Creative writing is not a matter of simply stringing words and sentences together. It is knowing how to put them together intentionally so that your work is powerful and accomplishes what you intend it to do. This series of craft classes—for which you can sign up individually—will address various key elements of fiction, memoir, and creative nonfiction including Plot, Point of View & Narrative Voice, and Beginnings & Endings.   

Each session will focus on a specific topic, with instruction followed by time for Q & A. When possible, participants will engage in writing exercises to illustrate and explore the subject under discussion. 

Plot

Life is a series of chronological but random events. The story is the timeline of these events. The plot is how you arrange events and ideas to bring your narrative to life. Whether your stories are based on, inspired by, or completely unrelated to real life, you make choices about which events and ideas to include. This class will go over some age-old formulas to think about when structuring your work, as well as offer suggestions to inspire and guide you when you are trying to figure out what happens next or develop what you’ve already written.

Amy Ralston Seife is an award-winning short story writer. The editor-in-chief of The Westchester Review, she also teaches creative writing classes and workshops and is a freelance editor and writing coach. She holds an MA in English Literature from Yale University and an MFA in fiction writing from Sarah Lawrence College, as well as an MBA from Columbia University.