Novel Writing

WHEN 12 weeks, October 9 - January 2 Online chats: Tuesdays, 9-10 pm EST WHERE Online. Click here for information. LEVEL Intermediate/advanced PRICE $610 ($575 for ) more info

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

Erika Mailman is the author of The Witch's Trinity (Random House, 2007), a novel about a medieval woman accused of witchcraft, and Woman of Ill Fame (Heyday Books, 2007), about a Gold Rush prostitute. She has also published two non-fiction books about Oakland history, and is a columnist for the Montclarion newspaper in Oakland. She is a graduate of the MFA program in poetry at the University of Arizona, Tucson. She has taught creative writing at the University of Arizona, the Tucson Open University, and others. Her first novel took her eight years to write and is unpublishable. She figured out how to outline, and wrote the first draft of her second novel in one month--and it's now in print.

Erika Mailman's Courses
Novel Writing – (Class starts March 24)

Testimonials

Erika's example, encouragement, acuity, and good humor inspired every writer in our class and helped to keep us focused on our goal. Time and money well spent. -- Bradley Owens

"Erika is an insightful reader and is also able to bring her real-world experience to matters of craft and discussions about the business of writing. Any writer who takes Erika's class is in excellent hands." -- Drew Mayer

"Erika is a smart, savvy instructor. I've enjoyed her lectures, critiques, and support. I would sign up for any class she teaches." -- Portia Stewart

"Erika is an excellent instructor who provides helpful feedback in an engaging and fun manner. She knows how to motivate her students and is willing to share personal anecdotes when appropriate." -- Sandra Seligsohn

"Erika got me motivated to start the novel that had been in my head for years! By the end of the class, I was 150 pages into my book and had the rest outlined." -- Lian Dolan

"Erika is amazing! She breaks everything down into bite sized pieces and makes novel writing much less intimidating." -- Alexa Fitzpatrick

"Erika is a dedicated, knowledgeable, fun instructor. She gives solid feedback that really helped me shape my novel." -- Lynn Braz

"Erika was always thoughtful and thorough in the feedback she gave us on our writing." -- Sofia Perez