In this course we’ll explore the writing of prose fiction, discussing examples both short and long. In particular, we will focus on beginnings, and on the voice in which you choose to tell your story. Whether you are interested in writing short stories or a novel, this course will aim to inspire you with new ideas and give you a range of writerly skills to help you capture your vision in words. A piece of fiction can, like a snapshot, record a fleeting impression; or it can develop a long and complex plot. It can be in any genre from Sci-Fi to Romance to Literary. Whatever kind of story you’re interested in writing, crafting it is a skill which must be learned. Every word must earn its place, and you, the writer, need to be in control.
We'll use writing exercises to brain-storm ideas, and we’ll read extracts from a range of great stories and novels in order to analyse how they work and what you as a writer can take from them to use in your own writing. We will start with openings – of both stories and novels – to work out what precisely goes into a first page that the reader cannot put down. Students will write their own work outside class time, and that work will be workshopped by your tutor and fellow students to give you helpful feedback for revision and redrafting.
Plot, structure, voice, setting, character and language are the chief elements which combine to create a compelling fictional world. For many writers Voice (first, second or third person, narrative point of view) is key to a new piece of prose, and the choice of which voice to use to narrate a story is one which deserves thorough exploration. We will experiment with fictional voices, giving you confidence to use a range of different voices to explore your own material.
