
"Evil and Empathy: How to Create Complexity in Villains and Other Characters" at the Loft Literary Center
What is the nature of evil and how do we address it in fiction? We'll look at archetypal villains (think: fairy tales) as well as more complex monsters, such as the hero turned bad or the devil with whom we can't help but empathize. Do we want to empathize with the villains in stories? What is gained and lost by it? Won't it just make us see the evil in--gasp!--ourselves? Through examination of shadow selves, conflicting motivation and desire, and the creation of change in characters, we'll figure out how complex villains come alive on the page.
Sample texts will include a few craft essays, as well as excerpts of fiction by writers such as Ted Chiang, Danielle Evans, Kiese Laymon, Kellie Link, Chigozie Obioma, Helen Oyeyemi, ZZ Packer, and Leslie Marmon Silko. Then, through concrete prompts and exercises, we'll create our own heroes, villains, and complex combinations of the two.
Disclaimer: The course will focus on villains, but you won't escape learning about complexity in other sorts of characters as well.
"Ghost Stories: Writing What Haunts Us" at the Loft Literary Center
How do you bring ghosts to terrifying life in your stories? And why would you want to? This class is about the scary kind of ghosts, sure, but also the literary kind: ghosts as longing, ghosts as memory, ghosts as shadow selves. And it's about how we can wring the most from our ghosts--maybe by making them frightening or maybe not. Certainly by making them meaningful.
Sample texts will include work by writers such as Yangsze Chu, Tanarive Due, Gabrielle Lucille Fuentes, Aoko Matsuda, Toni Morrison, Edith Wharton, and Erika T. Wurth. Expect close readings of all sorts of hauntings, lively discussion, and concrete writing exercises to put the ideas to immediate and tangible use.
"Flash Fiction: The Power of Brevity" at the Loft Literary Center
Are you ready to get writing? Surely you've got time for a little bit of flash--that short yet evocative form.
In this fun and highly generative class, we'll read some flash fiction each week and discuss how it works. Then you'll get a writing prompt related to the discussion and the opportunity to share your work with peers to receive light, constructive feedback.
At the end of the class, you'll have eight brand new stories, a fuller understanding of flash fiction, and the inspiration to keep writing.
I'm offering this course THROUGH LIT!COMMONS. If you sign up for just two months of Lit!Commons (July and August), you get this class, as well as everything else that's wonderful about that space. (And it's less expensive than a regular course, too!)
8 weeks, Thursdays, 7/11/24 - 8/29/24, 7-8pm CST, Online (live meetings through zoom) PLUS an asynchronous path that you can complete on your own time!
"Fairy Tales and the Art of Subversion" at the Loft Literary Center
In both form and content, the fairy tale is an affront to "workshop craft." We can find subversive elements in the old stories. And we can subvert oppressive tropes in the new tales we write.
So let's learn a different sort of 'craft. We won't cast spells. Or will we? (Hint: All words are magic.) Themes of the class will include flatness, intuitive logic, abstraction, magic, evil, humor, world building, and endings (happy or otherwise). And of course, subversion.
We'll read work by writers such as Elizabeth Ruth Deyro, Jamey Hatley, Lily Hoang, W. Todd Kaneko, Janet Ha Kim, Kelly Link, Nnedi Okorafor, Helen Oyeyemi, Sofia Samatar, Jasmine Sawers, Nivedita Sekar, Jeremiah Tan, Liann Yim, Joy Williams, E. Lily Yu--with space left over for analysis of your own favorite fairy tales. Each session will feature examination of the fairy tale form, techniques for subversion, magical prompts and exercises, and time to practice what we uncover.
"The Power of Subversion: Tools and Strategies for Change" at the Loft Literary Center
Subversion is a powerful way to question our world and make change. We can start with stories that seem safe and familiar, then twist them to create something new, something better, maybe something dangerous. We'll examine and try out some strategies for subversion including: surfacing the subtext, satire, flips, inversions, recentering, reframing, and witness. We'll also look at the limitations of subversion as a strategy--how we can accidentally reinforce what we want to subvert.
Expect close reading of sample texts (likely to include work by authors such as Anna Cabe, Juan Martinez, Jenny Zhang, Daphne Palasi Andreades, Nivedita Sekar, Elizabeth Ruth Deyro, Yukiko Motoya, Rivers Solomon, Leslie Nneka Arimah, Nalo Hopkinson, W. Todd Kaneko, Laila Lalami, and Carmen Maria Machado), in-depth discussion, and concrete prompts and exercises to put the strategies we uncover to immediate and tangible use.
"Connecting With Your Characters: The Art of Intimacy in Fiction" at the Loft Literary Center
Stacy D'Erasmo's The Art of Intimacy: The Space Between asks "What is the nature of intimacy? What happens in the space between us? And how do we, as writers, reflect it on the page?" She's not talking about sex (usually...) but about other forms of connection and the spaces that carry meaning--that connect characters to each other and to the reader. This class will use D'Erasmo's thoughts as a launching place and then go beyond them to discover ways that intimacy can be created
We'll study texts by writers such as Silvia Morena Garcia, Megan Giddings, Laleh Khadivi, Kiese Laymon, Carman Maria Machado, Megha Majumdar, Carter Meland, Z.Z. Packer, Matthew Salesses, Yoko Tawada, Can Xue, and Yiyun Yi. You can also expect prompts and exercises to put the ideas to tangible use.
This course covers an advanced concept for fiction writing. Students should already feel reasonably comfortable with more basic concepts such as plot, character development, setting, dialogue, etc. But students should also expect to get a lot of practice with those elements as they enhance their understanding of this more advanced aspect of fiction.
Students should acquire Stacey D'Erasmo's The Art of Intimacy: The Space Between (Graywolf Press).
