Courses

The most underrated process of beginning a novel is determining its shape. You might ask yourself: How can we know what the novel will look like if we haven’t written a word? But the more appropriate question is this: How can we write a word without knowing what the novel will look like? Each novelist—indeed, each novel—requires a unique shape to harness its ideas, characters, and energy. This course is designed to help you find that shape and begin your novel in a dynamic and sustainable way.

In this course, we will read and analyze three short novels, each highlighting a different approach to shape. We will pay particular attention to the ways in which conventions of craft are applied and understood—and sometimes reinterpreted or subverted. Weekly writing exercises will give students a chance to create a stream of new material. Students will also workshop two short chapters or one long chapter of their novels-in-progress. These workshops will look rigorously and constructively at your writing, examining how you might best achieve what you’ve set out to do in your novel. In addition, we will pay particular attention to the writing process and the continued search for the richest narrative possibilities inherent in your work.