Writing that elusive novel or novella

Aims

This course aims to: 

• explore the attraction and challenges of writing long fiction
   
• introduce writers to a range of relevant technical skills
   
• strengthen confidence and to provide ways in which a routine is established so that work moves forward even in face of difficulties

Content

Nobody writes a novel or novella in a week but the course will send you home with the inspiration and technical tools to start assembling a work of long fiction. It will also equip you to keep writing through moments of despair, the seductions of the internet or just times when the book gets stuck and ideas in your brain won’t translate to the page. 

Storytelling continues in many traditions and increasing numbers listen to recorded stories on radio or podcasts, but published novels and novellas have long been central to the literary world. The conventions of fiction evolve constantly as do the publication possibilities for the would-be author. We’ll look, briefly, at the historical events that led to the novel becoming a popular, and arguably the most respected, form of fiction. What different ways might we choose to develop an initial idea into long fiction and what professional tricks and techniques can make it compelling? Is there a line between literary and commercial fiction?

Presentation of the course

The course will be taught through a mixture of presentations, extracts from fiction and the influence of film and images. We’ll have discussions, class exercises, and workshopping sessions where we give constructive feedback on each other’s work. This can seem nerve-wracking but is invaluable and fun. We’ll also look at what motivates anyone to take on a major project and to stay the course.

Course sessions

1&2. Why write? 

How did the novel become a major form of story? What different ways might we choose to develop a fictional idea? What are chapters for? What’s the difference between a novel and a novella? 

Some feel they have a story to tell. Some want to entertain. Some, having written short stories, want to face the considerable challenge of starting and finishing a 90,000 work. Some have always lived in a landscape of words and want to create new worlds. Some hope to publish and extreme optimists hope to become rich. 

An exercise in inspiration

3&4. What kind of writer are you? 

There are planners and plotters who work out whole narratives in advance and those who set out with an idea and a rough plot and see where it takes them. What are the pros and cons of each approach? What techniques will help the first-time novelist? How do you start? What must be achieved by the end?

An exercise in methods of plotting

5&6. Characters

Most successful novels depend on plausible characters readers can engage with, whether they are realistic, vulnerable, brave, flawed or an outright villain. The fortunes of main characters, their desires and the jeopardy that may thwart their intentions are what drives a story on. Whose story is it? Whose point of view will make your novel come alive?

An exercise in constructing characters a reader will engage with.

7&8. A sense of place

In some novels the sense of place may almost be a character, and often it can shape a crucial event in the story. We’ll look at a few examples and discuss what purpose background might serve in your novel and how to create a powerful sense of place avoiding clichés.

An exercise in choosing and planning settings for your novel.

9&10. The way ahead

Outlining the narrative arc of your novel in a form that you can take away and use as a guide to check your progress against.

Learning outcomes

You are expected to gain from this series of classroom sessions a greater understanding of the subject and of the core issues and arguments central to the course. 

The learning outcomes for this course are:

• to start a new novel or novella or to continue with an existing work
   
• an understanding of what a novel can achieve and the different possibilities in structure, style, plot, and mood
   
• to increase confidence in your idea and the imagination and ability to keep several different threads or sub-stories woven into a single work

Required reading

A passion for reading goes hand in hand with a longing to write. I hope anyone exploring novel-writing will have broad tastes in fiction. These titles are just suggestions, but I shall refer to them in class so please try and read at least one or more. 

Novel: 

Shafak, Elif, The Island of Missing Trees (Penguin 2022)

Smith, Zadie, The Fraud (Penguin 2024) [Paperback available June 2024]

Strout, Elizabeth, Olive Kitteridge (Simon & Schuster 2008)

Novellas:

Barrico, Alessandro, Silk (Canongate 2019)

Ingalls, Rachel, Mrs Caliban (Faber and Faber 2021)

Taylor, Elizabeth, Mrs Palfrey at the Claremont (Virago 2006, new edition)

Theory of writing fiction (excellent)

Yorke, John, Into the Woods: how stories work and why we tell them (Penguin 2014)

Maas, Donald, The Emotional Craft of Fiction: How to Write the Story Beneath the Surface (Penguin 2016)

Typical week: Monday to Friday 

Courses run from Monday to Friday. For each week of study, you select a morning (Am) course and an afternoon (Pm) course. The maximum class size is 25 students.   

Courses are complemented by a series of daily plenary lectures, exploring new ideas in a wide range of disciplines. To add to your learning experience, we are also planning additional evening talks and events. 

Evaluation and Academic Credit  

If you are seeking to enhance your own study experience, or earn academic credit from your Cambridge Summer Programme studies at your home institution, you can submit written work for assessment for one or more of your courses.  

Essay questions are set and assessed against the University of Cambridge standard by your Course Director, a list of essay questions can be found in the Course Materials. Essays are submitted two weeks after the end of each course, so those studying for multiple weeks need to plan their time accordingly. There is an evaluation fee of £75 per essay. 

For more information about writing essays see Evaluation and Academic Credit. 

Certificate of attendance 

A certificate of attendance will be sent to you electronically after the programme.