"Scary Stories: How to Create Creepiness" at the Loft Literary Center
Want to evoke chills in your reader? We'll study some eerie passages to uncover the techniques they employ, and then put those strategies to immediate use through concrete writing exercises and prompts. We may even have time to test some of our frightening passages on each other. If you dare!
Sample texts will include work by writers such as Shirley Jackson, Kelly Link, Carmen Maria Machado, Mariko Moike, Helen Oyeyemi, Daniel M. Lavery, Samanta Schweblin, and Sarah Waters. Expect close reading, animated discussion, and in-class writing time.
"Saving Face: The Old-fashioned Art of Physical Description & How to Make it New" at the Loft Literary Center
It can feel old-fashioned or even trite to make much use of physical description. Yet contemporary writers can use it to great effect, enhancing characterization, increasing subtext, and creating a sense of physicality that powerfully compels the narrative. Beyond that, readers like to picture characters!
So how do we employ physical description without becoming cliché or sentimental? More importantly, how do we avoid basing our physically described characters on tired or even oppressive stereotypes?
Through study of sample texts (likely to include work by Maud Casey, Angela Flournoy, Kiese Laymon, and Monique Truong), in-depth discussion, and concrete exercises, we'll uncover the complicated relationship that human beings have with faces, bodies, and anything else (clothes, jewelry, body modifications, expression, gesture etc.) that has to do with physical appearance. We'll also write some physical descriptions of our own, with practice integrating them in dynamic scenes.
"The Art of Mystery: What You Don't Know" at the Loft Literary Center
Maud Casey's The Art of Mystery: The Search for Questions is not about the mystery genre (though, if that's what you write, join us anyway!). It's not about coyness or about the frustrating lack of specificity that can leave us baffled or confused, ready to throw a book against the wall. Instead, she's talking about the secrets that enthrall us, the questions that fascinate, the mysteries that leave us rapt with wonder--even after the final page.
We'll pair each of Casey's chapters with short stories or novel excerpts, then discuss some profound techniques for the creation of an "inclusive, compelling mystery." Each week will also include concrete writing exercises and prompts to put the ideas to tangible use. Sample texts will include work by writers such as Chris Abani, Isaac Babel, James Baldwin, Jane Bowles, Carmen Maria Machado, and Yoko Tawada.
Writers who enroll in this class should already feel reasonably comfortable with more basic concepts like plot, character development, setting, dialogue, etc. But students should also expect to get practice with those elements as they enhance their understanding of this more advanced aspect of fiction.
Writers should acquire Maud Casey's The Art of Mystery by the first class meeting.
6 weeks, Mondays, 11/7/22 - 12/19/22 (No class on 11/21), 6-8pm Central, online (live meeting through zoom)
"Subtext and Subversion: a Prose Intensive" at Hudson Valley Writers Center
Subtext can be used to subvert oppressive tropes--it can also be used to reinforce them. So when should a writer use subtext? And how do we make sure it's a force for good? There are no easy answers, but there are some good tools and strategies for thinking through these issues. Through in-depth discussion of sample texts and concrete writing exercises, we'll look at the ways subtext can subvert. We'll also talk about what to avoid: the dangers of relying only on subtext, how it is necessarily exclusive, and how it can say things you don't mean for it to!
Writers will emerge with a better understanding of how subtext operates in fiction, how it can be powerful, and how it can be oppressive. They'll also emerge with new tools for subverting oppressive tropes and some brand new writing.
Saturday, 10/15/22, 12:00-4:00pm Central, online (live meeting through zoom)
"The Magical Object in Fiction" at the Loft Literary Center
Objects can be props, but they can also accumulate greater meaning, especially in our writing. In this class, we'll examine how to take the ordinary, functional objects that already occur in most stories and turn them into reflections of character, conduits for intimacy, motifs, and powerful metaphors--all to create dimension, complexity, and resonance in our stories.
We'll read sample texts by writers such as Hala Alyan, Alexander Chee, Roxane Gay, Yuri Herrera, Kristiana Kahakauwila, Yukiko Motoya, Sequoia Nagamatsu, Helen Oyeyemi, Hanya Yanagihara, Elizabeth McCracken, Yoko Tawada, and Jessamyn Ward. Each session will include concrete writing exercises to put the ideas to tangible use.
6 Weeks, July 12, 2023 - August 22, 2023, Online--Flex Schedule
"Dialogue, Gesture, and Staging" at the Loft Literary Center
Through careful analysis of dialogue - what people say, how they listen, when they don't - and how both conflict and intimacy arise in these moments, we'll create dynamic scenes in our fiction. Then we'll enrich them through adding gestures that bring the characters to life, while emphasizing, complicating, or even undercutting their words. Finally, we'll take a deep dive into staging, using subtext to make the scenes even more resonant.
Sample texts will include work by writers such as Laleh Khadivi, Porochista Khakpour, Kiese Laymon, Jami Nakamura Lin, Carmen Maria Machado, Leslie Marmon Silko, Z.Z. Packer, and Weike Wang. Expect in-depth discussion as well as prompts and writing exercises to put the ideas to immediate and tangible use.
"Flash Fiction: The Power of Brevity" at the Loft Literary Center
Are you ready to get writing? Surely you've got time for a little bit of flash--that short yet evocative form.
In this low-stakes class, we'll read some flash fiction each week and discuss how it works. Then you'll get a writing prompt related to the discussion and the opportunity to share your work with peers to receive light, constructive feedback.
At the end of the class, you'll have eight brand new stories, a fuller understanding of flash fiction, and the inspiration to keep writing.
"The Art of Telling: A Prose Workshop" at Hudson Valley Writers Center
"Show, Don't Tell" is such standard writing advice that it's become cliche. But is it good writing advice? Well, it depends. Sometimes it's best to show.
