“The Novelist’s Toolbox” Class Package
October 30, 2024 9:00 AM - November 20, 2024 1:00 PM CDT
$236.00 – $476.00
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This Event is for Members only.
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$236 for Members
$476 for Non-Members
Learn the tools that will help you write a novel from start to finish.
This class package aims to equip writers with the tools to take on the novel writing process and finish it. From the technical aspects of moving your story forward, including the art of suspense and structuring your plot, to finding the heart and stakes of your story through a deep dive into both theme and character, these four classes will set you up for success as you embark on or work to finish a novel.
In addition, everyone who purchases the package will be invited to an exclusive class package meet-up on Saturday, November 9, from 9:00-10:00 AM CST, a great opportunity to connect with fellow writers as you enjoy this shared experience.
Can’t make it to every class? No worries! All registrants will have access to the class recordings until January 31, 2025.
Click on each individual title to view additional class details or to purchase a class independent of the package.
“The Art of Suspense: How to Write Twists and Build Tension” with Gabino Iglesias
Wednesday, October 30, 2024, 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM CDT
Constant tension leads to constant reading. Learn how to create suspense to keep your readers hooked.
In this class we will work on developing an understanding of how twists and turns operate in fiction, including how and why they fail. We’ll explore the use of red herrings, discuss ways to create tension in a narrative, and look at exercises that will help us create suspense that keeps readers turning the page.
“Theme as Guide: Following the Heart of Your Novel” with Charlotte Gullick
Wednesday, November 6, 2024, 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM CST
Identifying the “aboutness” of a project—the heart, stakes, and focus of the work—can help guide and motivate a book-length project.
In this class, writers will have the opportunity to clarify and develop core elements of their book, so that they can proceed with joy, focus, and efficiency. Students will complete in-class exercises, discussions, and readings in order to hone in on and concentrate on the foundational framework for the project. A foundation on which they can build their story and finish strong.
“What Your Character Wants: Uncovering the Driving Force of Your Novel” with Sherri L. Smith
Wednesday, November 13, 2024, 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM CST
How many times have you started writing a great story and gotten bogged down in the middle? How often have you chugged up that hill of rising action, only to lose steam?
It doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with your story idea, but maybe you just haven’t asked the big question yet: what does my protagonist want? Character want is the engine that drives the story forward. Without this key bit of information, you can’t start the journey, throw believable obstacles in the way, build tension, or convince your readers to root for your character’s success. Without a want, it’s hard to know what success even means. In this class, we’ll examine character wants in film and fiction. We’ll also do some hands-on exercises to help you excavate your characters’ deepest desires, so you can rev that engine and get on with the story. Come with your protagonist in mind and be prepared to write.
“Plot vs Subplot, and Other Narrative Structures” with John Pipkin
Wednesday, November 20, 2024, 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM CST
Plot can seem like one of those elusive storytelling elements that resists definition and tempts us to say with exasperation: “I can’t explain it, but I know it when I see it.”
Often, it’s easier to see where and when a plot fails, and far more difficult to recognize why a plot succeeds. In this class, we’ll identify those elements of plotting that help to organize, structure, and make sense of a narrative. We’ll take a deep dive into plot structure, its historical development, how it holds a narrative together in a short story or a novel, how to make use of structure in your own storytelling, and when to abandon traditional plot structures and try something else. Beginning with a brief look at some of the origins of narrative form, we’ll examine a variety of plot structures, including three-act structure, five-act structure, the epistolary form, the hero’s journey, Freytag’s pyramid, story wheels, and other developments. We’ll also look at the difference between main plots and anecdotes, subplots, and digressions, how to use them and when to leave them out. And finally, we’ll discuss non-traditional plotting, and how to find a structure (or non-structure?) that best suits the story that you’re trying to tell.
Instructors
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Gabino Iglesias -
Charlotte Gullick is a novelist, essayist, editor, educator. Charlotte’s first novel, By Way of Water, was published by Blue Hen Books/Penguin Putnam, and her nonfiction has appeared in The Rumpus, Brevity, The Best of Brevity, Pembroke, Dogwood, Barnstorm Journal, Pithead Chapel, and the LA Review. Her other awards include a Christopher Isherwood Fellowship for Fiction, a Colorado Council on the Arts Fellowship for Poetry, a MacDowell Colony Residency, a Ragdale Residency, the Evergreen State College 2012 Teacher Excellence Award as well as the Gold Star for Teaching and Mentorship from American Short Fiction (2020). -
Sherri L. Smith is the author award-winning fiction and nonfiction books for young people including the 2021 Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators Golden Kite Award winner The Blossom and the Firefly, and the California Book Awards Gold Medalist, Flygirl. Her novels appear on multiple state reading lists and have been named Amelia Bloomer, Junior Library Guild, Children's Book Council, and American Library Association Best Books for Young People selections. She also writes comics, including Wonder Woman, Bart Simpson Comics, and James Cameron's Avatar. Sherri holds certificates in the Art of Archetypal Fairy Tale Analysis, Enchantivism, and Applied Mythology. She currently teaches at Hamline University. Her latest nonfiction book with Elizabeth Wein is American Wings: Chicago’s Pioneering Aviators and the Race for Equality in the Sky (Putnam). Her graphic novel Pearl (Graphix/Scholastic), with art by Christine Norrie, received five starred reviews. Her upcoming novel, Candace, the Universe, and Everything, brings together three generations of Black girls in a story about friendship, wormholes, and interdimensional magpies. Learn more at www.sherrilsmith.com
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John Pipkin is the Director of the Undergraduate Creative Writing Program at the University of Texas-Austin and also teaches in the low-residency MFA Program at Spalding University. Originally from Baltimore, he holds a Ph.D. in 19th-century British Literature and is the author of the critically-acclaimed novels: Woodsburner (Nan A Talese/Doubleday 2009) which won the New York Center for Fiction First Novel Prize, and The Blind Astronomer’s Daughter (Bloomsbury 2016). He has received fellowships to MacDowell, Yaddo, Dobie-Paisano, and the Gullkistan Center for Creativity in Iceland. He is also the recipient of the 2021 Harry Ransom Award for Excellence in Teaching at UT-Austin.
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Anti-Harassment Policy
The Writers’ League of Texas is dedicated to providing harassment-free spaces for everyone, regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, race, age, or religion. We do not tolerate harassment in any form. Violating these rules may result in expulsion from WLT programs without a refund at the discretion of the WLT staff.
Harassment includes, but is not limited to:
- Comments that reinforce social structures of domination (related to gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, race, age, or religion);
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If someone makes you or anyone else feel unsafe or unwelcome, please report it as soon as possible. Reports can also be made via email at wlt@writersleague.org. We’ll handle any and all reports as respectfully as possible. You won’t be asked to confront anyone, and we won’t tell anyone who you are.
Accessibility Policy
Closed captioning is available for all online classes and special events.
The WLT is committed to making its programs & services accessible to all writers. Please contact us at wlt@writersleague.org or at 512-499-8914 for more information or to discuss accommodations you may need.
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Writers’ League of Texas classes and workshops are also funded in part by the Texas Commission on the Arts – Investing in a Creative Texas. For more information, go to www.arts.texas.gov.