Beginner and Intermediate Fiction Writing Course

Description

The ability to write well is not an innate talent reserved for the lucky few, but a craft that is earned slowly through paper cuts, piles of crumpled notes, and late hours spent revising.

This 8-week course explores specific, craft-based techniques to significantly improve your fiction. From concept to the words on the page, the material will be delivered at a university level, but will be accessible and useful to writers of all experience. Beginning and intermediate writers, in particular, will have a lot to gain from each class.

The course will combine lecturing, discussion, and exercises. At the end of the course, any participant who does not feel that they improved enough as a writer can receive a refund. Those who may have difficulty paying for the course may contact RyanDennis@themilkhouse.org in order for an opportunity to still attend.

When

This course will be delivered on Zoom on Sundays, 6pm-8pm GMT (Ireland)/ 1pm-3pm EST (New York) from March 24th to May 19th, 2024. (No class on Easter Sunday, March 31st.) Those who cannot attend a class will have access to that week’s recording.

Topics Covered

The course will cover the following subjects in, generally, the following schedule:

Week 1.   Characterization

Week 2.   Showing vs Telling

Week 3.   Dialogue

Week 4.   Point of View/ Narrative Distance

Week 5.   Interior Monologue

Week 6.   Writing Emotion

Week 7.   Pacing/ Sentence Work

Week 8.   Workshopping Skills

If you’d like to try out a class before committing, everyone is welcomed to the following free classes:

February 25th, 2024, 6-7 pm GMT/ 1-2pm EST– Dialogue Mechanics

March 10th, 2024, 6-7pm GMT/ 1-2pm EST– Writing Action

The Instructor

Ryan Dennis is the author of the novel The Beasts They Turned Away, published by époque press and longlisted for the Republic of Consciousness prize. He is a Fulbright alumnus and PhD in creative writing, and has taught over twenty writing courses at four different universities. In 2021-2022 Ryan was selected as a Writer-in-Residence at Maynooth University in Ireland. He is also the founder of The Milk House, a literary journal that focuses on the rural experience.

More Information

Feel free to contact Ryan with any questions at RyanDennis@themilkhouse.org.