This class is about the other times. We'll look at ways telling can help you pace a story and better manage the movement of time. We'll study techniques to make summary as alive and evocative as scene. And we'll look at one of my favorite strategies -- to show through telling, when the style and tone of the language puts on its own show. We'll also spend a little bit of time examining why the cliche of "show don't tell" has been so pervasive, how all craft is culturally based, and how to be subversive about those often oppressive rules.
Expect close reading of excerpts from writers such as Megan Abbott, Nnedi Okorafor, Yiyun Li, and Jamaica Kincaid. Also expect time writing, as we put the ideas to practical use.
Sunday, 8/28/22, 11:30am-3:30pm Central, online (live meeting through zoom)
"Characterization in Fiction: Flatness and Intuitive Depth" at the Loft Literary Center
Flat characters are unfairly maligned. Depth is great, but there are many reasons to employ flatness. Flat characters can be mysterious and magical. They can create the space to evoke a complex response in a reader. They can also be functional, efficiently moving things into place. This class will discuss some good reasons to use flat characters and some strategies for employing them.
We'll also take a long look at intuitive depth, a way to create a sense of complexity in characters that are technically flat. As writers, we may have plenty of reasons for not getting into the complex psychological landscape and conflicting motivations of a character, but we can still gesture toward a theory of mind. We can make readers sense that a character has a mind, even when its specific workings remain mysterious. Along the way, we'll discuss pitfalls to avoid when employing flatness, such as oppressive stereotypes or letting flat characters seem like tools or objects instead of human beings. Expect close reading of sample texts by writers such as Laila Lalami, Chia-Chia Lin, Leslie Nneka Arimah, and Rivers Solomon, as well as concrete prompts and exercises to put the ideas to use.
Writers will leave with a better understanding of when to use flatness in their own work, how to make even flat characters feel alive, and how to avoid dangers such as stereotypes and objectification. They'll also leave with some brand new writing--and maybe some new connections from the class too.
"Setting in Fiction: More Than a Map" at the Loft Literary Center
Many people interpret setting to mean location--the geographical as well as interior or exterior landscape. And that's important! But setting also encompasses the cultural landscape, and both the power dynamics of the larger geopolitical world, as well as those of the specific relationships inside each scene. Setting is situation. Setting is background. Setting is mood. And setting is absolutely power differences and the way characters navigate that. Setting is anything that affects the ricochet of words and actions within a scene.
So let's take a deeper look at those nuanced power dynamics at play in our scenes. This course will cover how to make them felt and how to use them to exert pressure on characters within scenes. We'll also look at a few other things a complex understanding of setting can do, such as aiding in characterization and creating subtext. Expect close reading of sample texts, including work by Danielle Evans, Kiley Reid, and Leesa Cross-Smith, as well as concrete prompts and exercises to put the ideas to tangible use.
Writers will leave with a better understanding of what setting can do for a story, learning new ways to think about setting and some great strategies for using setting to improve their writing.
"Subtext and Subversion" at the Loft Literary Center
Subtext can be used to subvert oppressive tropes--it can also be used to reinforce them. So when should a writer use subtext? And how do we make sure it's a force for good? There are no easy answers, but there are some good tools and strategies for thinking through these issues.
Through in-depth discussion of sample texts (likely to include work by Anna Cabe, Carmen Maria Machado, J.M. Martinez, and Yukiko Motoya) and concrete writing exercises, we'll look at the ways subtext can subvert. We'll also talk about what to avoid: the dangers of relying only on subtext, how it is necessarily exclusive, and how it can say things you don't mean for it to!
Writers will emerge with a better understanding of how subtext works, how it can be powerful, and how it can be oppressive. They'll also emerge with new tools for subverting oppressive tropes and some brand new writing.
"Managing Narrative Distance" at Hudson Valley Writers Center
Think of how a camera zooms. Writing does that too. Sometimes we're far away, sometimes we get a close up of a face. Sometimes it's--ooh, this is specific to writing--all the way inside a character's brain. I'm talking about narrative distance--and how to manage it.
We'll look at sample texts (by writers such as Rumaan Alam, James Baldwin, Leesa Cross-Smith, Roxane Gay, and Ruth Ozeki) that zoom, studying how different distances are achieved and the effects they have on the story. Then through prompts and exercises, we'll engage with different types of point of view, voice, time, tense, and perspective, putting what we've learned to practical use.
"Tell, Don't Show" at the Loft Literary Center
"Show, Don't Tell" is such standard writing advice that it's become cliché. But is it good writing advice? Well, it depends. Sometimes it's best to show.
This class is about the other times. We'll look at ways telling can help you pace a story and better manage the movement of time. We'll study techniques to make summary as alive and evocative as scene. And we'll look at one of my favorite strategies--to show through telling, when the style and tone of the language puts on its own show. We'll also spend a little bit of time examining why the cliché of "show don't tell" has been so pervasive, how all craft is culturally based, and how to be subversive about those often oppressive rules.
Expect close reading of excerpts from writers such as Megan Abbott, Nnedi Okorafor, Yiyun Li, and Jamaica Kincaid. Also expect time writing, as we put the ideas to practical use.
"The Power of Subversion: Tools, Strategies, Limitations" at the Loft Literary Center
Subversion is a powerful way to question our world and make change. We can start with stories that seem safe and familiar, then twist them to create something new, something better, maybe something dangerous. We'll examine and try out some strategies for subversion including: surfacing the subtext, satire, flips, inversions, recentering, reframing, and witness. We'll also look at the limitations of subversion as a strategy--how we can accidentally reinforce what we want to subvert.
Expect close reading of sample texts (likely to include work by authors such as Anna Cabe, Juan Martinez, Jenny Zhang, Daphne Palasi Andreades, Nivedita Sekar, Elizabeth Ruth Deyro, Yukiko Motoya, Rivers Solomon, Leslie Nneka Arimah, Nalo Hopkinson, W. Todd Kaneko, Laila Lalami, and Carmen Maria Machado), in-depth discussion, and concrete prompts and exercises to put the strategies we uncover to immediate and tangible use.
