If you test positive for Covid – Don’t come to class until you test negative. But let your teacher know and we’ll work to give you access to your missed classes via Zoom.
If you show Covid symptoms OR If you have been exposed to someone with Covid – Don’t come to class for at least 5 days after showing symptoms or exposure, and then take a test to confirm that you are negative. Let your teacher know and we’ll work to give you access to your missed classes via Zoom.
If you have any questions about this, you may call (212-974-8377) or email us ([email protected]).
Fiction Writing I
GUIDE TO FICTION COURSES
Fiction Pathways
Foundation
If you’re not sure what kind of fiction to write...
If you know what kind of fiction to write...
Fiction Writing I
Zoetrope Fiction Writing I
Science Fiction & Fantasy Writing I
Mystery Writing I
Romance Writing I
Children’s Book Writing I
Or...
If you want a rather short course...
Fiction Writing Intensive
Flash Fiction & Nonfiction
Children’s Book Writing Intensive
Middle Grade/Young Adult Intensive
Humor Writing Intensive
Comics & Graphic Novels
Next Steps
After completing a Level I ten-week course...
Short Fiction II
Zoetrope Short Fiction II
Novel II First Draft Part 1
Novel II Critique
Science Fiction & Fantasy Writing II
Mystery Writing II
Romance Writing II
Children’s Book Writing II
After completing Novel First Draft II Part 1...
After completing Short Fiction II...
Also Helpful
These essential courses are great for writers of any level.
Character
Dialogue
Plot 1: Mechanics
Plot 2: Machinations
Reading Fiction
In(verse): Poetic Techniques for Non-Poets
The Writer’s Mind
The Editor’s Eye
Grammar 1: The Basics
Grammar 2: Expertise and Finesse
Social Media
For Teens
Fiction Writing I is a 10-week workshop, which includes lectures, exercises, and the critiquing of student projects. It’s for beginners or anyone who wants to brush up on the fundamentals. Farther down, you can view a syllabus for this course.
Also consider Gotham’s premium Zoetrope Fiction Writing classes: Zoetrope Fiction I or Zoetrope Fiction II.
Fiction is a wonderful conjuring act. With only words and the reader’s imagination, a work of fiction can sail across the world in pursuit of a whale, or time-travel to another dimension, or zero in on a few minutes in line at the local bank, enveloping the reader in a made-up story that feels real.
To pull off this feat requires a balance of craftsmanship, daring, and insight into human nature. Here you’ll learn the time-tested elements of fiction craft and how to market your work.
Whether you seek to write short stories or novels; commercial, literary, or genre; comic or tragic, we’ll show you how to spin your thoughts into believable and spellbinding tales.
It was an absolute thrill and quite inspirational.
Elise Brancheau
opera singer
Notes
Fiction I encompasses short stories and novels. After Level I, students have a choice of Short Fiction Writing II (focusing on short stories), or Novel II Critique or Novel II First Draft (focusing on novels).
If you’re working on “genre” fiction, you may take either a Fiction/Novel course or one of our genre courses: Science Fiction & Fantasy, Romance, Mystery.
If you’re working on a YA novel, you may take a Fiction/Novel or “genre” course, or you may take a Children’s Book course, where the full spectrum of children’s books will be covered.
Upcoming Classes
NYC COVID Info
10-Week
-
Online
Anytime, week-long sessions
Tuition: $439 (returning students: $409)
-
Zoom
Real-time videoconference
Tuition: $439 (returning students: $409)
-
One-on-One
Tuition: $1,895
Syllabus
This course gives you a firm grounding in the basics of fiction craft and gets you writing a short story (or two) or a novel. Course components:
Lectures
Writing exercises
Workshopping of student projects (each student presenting work two times)
New York City/Zoom classes
The syllabus varies from teacher to teacher, term to term. Many topics will be similar to those covered in the Online classes.
Online classes
Week 1
Introduction to Fiction: The different types and forms of fiction. Where to find inspiration and ideas. The importance of craft.
Week 2
Character: Where to find characters. Making characters dimensional through desire and contrasts. Creating character profiles. Showing vs. Telling. Methods for showing characters.
Week 3
Plot: Finding a major dramatic question. Shaping a beginning, middle, and end. The difference between short story and novel plots. Pros and cons of outlining.
Week 4
Point of View: POV defined. Exploration of the many types of POV.
