Upcoming Classes
FREE CLASS!
BREAK THE RULES!
& FREE YOURSELF FROM THE CONSTRAINTS OF ACADEMIC & PROFESSIONAL WRITING
Saturday, February 28, 2026 from 10 a.m.–1 p.m.
This generative workshop is designed to provide writers with the tools to successfully transition from academic and professional writing to creative writing.
If your background is in academia, journalism, law, or technical writing, you’ve had to follow a lot of rules. These rules can add up to formidable creative blocks.
We’ll discuss ways to “translate” the skills you already have. We’ll also work on strategies to allow greater creative freedom and joy in the writing process, using a range of stylistic examples and excerpts from participant writing.
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY, PART 1
Fiction & Creative Nonfiction (Online)
Wednesdays from 6–8 p.m., April 15–June 10, 2026
Refine your skills as a writer without breaking the bank!
The Small Craft Advisory Series is a comprehensive and flexible program of classes designed for adult learners with life experience and stories to tell.
Developed from Sandra Scofield’s essential primer, THE SCENE BOOK, each two-hour, online seminar includes in-depth discussion of the elements of narrative craft and exercises focused on participant writing. NO workshop!
Part 1 addresses the most critical skill for prose writers—scene writing—along with characterization, dialogue and setting.
Sign up for the entire 9-class series or drop in as needed.
$55 per class for entire series ($495 total) /$65 per drop in
Required reading: THE SCENE BOOK, by Sandra Scofield; weekly short story or essay
1: SCENE BASICS
Fiction & Creative Nonfiction (Online)
Wednesday, April 15, 2026 from 6–8 p.m.
It’s nearly impossible to tell a compelling story without scenes! In this class, we’ll discuss the components of the most essential building block in prose narrative.
2: SCENES—EVENT & EMOTION
Fiction & Creative Nonfiction (Online)
Wednesday, April 22, 2026 from 6–8 p.m.
What happened? And what does it mean? We’ll do a deeper dive into the way event and emotion work in tandem to create memorable, meaningful scenes.
3: SCENES—BEATS, PART 1
Fiction & Creative Nonfiction (Online)
Wednesday, April 29, 2026 from 6–8 p.m.
Resonant scenes depend on clear events. But events themselves can be broken down further into beats of action. Getting a handle on beats is the simplest way to make your scenes come to life.
4: SCENES—BEAT SHEETS
Fiction & Creative Nonfiction (Online)
Wednesday, May 6, 2026 from 6–8 p.m.
We’ll create a sample beat sheet and discuss ways to revise and sharpen beats so character action (and motivation) are clearer for readers. Then we’ll each create one using our own scenes.
5: SCENES—TURNING POINTS & PULSE
Fiction & Creative Nonfiction (Online)
Wednesday, May 13, 2026 from 6–8 p.m.
Unless you’ve got a solid sense of pulse (character motivation) the turning points in your scenes will often be unclear. We’ll work on capturing motivation, conflict, and change in individual scenes.
6: SCENES—REVIEW
Fiction & Creative Nonfiction (Online)
Wednesday, May 20, 2026 from 6–8 p.m.
We’ll review what we know about scenes and how they work, and consider scene writing in relation to overall story conflict and structure.
7: CHARACTERIZATION, 1
Fiction & Creative Nonfiction (Online)
Wednesday, May 27, 2026 from 6–8 p.m.
This class will address ways to create unique, complex characters through using indirect and direct methods of characterization, including action, appearance, and thought.
8: CHARACTERIZATION, 2—DIALOGUE
Fiction & Creative Nonfiction (Online)
Wednesday, June 3, 2026 from 6–8 p.m.
Good dialogue shows character development and reveals emotional subtext. We’ll analyze and discuss a variety of approaches to getting at the things people do (and don’t) say.
9: SETTING & SENSE OF PLACE
Fiction & Creative Nonfiction (Online)
Wednesday, June 10, 2026 from 6–8 p.m.
A clear sense of place is one that accesses not only geographical features, but also elements of memory, cultural identity, and regional character. Setting is so much more than landscape!