October 3, 2022 – MFA755 Writing Linked Short Stories or the Novel-in-stories Part 1
Course Description: This is the first in a two-part series of courses on writing linked stories, the novel-in-stories, or short story cycles. This is an advanced course. You should already know how to write a short story and have a few under your belt. This is NOT a course on traditional novel writing.
Course Length: Eight weeks
Difficulty: 5
Required Text: Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
October 4, 2022 – L404 Silk Parachute – John McPhee
Course Description: Students will read John McPhee's Silk Parachute, participate in weekly topic discussions, and write a short response paper with a focus on using the crafts of writing personal essays.
Course Length: 4 weeks
Difficulty: 4
Required Text: Silk Parachute by John McPhee
October 6, 2022 – MFA03 Writing the Memoir Essay
Course Description: Recommended for bloggers, essayists, and nonfiction writers. This workshop is part of the MFA Nonfiction Series. Courses may be taken in any sequence, though we recommend taking MFA01 first, either with a scheduled class or by independent study.
Course Length: 2 weeks
Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Crafting The Personal Essay: A Guide for Writing and Publishing Creative Non-Fiction by Dinty W. Moore. October 6, 2022 – MFA252 Emotions and POV Course Description: Explore the relationships between POV, emotions, and body language. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Wired for Story by Lisa Cron (This is the 3rd of 12 independent MFA courses using Wired for Story.) October 13, 2022 – MFA165 Flash Fiction Getting the Lead Out Course Description: Flash Fiction - Getting the Lead Out Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction: Tips from Editors, Teachers, and Writers in the Field October 20, 2022 – MFA253 What Protagonists Want Course Description: Everyone—real and fictional has a goal. What your protagonist wants dictates how she reacts to everything that happens to her. In stories, all other considerations bend to the protagonist's external and internal goals. This course shows how to put this into practice. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Wired for Story by Lisa Cron (This is the 4th of 12 independent MFA courses using Wired for Story.) October 20, 2022 – MFA04 The Classically Modern Essay Course Description: Recommended for bloggers, essayists, and nonfiction writers. This workshop is part of the MFA Nonfiction Series. Courses may be taken in any sequence, though we recommend taking MFA01 first, either with a scheduled class or by independent study. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Crafting The Personal Essay: A Guide for Writing and Publishing Creative Non-Fiction by Dinty W. Moore. October 27, 2022 – MFA367 Music and Metaphor Course Description: This is the second workshop in a series of four courses. Each includes notes on craft, examples of model poems, and exercises as ways to encourage you in beginning to shape your own experience, language, and insights into poetry. The courses in this series can be taken in any order. Course Length: 5 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: In the Palm of Your Hand, Second Edition: A Poet’s Portable Workshop October 27, 2022 – MFA166 – Flash Fiction – Prose Poetry Course Description: Flash Fiction - Prose Poetry Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction: Tips from Editors, Teachers, and Writers in the Field November 1, 2022 – L315 Midnight’s Children – Rushdie Course Description: Students read Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children, participate in weekly topic discussions, and write a short response paper. Course Length: 8 weeks Difficulty: 4 Required Text: Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie November 3, 2022 – MFA254 Protagonist inner Issues Course Description: New material is crafted first and foremost with an eye toward how it will fit into what's already there because our unconscious allegiance is to what we've already written, rather than to the story itself. Outlining can be an intuitive, creative, and inspiring process, often surprisingly shorter than you might think. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Wired for Story by Lisa Cron (This is the 5th of 12 independent MFA courses using Wired for Story.) November 3, 2022 – MFA05 The Contemplative Essay Course Description: Recommended for bloggers, essayists, and nonfiction writers. This workshop is part of the MFA Nonfiction Series. Courses may be taken in any sequence, though we recommend taking MFA01 first, either with a scheduled class or by independent study. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Crafting The Personal Essay: A Guide for Writing and Publishing Creative Non-Fiction by Dinty W. Moore. November 10, 2022 – MFA167 Flash Fiction – Put Yourself in Danger Course Description: Flash Fiction - Put Yourself in Danger Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction: Tips from Editors, Teachers, and Writers in the Field November 10, 2022 – MFA167 Flash Fiction – Put Yourself in Danger Course Description: Flash Fiction - Put Yourself in Danger Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction: Tips from Editors, Teachers, and Writers in the Field November 10, 2022 – MFA102 Sentence Structures: Propositions, Subtext, and Syntax Course Description: “Proposition” is a familiar term to students of logic or rhetoric. It simply means an expressed thought put forward for the receiver to accept or not accept. Every individual idea, concept, action, emotion, and description we communicate through a sentence is a proposition, a thought represented by a sequence of words. Some sentences have a single proposition, some have many. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Reading material provided November 17, 2022 – MFA255 Story is in the Specifics Course Description: Learn how to make generalities specific. Abstract concepts, generalities, and conceptual notions have a hard time engaging us. Because we can't see them, feel them, or otherwise experience them we tend to find abstract concepts boring. This course will help bring your stories to life. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Wired for Story by Lisa Cron (This is the 6th of 12 independent MFA courses using Wired for Story.) November 24, 2022 – MFA103 Creativity and the Cumulative Sentence Course Description: The basic unit of thought is the sentence, and from these grow the paragraph, the short story, and the novel. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Reading material provided December 1, 2022 – MFA168 Flash Fiction – Flash in a Pan Course Description: Flash Fiction - Flash in a Pan Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction: Tips from Editors, Teachers, and Writers in the Field December 1, 2022 – MFA256 Conflict and Change Course Description: Learn why conflict and change in different in fiction than in real life, and how to use this understanding in your stories. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Wired for Story by Lisa Cron (This is the 7th of 12 independent MFA courses using Wired for Story.) December 15, 2022 – MFA169 Flash Fiction – Expose Yourself Course Description: Flash Fiction - Expose Yourself to Flash Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction: Tips from Editors, Teachers, and Writers in the Field December 15, 2022 – MFA257 Cause & Effect Course Description: Learn how to create a story the reader will care about by following an emotional cause-and-effect trajectory. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Wired for Story by Lisa Cron (This is the 8th of 12 independent MFA courses using Wired for Story.) December 29, 2022 – MFA170 Flash Fiction – Load-bearing Sentences Course Description: Flash Fiction - Load-Bearing Sentences Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction: Tips from Editors, Teachers, and Writers in the Field December 29, 2022 – MFA050 Flash Nonfiction: Form Course Description: MFA50 is the first in a series of flash nonfiction workshops (works under 2,000 words). Each of the eight courses in the series will use The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Nonfiction. Courses in the series may be taken in any sequence, though reading the text's Introduction is recommended for those who haven't taken MFA50 yet. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Nonfiction: Advice and Essential Exercises from Respected Writers, Editors, and Teachers December 29, 2022 – MFA259 Setups to Payoffs Course Description: Learn how to satisfy readers with setups and payoffs. Course Length: 2 weeks Difficulty: 3 Required Text: Wired for Story by Lisa Cron (This is the 10th of 12 independent MFA courses using Wired for Story.)