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Science Fiction & Fantasy Writing I
GUIDE TO FICTION COURSES
Fiction Pathways
Foundation
If you’re not sure what kind of fiction to write...
If you know what kind of fiction to write...
Fiction Writing I
Zoetrope Fiction Writing I
Science Fiction & Fantasy Writing I
Mystery Writing I
Romance Writing I
Children’s Book Writing I
Or...
If you want a rather short course...
Fiction Writing Intensive
Children’s Book Writing Intensive
Middle Grade/Young Adult Intensive
Humor Writing Intensive
Comics & Graphic Novels
Next Steps
After completing a Level I ten-week course...
Short Fiction II
Zoetrope Short Fiction II
Novel II First Draft Part 1
Novel II Critique
Science Fiction & Fantasy Writing II
Mystery Writing II
Romance Writing II
Children’s Book Writing II
After completing Novel First Draft II Part 1...
After completing Short Fiction II...
Also Helpful
These essential courses are great for writers of any level.
Character
Dialogue
Plot 1: Mechanics
Plot 2: Machinations
Reading Fiction
In(verse): Poetic Techniques for Non-Poets
The Writer’s Mind
The Editor’s Eye
Grammar 1: The Basics
Grammar 2: Expertise and Finesse
Social Media
For Teens
Science Fiction & Fantasy Writing I is a 10-week workshop, which includes lectures, exercises, and the critiquing of student projects. It’s for beginners or anyone who wants to brush up on the fundamentals. Farther down, you can view a syllabus for this course.
Science Fiction and Fantasy may transport readers to a planet light-years away or deep inside the caves of a far-distant past. Whether extrapolating science into futuristic technology or conjuring new forms of magic, these genres imagine what might have been or what might be, opening the door to any possibility.
To write great science fiction or fantasy, you must splice together the skills of a fiction writer with the ability to make the imaginary seem true. Here you will learn the special requirements of these genres, as well as fiction craft and how to market your work.
Whether you seek to write short stories or novels, cyberpunk or high fantasy, we’ll show you how to craft tales that overwhelm with wonder.
If you want to pursue your dream of being a science-fiction writer, this course will open your imagination.
Pamela Henderson
teacher
Notes
Our Science Fiction & Fantasy course includes all “speculative fiction”—an umbrella that covers the subgenres of science fiction (hard, alternate reality, cyberpunk, etc.) and fantasy (high, urban, historical, etc.) as well as works of horror. Currently the material skews toward science fiction, but most of the craft teaching applies equally to fantasy and horror, and students are welcome to work on fantasy and horror projects.
If you’re working in in the science fiction, fantasy, or horror genres, you may take Fiction I or (at the advanced level) Novel II First Draft or Novel II Critique, or one of our genre courses: Science Fiction & Fantasy, Romance, Mystery.
If you’re working on a YA novel, you may take a Fiction/Novel course, or a “genre” course, or you may take a Children’s Book course, where the full spectrum of children’s books will be covered.
Upcoming Classes
NYC COVID Info
10-Week
-
Online
Anytime, week-long sessions
Tuition: $439 (returning students: $409)
-
One-on-One
Tuition: $1,795
Syllabus
This course gives you a firm grounding in the basics of the science fiction and fantasy genres, and gets you writing a short story (or two) or a novel. Course components:
Lectures
Writing exercises
Workshopping of student projects (each student presenting work two times)
New York City/Zoom classes
The syllabus varies from teacher to teacher, term to term. Many topics will be similar to those covered in the Online classes.
Online classes
Week 1
Introduction to Science Fiction & Fantasy: What is speculative fiction? Playing “what if?” Finding ideas.
Week 2
Character: What makes a character memorable. Backstory. Protagonist. Antagonist. Characters revealed through dialogue, description, actions, and thought.
Week 3
World Building: Creating new worlds. Working with the existing world. Consistency. World-building checkpoints. Sensory details.
Week 4
Story and Plot: Conflict. Stakes. Plot vs. story. Structure. Outlines. Synthesis vs. deus ex machina. Foreshadowing vs. telegraphing.
Week 5
Point of View: First person. Second person. Third person—various types. Handling multiple points of view.
Week 6
Voice, Style, Pacing: Types of voice and style. Pacing in story. Pacing in writing.
Week 7
Dialogue: Types of dialogue. Dialogue tags. Uses of dialogue. Characterization. When and where to include dialogue. Verisimilitude. Subtext. Otherness.
Week 8
Beginnings and Endings: Techniques for beginning. Techniques for ending. Avoiding a strong start and a weak finish. Surprise endings.
Week 9
SFF Conundrums: Exposition glut. Verisimilitude. Stereotypes and clichés.
Week 10
The Business: Understanding markets and trends for short stories and novels. Preparing your work. The submission process. Where to market your work. Dealing with rejection. Agents. Contracts. Resources, conferences, contests.
Note: Content may vary among individual classes.
Teachers
Holley Cornetto
Holley Cornetto is the author of the horror novel They Are Cursed Like You (Eerie River Publishing) and the novella We Haunt These Woods (Bleeding Edge Books). Her short fiction has appeared in Daily Science Fiction, Flame Tree Press Newsletter, Flash Fiction Magazine, and Collective Realms Magazine, among many others. Her stories have been anthologized in A Woman Built by Man (Cemetery Gates Media), AFTER: A Post-Apocalyptic Survivor Series (Eerie River Publishing), and Banned (Black Hare Press), among others. She writes the Horror Tree's weekly newsletter, is a regular reviewer for Booklist, Ginger Nuts of Horror, and the Horror Tree, and she has taught at Southern New Hampshire University, Passaic County Community College, and the County College of Morris. She holds a BA from William Paterson University, an MLIS from San Jose State University, and an MFA in Fiction from Lindenwood University.
Read moreHolley Cornetto
Holley Cornetto
is the author of the horror novel They Are Cursed Like You (Eerie River Publishing) and the novella We Haunt These Woods (Bleeding Edge Books). Her short fiction has appeared in Daily Science Fiction, Flame Tree Press Newsletter, Flash Fiction Magazine, and Collective Realms Magazine, among many others. Her stories have been anthologized in A Woman Built by Man (Cemetery Gates Media), AFTER: A Post-Apocalyptic Survivor Series (Eerie River Publishing), and Banned (Black Hare Press), among others. She writes the Horror Tree's weekly newsletter, is a regular reviewer for Booklist, Ginger Nuts of Horror, and the Horror Tree, and she has taught at Southern New Hampshire University, Passaic County Community College, and the County College of Morris. She holds a BA from William Paterson University, an MLIS from San Jose State University, and an MFA in Fiction from Lindenwood University.
