Learn how to write a short story through reading, writing, and workshop

The Workshop

I’ve always been obsessed with short stories, both as a writer and a reader. As a mother of a young child, it was a way for me to absorb a meaningful story within a shorter time frame that has a large impact. When writing, it became a critical skill to get the entirety of a story down within a shorter framework—a moment in a car ride, an interaction at a pharmacy, a comment at a cocktail party. As the writer Robert Sawyer says, “A short story is the shortest distance between two points; a novel is the scenic route.”

I believe that if you can write a short story, you can write anything. While they may appear intimidating from the outset, there are techniques and skills to be learned to make this form less intimidating, which we will dissect through reading short stories as well as sharing the progress of our own short story in workshop. 

Course Outline

• Week 1: Read and Discuss “White Night” by Ann Beattie; Workshop two pieces

• Week 2: Read and Discuss “A Love Story,” by Samantha Hunt; Workshop two pieces

• Week 3: Read and Discuss “The Midnight Zone,” by Lauren Groff; Workshop two pieces

• Week 4: Read and Discuss “Trip in a Summer Dress,” by Annette Sanford; Workshop two pieces

Your Instructor

Kate Boyette started in N.Y.C. with independent film production, which led her to L.A. to work at Creative Artist Agency. Underwhelmed teaching celebrities how to drive their Priuses, she left CAA and enrolled in Le Cordon Bleu. Since then, her culinary pursuits and events took her from Texas to Park City, Utah, to eventually, Charleston, S.C. as the first editor-in-chief of the culinary publication, The Local Palate. She recently launched her boutique cookbook publishing company, Mise En Place Publishing, which published the female literary journal, REVISIONIST as well as multiple cookbooks, and earned her MFA in creative writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts, combining her two loves—cooking and storytelling. 

Questions? Email kate@miseenplacepr.com

How to write, finish, and pitch a novel

The Workshop

Ten years ago, I set out to write my first novel. Tens of thousands of words and hours later, there is so much I know now that I wish I had known then. From how to get into that mystical flow state to how not to sabotage yourself at the very start, this workshop is designed to deliver both inspiration and time-saving tips to writers on their novel writing journey.

In this course, we’ll explore the lesser known yet life-changing writing rules and techniques novelists have been using for centuries to tell their stories. With their wisdom at your disposal, you will learn how to create your own process to complete your project, then get it published. 

Course Outline

• Week 1: Introductions and goals

• Week 2: Taking an idea from a spark to a fully realized novel

• Week 3: Creating your personal writing method you can use over and over again

• Week 4: Querying and pitching your novel

Your Instructor

Liz Regalia is a writer, editor, and published journalist formerly based in Manhattan where she worked for Real Simple, Parents, Nickelodeon and Martha Stewart Living. She has worked 1:1 with many outstanding authors over the course of her career, most recently New York Times best-selling author Ann Hood with whom she workshopped her debut speculative fiction novel. Liz is currently a freelance writer and personal essayist based in Charleston.

Questions? Email eliz.regalia@gmail.com