Write a short story in a weekend
Time: 10:30 - 16:30
Location: Keeley Street
Choose a start date
- Course Code: HW491
- Dates: 25/01/25 - 26/01/25
- Time: 10:30 - 16:30
- Taught: Sat-Sun, Daytime
- Duration: 2 sessions
- Location: Keeley Street
- Tutor: Sarah Leipciger
Course Code: HW491
Choose a start date
Duration: 2 sessions
Please note: We offer a wide variety of financial support to make courses affordable. Just visit our online Help Centre for more information on a range of topics including fees, online learning and FAQs.
What is the course about?
This hands-on course uses a series of guided exercises to get you writing in new ways, exploring unfamiliar territory and discovering new connections and turning points. You'll be led through the process of drafting a story from beginning to end, and will come away with an improved critical understanding of what makes a good short story. It will help you to come prepared with an idea you would like to shape into a story.
Students say: "Great teacher, great environment and group"; "A fantastic, succinct course which really helped me to kick-start my writing"; "Very well-taught and inspiring - I gained valuable knowledge to help me write better short stories"; "Super-stimulating - I have confidence and many more ideas to work with now.".
What will we cover?
- How to begin a story
- Finding and developing characters
- Plot and story structure
- Establishing mood, themes, and subtext
- Being imaginative with language
- Finding the right ending.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
- Respond to and assess pieces of writing with sensitivity
- Complete a first draft of a short story.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
This course is suitable for beginners comfortable learning at a fast pace. Enthusiastic readers welcome! Fluent written and spoken English is essential.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
You will learn through interactive tutor presentations, analysis and discussion of published short fiction, and a series of guided writing exercises. You'll be encouraged to share your written work for constructive feedback from your peers and the tutor. You may find it beneficial to spend some time after class developing your story.
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 additional costs. Please bring a pen and paper and your ideas!
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
City Lit runs term-long Short story writing and Writing fiction courses in the evening and daytime, that will teach you essential skills and techniques. You may also be interested in learning more about short stories in Reading for writers: the short story.
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.
Sarah Leipciger’s debut novel, The Mountain Can Wait, was published in 2015 with Tinder Press in the UK and Little, Brown in the US. She has had short stories shortlisted for the Bridport Prize, the Fish Prize and the Asham Award, and is a past winner of THIS Magazine’s Great Canadian Literary Hunt. She has also written non-fiction for The Guardian and The Toronto Star. She has facilitated workshops at several literature events, including the Edinburgh International Book Festival, and has been teaching fiction and life writing to young people and adults in prisons since 2003; she is currently the Creative Writing tutor at HMP Brixton in London. Her second novel, Coming Up for Air, will be published in February 2020 with Doubleday UK and House of Anansi Press in Canada. Doubleday UK has also procured her third novel, with a release date TBA. She is a PhD student in Creative Writing at Goldsmiths University.
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.