Week 5
Description: Using the senses. Specificity. Techniques for creativity. Finding the right words. Merging description with point of view.
Week 6
Dialogue: The importance of scene. Dialogue's illusion of reality. Quotation marks and tags. Stage directions. Summarized dialogue. Characterization through dialogue. Subtext. Dialect.
Week 7
Setting/Pacing: Time. Place. Weather. Description of setting. Merging character and setting. How to manipulate time through pacing. Flashbacks.
Week 8
Voice: Voice defined. Exploration of the various types of voice. Tips for finding your voice. Understanding style—syntax, diction, and paragraph length.
Week 9
Theme/Revision: Theme defined. Types of theme. Weaving theme into a story. Exploration of the various stages of revision.
Week 10
The Business: Proper format for manuscripts. How to target publishing houses, literary magazines, and agents. Query letters.
Note: Content may vary among individual classes.
Teachers
Anita Diggs
Anita Diggs is co-author, with Ida Keeling, of the memoir Can't Nothing Bring Me Down: Chasing Myself in the Race Against Time (Zondervan). She is the author of four novels, including A Meeting in the Ladies Room, (Kensington Books), and the nonfiction book Talking Drums: An African-American Quote Collection (St. Martin’s Press). She has served as senior editor and director of One World Books for Ballantine/Random House. She has taught at Salem College. She holds a BA from the State University of New York/Empire State College and an MFA in Creative Writing/Memoir from Hunter College.
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Casandra López
Casandra López has published short stories in the Packinghouse Review, Flyaway, Potomac Review, California Journal of Women Writers, Unmanned Press, and the anthologies Best Small Fictions and Dimestories. She is the author of the poetry collection Brother Bullet (University of Arizona Press) and the chapbook Where Bullet Breaks (Sequoyah National Research Center), and her poetry has appeared in Bellingham Review, NewBorder, Malpais Review, Hobart, Indian Country Today, Más Tequila Review, and Hamilton Stone Review. She is a founder/managing editor of the literary journal As/Us, teaches for the University of California at San Diego, and has taught at the University of New Mexico, Northwest Indian College, North Seattle Community College, and for Upward Bound. She holds a BS from Cornell, an MA in Educational Counseling from the University of Redlands, and an MFA in Fiction from the University of New Mexico.
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Divya Sood
Divya Sood is the author of the novels Find Someone to Love and Nights Like This (both Riverdale Avenue Books). Her short stories have won the New Jersey Arts and Letters First Prize for Short Fiction and appeared in The Masters Review. She has taught at Rutgers University and Southern New Hampshire University. She holds a BA from Rutgers University, an MA in English, and an MFA in Fiction, both from New York University.
Read moreAnita Diggs
Anita Diggs
is co-author, with Ida Keeling, of the memoir Can't Nothing Bring Me Down: Chasing Myself in the Race Against Time (Zondervan). She is the author of four novels, including A Meeting in the Ladies Room, (Kensington Books), and the nonfiction book Talking Drums: An African-American Quote Collection (St. Martin’s Press). She has served as senior editor and director of One World Books for Ballantine/Random House. She has taught at Salem College. She holds a BA from the State University of New York/Empire State College and an MFA in Creative Writing/Memoir from Hunter College.
Casandra López
Casandra López
has published short stories in the Packinghouse Review, Flyaway, Potomac Review, California Journal of Women Writers, Unmanned Press, and the anthologies Best Small Fictions and Dimestories. She is the author of the poetry collection Brother Bullet (University of Arizona Press) and the chapbook Where Bullet Breaks (Sequoyah National Research Center), and her poetry has appeared in Bellingham Review, NewBorder, Malpais Review, Hobart, Indian Country Today, Más Tequila Review, and Hamilton Stone Review. She is a founder/managing editor of the literary journal As/Us, teaches for the University of California at San Diego, and has taught at the University of New Mexico, Northwest Indian College, North Seattle Community College, and for Upward Bound. She holds a BS from Cornell, an MA in Educational Counseling from the University of Redlands, and an MFA in Fiction from the University of New Mexico.
Divya Sood
Divya Sood
is the author of the novels Find Someone to Love and Nights Like This (both Riverdale Avenue Books). Her short stories have won the New Jersey Arts and Letters First Prize for Short Fiction and appeared in The Masters Review. She has taught at Rutgers University and Southern New Hampshire University. She holds a BA from Rutgers University, an MA in English, and an MFA in Fiction, both from New York University.
