This practical course is designed for beginners and will accommodate the expressed needs and interests of the students. The unit of study is short prose - fiction and non-fiction. However, non-prose writing will be included to explore different considerations and techniques. Build on your understanding and enjoyment of writing by developing theme, plot, structure, settings, characterisation, dialogue and editing.

Best-selling novels and stories have a depth that readers may not be able to explain, but they can feel. This is what makes them memorable and creates classics. Come and explore mythic storytelling, archetypal stories and characters, and discover how to use these in your writing.

Have you ever been told that you should write a book; an autobiography, a biography or on a subject on which you are an expert - yet even an amateur, from how to breed ferrets to growing a cacti garden? This how-to, cram course is for people who have fascinating stories or advice to impart to others. Be prepared to work hard, interacting with other students of different aims, from writing a family history to a travel book.

Great stories have intriguing plots and intense conflict woven together in a way that keeps readers hooked. Does this mean guns, bomb, earthquakes, shipwrecks and homicidal ex-lovers? Not necessarily. Understand the differences between main and sub plots, as well as parallel, mirrors, alternate and braided. Learn what conflict really is, and how to make it riveting and original without blowing up cities and devastating planets in every chapter. Decide what will work best for the type of story you want to write.

Creating believable, interesting characters that come to life on the page is not an easy task. Learn a variety of techniques that will help you take your character from your story’s opening page to the final scene.

Scenes are the building blocks of a story. Learn the fundamentals of what makes a strong, effective, interesting scene, and how to create the various scene types of your novel or short story needs.

Known as THE RULE for writers. The one you cannot break. But what does it mean? Discover why showing is so important, and how to do it well using a variety of effective tips and techniques. Also, how to identify the times when telling is not only acceptable but necessary.

Digital print technology has dramatically changed self-publishing with eBooks and POD, but also in the areas of marketing and promotion. This course will cut through the hype and misinformation providing you with the information you really need to know.

Do you have a story idea that would look better in pictures? This course will show you how to write it. Learn the differences between Western and Manga styles, how to collaborate with artists, and the essentials of visual storytelling including panels, pacing, and script format. No drawing skills required: just your imagination.

Think storytelling is just for books? Think again. Learn how to craft compelling content for Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and beyond. Explore micro-stories, serial narratives, and transmedia techniques. This class contains practical exercises using mostly free tools to help you understand how to combine text and video and audio to create stories people will notice, follow, and share.