"Intimacy and Conflict: Making a Scene" at the Loft Literary Center
Bodies at rest tend to stay at rest; bodies in motion, well, they just keep going the same way. But in stories, most readers crave change. So let's make those bodies bump or even crash! This can happen through conflict or through intimacy.
Learn strategies to create both intimacy and conflict in your scenes, pushing the characters to reveal themselves and get things moving in your stories.
"Introduction to Writing Fiction" at the Loft Literary Center
Learn to write fiction in a nonintimidating environment with fellow beginners. We'll cover important aspects of craft, including plot, structure, and characterization, while reading work that epitomizes well crafted story. Work by writers such as Danielle Evans, Angela Flournoy, Laleh Khadivi, Jamaica Kincaid, Yiyun Li, Jami Nakamura Lin, Carmen Maria Machado, Yukiko Motoya, Leslie Marmon Silko, Brandon Taylor, Tara Isabel Zambrano, Yun Wei, and Jennie Zhang will be looked at.
We'll read and write in class, discuss what makes compelling fiction, and go home with writing prompts and exercises to continue our work. Because this is a beginning class, student work will not be workshopped in depth, but time can be made for sharing and discussing work, if desired. By the end of class, students will have an increased skill set in the basics of writing fiction and an understanding of how to approach a blank page with confidence.
Class will take place in a live meeting online, via Zoom and Google Classroom, including time for "in-class" writing exercises as well as assignments to do between sessions.
"Writing Group Round Up" at the Loft Literary Center
Let's form a writing group workshop! This class will explore the basics of workshop and revision. We'll discuss the "traditional" workshop model, as well as some more equitable and inclusive styles of giving and receiving feedback. We'll cover how to assess the feedback you receive--when to believe it and when to throw it out the window--as well as some strategies for incorporating advice you decide to take.
The session will also include a chance to get to know other writers and their styles through very light sharing of work, so please bring about a page of writing that you wouldn't mind other eyes on. At the end of class, writers will be encouraged to exchange contact information and plan further meet ups (alas, without the teaching artist).
The goal is to form meaningful writing groups with writers who will support and respect your work, while helping to hold you accountable to your long-term goals.
"Sense(s) and Sensibility" at the Loft Literary Center
Sensibility is how character reflects through the point of view. It's the choices a voice makes about what to describe and how to describe it. In this class we'll look at some distinctive voices and try to figure out how character comes through just in the way they show us the world. (Hint: This happens through the senses!) Then we'll do some concrete writing exercises to practice descriptive writing that reveals not just the world of the story, but the character who is experiencing that world. Sample reading will include texts by writers like Megan Giddings, Yiyun Li, and Carmen Maria Machado.
"Beginning Fiction" at the Loft Literary Center
Learn to write fiction in a non-intimidating environment with fellow beginners. We'll cover important aspects of craft, including plot, structure, and characterization, while reading work that epitomizes well crafted story. Sample texts will include work by writers such as Lesley Nneka Arimah, Danielle Evans, Laleh Khadivi, Yiyun Li, Carmen Maria Machado. Helen Oyeyemi, Leslie Marmon Silko, Brandon Taylor, Tara Isabel Zambrano, and Jennie Zhang will be looked at. We'll read and write in class, discuss what makes compelling fiction, and go home with writing prompts and exercises to continue our work.
Because this is a beginning class, student work will not be workshopped in depth, but time can be made for sharing and discussing work, if desired. By the end of class, students will have an increased skill set in the basics of writing fiction and an understanding of how to approach a blank page with confidence.
"Explore the World of Literary Journals" at the Loft Literary Center (online)
Explore the world of literary journals! Each week, we'll read a brand new, just-published story from an up-and-coming journal. We'll discuss what makes the writing sing, and then do some writing of our own, starting with a fun and generative writing prompt. In this way you'll learn about current trends in short-story publishing and find new journals to submit to, all while generating new material.
We'll also cover the ins and outs of the submission process, so once you get these stories into shape, you'll be ready to get them into the world.
"Let's Get Physical: Strategies for Bringing Characters to Life" at the Loft Literary Center
I sometimes teach a class about writing sex scenes--this isn't that! But isn't it just as important to put bodies on the page when they're clothed? Making your characters tangible, making their bodies seen and smelled and heard and felt is key to making them seem like real people for your readers.
In this course, we'll look at techniques to make characters into physical beings--covering topics as wide ranging as staging, gesture, physical description, race, gender, sexual orientation, disability, and pain. Sample texts will include work by writers such as Roxane Gay, Angela Flourney, Kiese Laymon, Jami Nakamura Lin, Carmen Maria Machado, Erin Kate Ryan, Z.Z. Packer, and Yoko Tawada. You can also expect a lot of time writing, as we use prompts and exercises to put the ideas to practical use.
"Narrative Distance: How and Why to Zoom" at the Loft Literary Center
Think of how a camera zooms. Writing does that too. Sometimes we're far away, sometimes we get a close up of a face. Sometimes it's--ooh, this is specific to writing--all the way inside a character's brain. I'm talking about narrative distance--and how to manage it.
We'll look at sample texts (by writers such as Rumaan Alam, James Baldwin, Leesa Cross-Smith, Roxane Gay, and Ruth Ozeki) that zoom, studying how different distances are achieved and they effects have on the story. Then through prompts and exercises, we'll engage with different types of point of view, voice, time, tense, and perspective, putting what we've learned to practical use.
"Storytelling in Television and Fiction Writing" at the Minneapolis Storytelling Workshop
You love to watch TV, and then you love to talk about it. You catch yourself pondering the various narrative decisions made in a powerful episode. You may or may not have writing experience, but you're a deep thinker and eager to learn more.
