Online | Fiction | Workshop

6-Week Fiction Workshop: Writing the Short Story

In this online class, we'll be starting with the basics of short fiction: building complex characters, intriguing wants, rich settings, and interesting obstacles. No previous workshop experience is required, but experienced writers looking to start something new from scratch are also welcome! Together we will experiment with exercises designed to jump-start creativity and further develop our stories; analyze published works and what makes them tick; and provide positive reinforcement and helpful critical feedback for our peers. 

Each writer will have the opportunity to submit their work twice during the six-week course. Everyone will also have the opportunity for individual Zoom conferences with the instructor. Writers will leave the course with two completed works and a concrete grasp on the mechanics of short fiction.

Our class platform works best on laptop or desktop computers. Class meetings will be held over video chat, using Zoom accessed from your private class page. While you can use Zoom from your browser, we recommend downloading the desktop client so you have access to all platform features. The Zoom calls will have automated transcription enabled. Please let us know ([email protected]) if you have any questions or concerns about accessibility.

Check out this page for details about payment plans and discount opportunities.  

COURSE TAKEAWAYS:

- Discover and develop the basic building blocks of short fiction

- Experiment with new techniques to stretch creative skills and voice

- Receive peer and instructor feedback on two short works

-10% discount on all future Catapult classes

COURSE SKELETON:

Week 1: Character, desire and obstacle

Week 2: Setting

Week 3: Writing from emotion

Week 4: Form and structure

Week 5: Climaxes and endings

Week 6: Revision

Madeline Stevens

Madeline Stevens is a writer from Boring, Oregon currently based in Los Angeles. Her first novel Devotion is out now in the US, UK, France, Portugal, Germany, and Mexico. It is also forthcoming in Italy and China. Madeline holds an MFA from Columbia University and her stories and essays have been published in The Guardian, CrimeReads, and Joyland Magazine among others. She works as a consulting editor and teaches creative writing to adults and children.

Testimonials

"I’m lucky to be in a writing group with Madeline, and her work is absolutely stunning, with faithfully rendered characters and gripping plotlines. Her forthcoming novel is one of the best books I’ve read in years, replete with a consistently pitch-perfect emotional tone. Madeline was also one of the first people to workshop my novel, and her sharp eye and thorough attention helped rework the landscape of the book for the (far) better."

Hala Ayan author of SALT HOUSES

"Madeline Stevens conjures up a mood like no one else--and brings a satisfying, delicious beauty even when describing a horrible situation. Her work is well-crafted and acutely observed."

Karen Havelin author of PLEASE READ THIS LEAFLET CAREFULLY

"Madeline Stevens writes sexy, lucid prose that grabs you like a fever dream, sentences of dark, shining clarity that linger in the mind for months."

Iris Martin Cohen author of THE LITTLE CLAN

"Madeline saw straight to the heart of my story and showed me exactly how to bring it out. Her advice was concrete, intelligent, and kind."

former student