Craft focus: voice in fiction

What is the course about?

What do we mean when we talk about voice in fiction? This course will provide you with the opportunity to investigate this most elusive of craft elements, learning what voice means, and how you can develop one for your writing. This is an advanced concept, suitable for those with some experience of creative writing.

Students say: "I found the course helpful in encouraging me to find my own voice"; "Excellent! Really enjoyable and varied content"; "A packed day full of inspiring ways to get writing"; "I loved the writing exercises and workshopping."

City Lit reserves the right to change course tutors from those advertised in this outline. In line with our refund policy we are unable to grant a refund on the grounds of a change of tutor.

This is a live online course. You will need:
- Internet connection. The classes work best with Chrome.
- A computer with microphone and camera is best (e.g. a PC/laptop/iMac/MacBook), or a tablet/iPad/smart phone/iPhone if you don't have a computer.
- Earphones/headphones/speakers.
We will contact you with joining instructions before your course starts.

What will we cover?

- What is voice in fiction?
- Types of voice in fiction (narrative, character)
- Tone and atmosphere
- Style and identifying your voice as a writer.

What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...

- Give and receive feedback with sensitivity
- Identify the components of voice in fiction
- Understand the role of sentence-level craft in developing 'voice'
- Generate prose with a distinct voice.

What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?

This course focuses on an advanced element of fiction craft and is suitable for those with some experience of creative writing. You will need to be an enthusiastic reader of fiction with fluency in English.

How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?

Short interactive tutor presentations, analysis of published work, in-class writing exercises, troubleshooting and discussion.

All writing courses at City Lit will involve an element of workshop. This means that students will produce work which will be discussed in an open and constructive environment with the tutor and other students. The college operates a policy of constructive criticism, and all feedback on another student’s work by the tutor and other students should be delivered in that spirit.

For classes longer than one day, regular reading and writing exercises will be set for completion at home to set deadlines.

City Lit Writing endeavours to create a safe and welcoming space for all and we strongly support the use of content notes in our classes. This means that learners are encouraged to make their tutor and classmates aware in advance if any writing they wish to share contains material that may be deemed sensitive. If you are unsure about what might constitute sensitive content, please ask your tutor for further clarification and read our expectations for participating in writing courses at City Lit.

Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?

No extra costs. Bring pen/paper.

When I've finished, what course can I do next?

Why not try one of our term-long courses in fiction such as Writing fiction, Short Story Writing or Starting your novel? If you feel ready to submit your work for rigorous constructive feedback, you can enrol on Advanced Fiction Writing Workshop.

Collect the other Craft Focus courses on offer to give key elements of your writing the special attention they deserve. You may also enjoy a Reading for writers course, or the Craft of fiction reading and writing group. There are lots of options to develop your fiction available via the online prospectus. If you need help finding the right one, just give us a call!

All students are invited to join us at Late Lines, our regular performance night for City Lit writers. Students are also encouraged to submit their work to Between the Lines, our annual anthology of creative writing. For the latest news, courses and events, stay in touch with the Department on Facebook and Twitter.