So come take this four-week course with us! We'll watch clips in class, assign viewing between class meetings, Then we'll break down the elements of successful TV...drawing back that narrative curtain to investigate how stories are constructed and how we can create our own.
Like a more traditional writing class, we will engage writing prompts, discussion, and activities... Unlike a traditional writing class, no one will care if you've read Moby Dick. Or even Lord of the Rings.
Week One, 2/12/19: Narration.
Some TV programs employ voice-over narrators (Jane the Virgin, American Housewife, Blackish), and we'll talk about how that narrator shapes the viewer's expectations and experience. We'll also look at some more invisible aspects of narration, including tone (quirky! serious!), lens (what is shown to you and when), and structure (do you get the story in order, backwards, or a little of both?).
Week Two, 2/19/19: Character.
TV shows have the luxury of building characters over a long period of time, while stories and movies must acquaint you with a character's mindset and emotional state much more quickly. We'll look at powerful examples of characters in contradiction and transition (Luke Cage! Orphan Black! Angel! Game of Thrones! Drop Dead Diva!); we'll look at characters impersonating other characters and the ways we've been trained to tell the difference; and we'll hone in on those character moments that are powerful enough to make us cry or scream. Best of all, we'll figure out how they do it.
Week Three, 2/26/19: Momentum, Stakes, & Why We Keep Watching.
Why do you keep turning your TV on week after week? (To find out who the cylons are? Who killed Laura Palmer? Is Buffy really dead? Can Will escape the upside down?) This discussion of momentum and stakes will help us develop an understanding of what keeps a story moving forward, and what keeps us asking: "What happens next?"
Week Four, 3/5/19: Beginnings & Endings.
How do story creators know when to start and end a story for maximum impact and emotional resonance? What are some of the most effective mechanisms for getting viewers/readers up to speed quickly while getting the story going as quickly as possible? And how long after the big fight sequence should the story go on?
TV shows under discussion will likely include (but are no means limited to): Game of Thrones, Westworld, the Marvel Universe shows (including Jessica Jones and Luke Cage), Stranger Things, Jane the Virgin, The Good Place, Handmaid's Tale, How to Get Away With Murder, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Battlestar Gallactica, Blackish, This Is Us, Orphan Black, Gossip Girl, Insecure, The West Wing, Gilmore Girls, Black Mirror. (For a broader understanding of what interests us, sign up for our free writing prompts at storyminneapolis.com and take a look at a year's worth of archives!)
"Flash Fiction: The Power of Brevity (online)" at the Loft Literary Center
Are you ready to get writing? Surely you've got time for a little bit of flash--that short yet evocative form. In this low-stakes class, we'll read some flash fiction each week and discuss how it works. Then you'll get a writing prompt related to the discussion and the opportunity to share your work with peers to receive light, constructive feedback
At the end of the class, you'll have four brand new stories, a fuller understanding of flash fiction, and the inspiration to keep writing.
This is an online low-stakes class designed to be easy on your schedule, easy on your pocketbook, and easy on your psyche! Similar to in-person single session classes, these classes provide a broad introduction to a topic or give tips and tricks on accomplishing your writing goals without extensive feedback and class interaction.
"Feminist AF" at the Minneapolis Storytelling Workshop
Love it. Loathe it. Learn from it.
Today's television is putting out a million different versions of feminism and "feminism." Which version do you accept? Which do you want to emulate? What future do you want to create?
Join us in this three-session workshop for writers, storytellers, deep-thinking television watchers, and creative folks of all genders. Let's talk about the shows you love and the shows you love to hate. Expect lively discussion, writing prompts, and a refreshing absence of mansplaining.
This class is for any writer who wants to enhance their storytelling ability. It's also an appropriate course for folks who love both feminist and "feminist" television and want to explore it in a more meaningful and inspirational way.
"Awkward is my Superpower: Writing Sex" at the Loft Literary Center
Bring a sex scene you're already sweating over or start from the naked blank page.
The class will explore techniques and strategies for writing about sex and will include close reading of examples (likely to include work by Amy Bloom, Carmen Maria Machado, Toni Morrison, and Colm Toibin) as well as concrete writing exercises to implement the techniques we discover.
Then we'll share. Yes, in this case, we must. Getting it out there, feeling your face go red--it's essential to the process. We'll discuss our sex scenes like adults. Well, it might be a bit awkward... But that's okay! Workshopping the sex will help make the scenes better. But it will also help us all get over ourselves, so we can write about sex a lot more confidently. (I won't tell you what to write, but to keep the space safe for everyone, the scenes you share must be of consensual sex.)
By the way, the focus of the class is literary sex--the scenes may sizzle or fizzle, but we'll emphasize writing sex in a way that develops character and moves the story forward.
"Loft Class Sampler" at the Loft Literary Center
If you're new to the Loft, new to creative writing, or you'd just like the opportunity to meet several Loft teaching artists while sampling new genres and meeting new people, come on down to the Loft for a
class! For one specially reduced price, you'll get a full day of sample classes across genres. You'll get to meet new teaching artists, dabble in new ways of creative expression, find out what Loft classes are like, and test the waters of many different genres without having to commit to anything beyond one day--or even one hour, your choice! Come for the whole day, or stay to try just one genre. Your day will look like this:
9am-10am: Creative Process, taught by Robin Rozanski
10am-11am: Poetry, taught by Chavonn Shen
11am-12pm: Fiction, taught by Allison Wyss
12pm-1pm: Break for lunch
1pm-2pm: KidLit overview/Picture Emphasis, taught by Molly Beth Griffin
2pm-3pm: Writing in and for a Digital World, taught by Jared Goyette
3pm-4pm: Creative Nonfiction, taught by Anika Fajardo
Bring a bag lunch; we'll break from 12-1pm!
