Course Details

You want to write a novel. So what's the big deal? Well, it's a daunting task. What's the actual writing process? Do you need an outline? How can you stop procrastinating and improve your self-discipline? How can you better manage your time and work when you feel defeated and uninspired?

Join 11 fellow writers in your pursuit of a first draft, under the guidance of a novelist who knows what she's doing -- and what you need to do. You'll learn the lost art of craft, the power of the outline, and how to find the "hook" that will sell your novel.

You'll get weekly lessons on such topics as characterization, point of view, style, dialogue, plot, and silencing your inner critic. Students will share their work with the class at least three times during the course and will be encouraged to discuss the progress of their novels on a weekly basis, if time permits.

In this class, you can expect to learn:

By the end of class, you can expect to:

Be well on your way to completing the first draft of a novel.

Admission requirements:
Please submit a letter of interest (including a brief work history) and a fiction writing sample (less than 2,000 words).

The online classroom has several interactive components:

• Instructors post lectures once a week. You can read them online, print them, or download them at your convenience.
• Students post completed assignments for feedback and discussion by the instructor and class.
• Weekly chats allow your class to get together via instant message. Transcripts are available for review if you can't attend. 
• Technical support is available from mediabistro staff.

Instructor Bio

Nicole Bokat's Courses

Nicole Bokat is the author of What Matters Most (New American Library, October 2006). Her first novel, Redeeming Eve, received strong reviews here and abroad, including praise from Publisher's Weekly, Kirkus, McCall's, and The Bloomsbury Review . It is currently scheduled to be published in Greece by Editions George Vassiliou. Redeeming Eve was nominated for the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award and the Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize for Fiction. Nicole Bokat is also the author of an academic book, The Novels of Margaret Drabble, with Peter Lang (1998). She's written for a variety of magazines and newspapers, including Parents, Expecting Parents Magazine, Z Magazine, Troika, On the Issues: The Progressive Woman's Quarterly, Iris: A Journal about Women (University of Virginia), and The Forward. She has a Masters in Creative Writing and a Ph.D. in Literature from NYU. She has also worked as a ghostwriter. You can read more about her on her website, www.nicolebokat.com.

Testimonials

Nicole's class gave me the much-needed deadlines to actually get it done. -- Laura Vanderkam, Reader's Digest contributing editor

"Nicole is very supportive and gives lengthy feedback in class. Nicole, as well as my fellow students, made the process so much easier. Trust me, she's good." -- Gini Sikes

"Nicole's comments on our individual novel chapters are incisive and helpful since she herself has written several books. Her best quality is to urge us to keep writing and know what to do if we get stuck." -- Ruth Z. Deming

"I loved Nicole's humor and intelligence and insight, and her generosity and honesty about the business of novel writing was unexpected." -- Tessa Smith-McGovern

"Nicole is a wonderful teacher -- insightful, encouraging, funny, and honest." -- Bruce Cordingly

"Nicole's input was invaluable. I recently sent out my manuscript and it generated a lot of interest among agents because it was in pitch-perfect shape!" -- Kathy McCleary

"Nicole is wonderfully diplomatic, encouraging, and knowledgeable. I have learned a tremendous amount with her to guide me." --- Meg Dobson

"Nicole asks questions about your work that forces you to come up with answers that improve your plot, your characters, and your setting. Her encouragement helps you keep your momentum." -- Jeanne Ambrose