WJ061 Flash Non-Fiction: Narrative, Voice & Imagery under 1,000 Words

Mondays January 6, 13, 20, 27; February 3 

Course Description: For writers of all levels. In this workshop, we’ll begin by discussing flash non-fiction work, from more literary to journalistic pieces under 1,000 words - personal essays, monthly columns and more. Our discussions and discoveries will serve as departure points for our own explorations on the page. Through brief, focused exercises, we’ll work on generating ideas and developing them into flash non-fiction pieces, keeping narrative, voice and imagery in mind. You’ll be able to sharpen your skills, begin new work and refine work-in-progress. We’ll work on generating three pieces (drafts or finished pieces of writing) over the class periods. In a supportive environment, benefit from interaction and exchanges with participants and constructive feedback on your writing.

Instructor: Heather Hartley is Paris Editor for Tin House and author of Knock Knock (Carnegie Mellon University Press); her second poetry collection will also be published by CMU. Her poems, essays, and interviews have appeared in or on PBS News Hour, The Rumpus, The Guardian, The White Review and elsewhere. She has curated Shakespeare & Company Bookshop's reading series, and has taught creative writing at the American University of Paris. Her monthly column Aperitif on the Tin House website is about literary Paris.