"Reading the Other" at the Loft Literary Center
Our first meeting will focus on examining our own identities through reading, discussion, and brief writing exercises, with a focus on excerpts and essays from Toni Morrison's The Origin of Others. In this way, we'll determine what "other" means to each of us. Then--and this may be difficult--we'll choose two short books to read that are wildly outside of our collective comfort zones. The teaching artist will bring recommendations (such as Long Division by Kiese Laymon, Fish in Exile by Vi Khi Nao, Mr. Fox by Helen Oyeyemi), but we'll also consider ideas brought in by the group.
In the remaining sessions, we'll discuss those books intensively to interrogate ourselves, our identities, and our understanding of the "other." The class will center discussion and inquiry, but will include related writing exercises that can be applied to creative work (enhancing the crafts of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry) or for personal growth and self understanding. This class is for any reader who's hit a rut and wants to try out something new; it may even provide clarity for those alienated by the political climate, as we'll find other worlds, and new ways of looking at this busted one.
Class will meet in the Loft Book Club Room; grab a glass of wine or a cup of coffee at the cafe on the first floor and join in the conversation!
"Eight Weeks, Four Drafts: Advanced Topics in Revision" at the Loft Literary Center (online)
This is an intense revision course designed for writers who are ready to study advanced craft topics and implement the techniques into their own work. The course will spend two weeks each on Perspective, Time, Subtext, and Intimacy. Classes will alternate between study of each craft topic (craft essays, analysis of published texts, concrete writing exercises) and sharing revisions and receiving peer feedback. The teaching artist will also provide one manuscript review per writer.
This class is a great next step for writers who have taken "Eight Weeks, Eight Drafts" or "Six Weeks, Six Drafts: Demystifying Revision." However, it can certainly be taken independently. Writers should already have a strong grasp of fiction basics such as plot, setting, point of view, etc. and at least one piece of writing that is ready for revision. The course is designed for fiction but can also apply to creative nonfiction.
Readings will include work by Sherman Alexie, James Baldwin, Charles Baxter, Christopher Castellani, Stacey D'Erasmo, Joan Didion, Fleur Jaggy, Carlea Holl-Jensen, Edward P. Jones, Jamaica Kincaid, Veronica Montes, Ruth Ozeki, and Joan Silber.
"The Ins and Outs of Publishing in Literary Journals" at the Loft Literary Center
The world of literary journals is changing. There used to be just a handful of esteemed and respected magazines. Now there's an absolute jungle of print and online journals that publish creative work. Many of them are brilliant and some... well... less so. It can be confusing. But it doesn't have to be.
This class will empower writers to navigate the lit mag world with confidence, enable writers to find good journals for their work, and inspire writers to submit with pride. We'll start by discussing and implementing concrete strategies for navigating the world of literary journals, including how to find them, how to judge them, and how to assess whether or not your work will fit there. Then we'll go through the step-by-step basics of story submission--what to say in a cover letter, whether or not to pay submission fees, tracking your submissions, and interpreting rejection notes.
This class is perfect for any writer who is ready to publish, but it's also great for the writer who is not quite ready, but will be someday.
"Writing the Apocalypse" at the Loft Literary Center
Are you fascinated by the end of the world? Or scared to death that it's upon us? Literature gives us a such a great way to explore and exploit our fears and fascinations.
In this class about apocalyptic writing, we'll look at various apocalyptic, post-apocalyptic and dystopian visions, written by a diverse sampling of contemporary writers. We'll analyze them to see how they work and what they say (counterintuitively) about the real world we live in. We'll explore the reasons readers are drawn to apocalyptic tales and the ways we can become activists and voices for change through writing them.
Then, through use of concrete writing prompts and exercises, we'll write our own end-of-world tales. If time allows, we'll even get to share them.
This fun, low-stakes (and low-cost) class is designed for people who have never taken an online class and want to know how one works. People new to the Loft, or even new to Creative Writing are welcome.You will get to sample several online classes, get to know some of our teaching artists, and dabble in different genres. Enjoy weekly writing prompts you can enjoy doing by the pool while sipping your favorite summer beverage. The only prerequisite is that you are ready to begin writing!
Week 1:
Get Started Writing Invention Techniques - Jack Smith (from Micromanaging Your Short Story)
Descriptive Writing - Jackie Cangro (from Back to Basics)
Week 2:
Poetry Personifcation - Jennifer Burd (from Mastering Metaphor)
Ekphrasis - LouAnn Muhm (from Poetry Inspired by Art)
Week 3:
Fiction Point of View - Brian Malloy (from Introduction to Short Story)
Beyond Point of View - Allison Wyss (Adapted from Four Revisions in Eight Weeks)
Week 4:
Multigenre & Mashups Hermit Crabs - Dorothy Bendel (from Finding the Right Form)
Patchwork Poems & Paragraphs - Sarah Sadie (from Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy? Writer)
"Six Weeks on Talking: Writing Dialogue" at the Loft Literary Center
Good dialogue is magical. Bad dialogue, however, can make you cringe. So how do you write the good kind? How can a conversation reveal and complicate a character, advance a story, and still sound true to the way people speak? It's not easy. So instead of a one-day seminar, why not study the craft more intensely?
This course will cover some quick tricks, sure. But it will also dig a lot deeper. We'll look at dialogue from all angles: what characters say to each other, what they better not say to each other, what the writer must push them to say, how they say it, and even how to make known what is left unsaid.
To get deep into dialogue, we'll read and discuss essays on craft and analyze successful passages in great works of fiction. Each class will also feature concrete writing exercises to put what you learn to practical use.
The course is designed for fiction writers, but those working in creative nonfiction will also find it useful.
"The End is Nigh: A Storytelling Course at the End of the World" through the Minneapolis Storytelling Workshop
What's your zombie contingency plan? (We know you have one.)
