How to write a collection of short stories: A six-week creative writing programme

Led by acclaimed writer Alba Arikha over six consecutive weeks, this course will give you the creative inspiration and technical skills to start working on a short story collection.

The world of a short story may be more condensed than the world of a novel, but its emotional impact can be as wide-ranging as a novel’s. But what skills do you need to make an impact and render the story memorable?

Over six weeks, with the help of tutor Alba Arikha, you will be looking at different elements of the short story, including character, voice, structure, plot, setting, pacing and dialogue. You will learn how to read like a writer and have your own work discussed in class.

You will be given the opportunity to explore and develop your creativity as well as build the confidence to start your own collection of stories. Through a combination of exercises, reading material, group discussions and professional feedback, you will be on track to find your voice, demonstrate your newly acquired skills and produce one or two short stories by the end of the course. But most importantly, you will be on the road to inspiration to continue with your collection.

Content

Week 1: How to begin a story: the construction of character

• What makes a short story stand out

• The construction and importance of character: what does your character want/need?

• Memorable characters in short stories

• How to generate ideas: memory and how we apply it to our imagination

Week 2: Voice and plot

• How do you find it and perfect the voice?

• Developing your idea: the excavation of voice, how to sharpen it and build confidence

• The “throb” as described by Nabokov – how inspiration hits

• The importance of conflict: the twists and turns that make the story move

Week 3: Setting and structure

• A sense of place and time

• How surroundings impact character and plot

• The scaffolding of fiction: how to “build” a story

• How to maintain a cohesive structure and sense of unity when fleshing out a story

Week 4: Dialogue and point of view

• The function of conversation in fiction

• Speech patterns: how can dialogue tell us something about the speaker?

• Confrontation in fiction: how to maintain momentum between narrative and dialogue

• Who’s telling the story – first, second or third person, unreliable narrators, omniscient or limited narrators?

Week 5: Shaping your story, mood and pace

• The importance of narrative flow: are you confident with the voice and arc of your story? What are the obstacles in the character’s way and how will they be resolved?

• Mood and pace, putting further techniques into place

• How other writers work

• What makes your story stand out

Week 6: Drafting and ending: how to finish a story

• The first draft: spotting weaknesses as well as strengths. What to keep, what to delete?

• What does one look for when editing? Are you saying too much or too little?

• When to wrap up and submit

• Tips on agents and publishers

Tutor profile

Alba Arikha is an author of fiction and non-fiction, including Walking on Ice, Muse and Major/Minor, a memoir that was shortlisted for the Spear’s award and chosen as one of the best books of 2012 by the New Yorker. She has written two librettos for two operas based on her books: Soon, which was performed at the Riverside Studios, and Blue Electric, performed at RADA in 2018. Her new novel, Where to Find Me, was published by Alma Books. She has written for various publications, including the New Republic and Tatler, and is a regular contributor to Spear’s Magazine and Radio 4. She is also a singer-songwriter and has performed in London and Paris.

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Full course and returns information on the Masterclasses website