Maybe you're terrified of the apocalypse or maybe you find it strangely comforting. But if you love TV and movies set in the end times, this course is for you. Drawing from sources such as Black Mirror, Mad Max: Fury Road, and The Walking Dead, we'll examine the appeal and the terror of this popular trope. We'll also develop tools for world-building, managing backstory, and setting the stakes in your own stories.
Over two 3-hour sessions, your two instructors (Allison Wyss and Erin Kate Ryan) will show clips, facilitate sophisticated discussion, and provide you with innovative writing prompts to deepen your understanding of apocalyptic storytelling. You'll also have the opportunity to share work generated by the prompts in a supportive environment. Unless the world ends first.
This class is for any writer who wants to enhance their storytelling ability. It's also an appropriate course for folks who love apocalyptic television and want to explore it in a more intense and inspirational way.
"How'd They Do That: A Craft Based Book Club for Writers" at the Loft Literary Center
In this book club for writers, we'll read and discuss one novel each month. Together, we'll do some close reading to discover the techniques at play in the writing. Then we'll zoom out to analyze the overall structure of the novel and figure out how it works. The teaching artist will facilitate discussion and have prepared topics related to each novel. However, much of the time will be spent addressing the particular wonders that each writer finds in the book, with special emphasis on how the author makes it all happen and how we can employ those techniques in our own writing. This group is a great way to practice the writer's art of close reading.
The techniques we practice will be endlessly useful as you apply them to other books you read. It is also a uniquely wonderful way to explore the particular art of novel writing, because we'll have the opportunity to dissect entire books, discovering how they engage and compel us as readers.
Please read The Turner House by Angela Flourney before the first meeting. For the July meeting, read Dare Me by Megan Abbott; for the August meeting, The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee. This will take place in the Loft's cozy Book Club Room, complete with sofas, plush chairs, and a view of the downtown skyline, with access to the rooftop patio. Wine, soda, and treats allowed! At the end of each session, the teaching artist will assign an optional writing exercise designed to incorporate the specific techniques addressed.
"Buffy: The Storytelling Course" through the Minneapolis Storytelling Workshop
You love Buffy. You dream about Firefly. And you want to understand how Joss Whedon has cast such a spell.
Hundreds of scholarly books and articles have been written about the Buffyverse and other Whedon franchises. It's time for us to sit down, peel back the scaly demon skin on Whedon's work, and find how it has made such a social, linguistic, and literary impact on the world, far beyond its genre or niche audience. Each class will include in-depth conversation of one aspect of Whedon's writing (focusing primarily on the Buffyverse but drawing also on Firefly and Dollhouse as appropriate), including character complexity, subversion of traditional mythology, universe building, and the sweet, sweet pain of withholding satisfaction.
Over four 3-hour sessions, your two instructors (Allison Wyss and Erin Kate Ryan) will show clips, facilitate a sophisticated discussion of the topic, and will provide you with innovative writing prompts to help you begin to understand narrative -- the Whedon way. You'll also have the opportunity to share work generated by the prompts in a supportive environment (kind of like Spike's cozy crypt).
This class is for any writer who wants to enhance their storytelling ability. It's also an appropriate course for the Whedon fan who wants to explore his work in a more intense and inspirational way.
"Eight Weeks, Eight Drafts" at the Loft Literary Center (online)
So you've written a story. Maybe you've even brought it to a workshop and received feedback. Now what? Revision can be scary, even paralyzing.
But Robert Boswell offers a way through the mystery with his exceptional strategy of "Transitional Drafts." The gist is to work on one thing at a time, starting with the "easy stuff." Then, as the conscious part of your mind does the easy work, the subconscious part gets started on the harder aspects, so that eventually, none of it seems all that difficult.
In this class, we'll work through eight revisions together—one for each week of the class. So at the end of the course, your story will be eight drafts more beautiful. And if it's not finished after eight drafts, you'll be equipped to take it the rest of the way on your own.
Through online discussion and practical writing exercises we'll explore the process of revision, focusing on Boswell's theory in particular. We'll also practice concrete and proven writing techniques to move your stories forward. There will be opportunity to share your revisions with the class. Expect light feedback from classmates and intensive feedback from the instructor, who will read and comment on at least one full draft of your story.
"Connecting with your Characters: The Art of Intimacy in Fiction" at the Loft Literary Center
Stacy D'Erasmo's The Art of Intimacy: The Space Between asks "What is the nature of intimacy? What happens in the space between us? And how do we, as writers, reflect it on the page?"
She's talking about the spaces that carry meaning—that connect characters to each other and to the reader. This class will give you an opportunity to engage with D'Erasmo's ideas through in-depth discussions of each chapter. Each week will also include concrete writing exercises and prompts to help you put the ideas to practical and tangible use.
This course covers an advanced concept for fiction writing. Students who enroll in this class should already feel reasonably comfortable with more basic concepts such as plot, character development, setting, dialogue, etc. But students should also expect to get a lot of practice with those basic elements as they enhance their understanding of this more advanced aspect of fiction.
"Flash Fiction: The Power of Brevity in a Multitasking World" at the Loft Literary Center
This class is located downtown and scheduled during your lunch hour. It will get your creative juices flowing!
Each week we'll read a little bit of flash fiction and discuss how it works. Then you'll get a writing prompt related to the discussion—you get to choose whether to write flash fiction or focus on a small part of something bigger.
Expect a writing prompt each week, some lively discussion, and the opportunity to receive light, constructive feedback from other writers.
At the end of this class, you will have six brand new pieces of fiction, a fuller understanding of flash fiction, and the inspiration to keep writing.
"Midwestern Characters: The Polite, the Restrained, the Grotesque" at the Loft Literary Center
Midwestern writers owe a particular debt to Sherwood Anderson. In Winesburg, Ohio, Anderson presents a series of "grotesques" tied loosely together by the geography of their town and by the interest of one central character. The somewhat crudely drawn yet deeply resonant "grotesques" are imprisoned by convention yet yearn for something more.
This class will explore what a grotesque is and how it relates to the characters we are all trying to write about. We'll explore how this particular type of character operates, what the grotesques do for the book, and even what they say about the region they represent. We'll also look at how more contemporary authors have been influenced by Anderson's distinctive genre. The class will explore the unique structure of the book and how Anderson unites disparate elements into a cohesive whole. We'll discuss how to categorize such a work (novel, collection, novel-in-stories) and whether or not such categories matter to it.
Additionally, we'll use the careful analysis of Anderson's grotesques to inform our own work as writers. Each class period will feature at least one writing prompt or exercise related to the discussion. Students will build their own grotesques, their own towns, and their own stories. The exercises can also be used to deepen and complicate characters already underway. There will be some opportunity to share work with the class and receive light feedback.
Each student should acquire a copy of Sherwood Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio. The instructor will also provide handouts of work by contemporary Midwestern writers.
"Beneath the Surface: Exploring Subtext" at the Loft Literary Center
Charles Baxter's The Art of Subtext: Beyond Plot "examines those elements that propel readers beyond the plot of a novel or short story into the realm of what haunts the imagination: the implied, the half-visible, and the unspoken."
It's an illuminating work on a tough subject. All writers should read it. This class will give you an opportunity to do more than read it, however. We'll engage with the ideas over the course of six weeks with in-depth discussions of each chapter. Each week will also include concrete writing exercises and prompts to help you put Baxter's ideas to practical and tangible use.
Subtext is an advanced concept for fiction writing. Students who enroll in this class should already feel reasonably comfortable with more basic concepts such as plot, character development, setting, dialogue, etc. But students should also expect to get a lot of practice with those basic elements as they enhance their understanding of this more advanced aspect of fiction.
"Once Upon a Time: Writing the Modern Fairy Tale" at the Loft Literary Center
Do you love fairy tales? Do you want to write them? Whether you've already been working in the modern fairy tale form or just think you'd like to, this class is for you.
We'll look at modern fairy tales, as well as a few traditional ones, to discover their magic. Each class period, we'll study two fairy tales in relation to a specific element of craft, deepening our understanding of storytelling. Then, we'll transition into writing our own fairy tales, with each session featuring a specific, magical prompt to get things started.
Themes of the class will include character, magic, darkness/evil, humor, world building/setting, and endings (happy or otherwise). Readings for class will include stories by Aimee Bender, Angela Carter, Neil Gaimon, Kelly Link, Joy Williams—and maybe even the Brothers Grimm.
This class is for any writer who wants to gain a deeper and more nuanced understanding of storytelling. Those who love to write fairy tales will love it—because that's what we'll do. But even those who want to write more realistically will benefit from studying this style.
So you've written a story. Maybe you've even brought it to a workshop and received feedback. Now what? Revision can be scary, even paralyzing.
But Robert Boswell offers a way through the mystery with his exceptional strategy of "Transitional Drafts." The gist is to work on one thing at a time, starting with the "easy stuff." Then, as the conscious part of your mind does the easy work, the subconscious part gets started on the harder aspects, so that eventually, none of it seems all that difficult.
In this class, we'll work through eight revisions together—one for each week of the class. So at the end of the course, your story will be eight drafts more beautiful. And if it's not finished after eight drafts, you'll be equipped to take it the rest of the way on your own.
Through online discussion and practical writing exercises we'll explore the process of revision, focusing on Boswell's theory in particular. We'll also practice concrete and proven writing techniques to move your stories forward. There will be opportunity to share your revisions with the class. Expect light feedback from classmates and intensive feedback from the instructor, who will read and comment on at least one full draft of your story.
"Six Weeks, Six Drafts: Demystifying Revision" at the Loft Literary Center
So you've written a story. Maybe you've even brought it to a workshop and received feedback. Now what? Revision can be scary, even paralyzing.
Robert Boswell offers a way through the mystery in his exceptional essay "Transitional Drafts." The gist is to work on one thing at a time, starting with the "easy stuff." Then, as the conscious part of your mind does the easy work, the subconscious part gets started on the harder aspects, so that eventually, none of it seems all that difficult.
In this class, we'll work through six revisions together—one for each week of the class. So at the end of the course, your story will be six drafts more beautiful. And if it's not finished after six drafts, you'll be equipped to take it the rest of the way on your own.
During class we'll discuss the process of revision. We'll also practice concrete and proven writing techniques and exercises to move your stories forward. There will be time to share your stories and their revisions with the class. Expect light feedback from classmates and intensive feedback from the instructor, who will read and comment on multiple full drafts of your story.
"Reading Like a Writer: The Best Book Club Ever" at the Loft Literary Center
It's fun to read! We wouldn't be writers if we didn't think so. But we can read for more than fun. We can also read closely, figuring out how each word works in a sentence, how each sentence works in a story.
In this class, writers will learn the basics of close reading and how it relates to the craft of writing. They'll learn specific techniques for improving their writing. But, more importantly, they'll end the class equipped to study their favorite writers on their own.
Each week, we'll read one chapter of Prose's Reading Like a Writer plus one short story and focus on a specific element of craft. Word by word, we'll uncover the secrets of the masters. Additionally, each week will include a writing exercise to practice specific skills.
This is a great class for writers of any level looking for techniques to improve their writing. More advanced writers may already know the techniques this class teaches, but can still benefit from close reading with a diverse group of people, because every person tends to find different secrets hidden in the text. For this reason, I love to teach close reading—I learn something new every time.
"Academic Writing/Introduction to Composition" at the University of Maryland
"Beginning Fiction Workshop" at the University of Maryland
