This series ended on November 19, 2022. All 1:1 and group chats related to this series are disabled 7 days after the last session.
Series Details
About
This series will cover writing from the perspective of a planner, or someone who prefers to have an idea for a story before sitting down to write it. If that sounds like you, come join! And if you’re not sure, try the process out to find out if it works for you!
We’ll start with an introduction to storytelling and dive into story structure. You’ll see examples of popular stories broken down to their most basic plot points, and you’ll have a chance to look for those points in stories yourself.
Next, we will look into what makes for a great protagonist in a story, and how you might go about creating one. Then, we will see what the antagonist of the story could be and what the main conflict is.
Then, we will talk about choosing and designing a setting for your story to take place in. I’ll go over how to establish both realistic and fantastical settings.
With the basics of our story down, we’ll discuss how to write an effective beginning and get writing!
There will be an optional session you can join if you prefer to write with others present. If not, keep writing on your own!
As you’re slowly working through your first draft, we’ll go over techniques we can use to improve our writing.
Our last session will most likely feature editing tips, though the plan is tentative and can change if there are any topics you’d like me to cover more in depth!
After this series, you will have outlined and at least started writing a short story (perhaps it will even be drafted!), and you”ll have learned how to write engaging prose. You’ll also have an idea of how to edit your story when you finish. If there’s demand for it, I can host a series in the future focusing just on editing, or extend this one to cover editing more in depth.
Tutor Qualifications
I’ve been writing for 4+ years now and have taken 5 semesters of creative writing. I’ve also read multiple books on effective storytelling techniques and on story structure.
✋ ATTENDANCE POLICY
If you’re a beginner storyteller, please try not to miss any sessions, as they all build on one another. However, if you’re already familiar with a topic, let me know and missing a session won’t count against your attendance!
At the same time, I know sometimes unexpected things disrupt our schedules, so you are allowed to miss up to two sessions if you let me know about your absence before the session or shortly afterwards.
Dates
September 10 - November 19
Learners
26 / 30
Total Sessions
14
About the Tutor
GL
KK
First year student at a liberal arts college, intending to major in computer science! Some of my interests include: creative writing, psychology, mobile app development, physics, math, and chess.
View Karolina K's Profile
Upcoming Sessions
0
Past Sessions
14
10
Sep
O
Session 1
Orientation
We’ll get to know each other and talk about our favorite stories. We’ll think about what we love about stories and why we continue telling them, and, if there’s time, I’ll introduce you to story structure.
17
Sep
C
Session 2
Catchup
[OPTIONAL SESSION] Since some people cannot make it to this week's session at the regular time, I will teach the same lesson during this session, as it is an important topic (story structure) and will set the scene for the rest of the series.
If you cannot attend this extra session or the one on Sunday, please message me and we can figure something out for next week or on one of the weekdays.
OT
Session 3
Other Topics
We’ll dive more deeply into story structure, discuss several examples, and you’ll have a chance to write out major plot points of popular stories. We’ll consider how the most commonly used structures reflect real life, and also how they differ from it.
18
Sep
OH
Session 4
Office Hours
[OPTIONAL SESSION] Since some people cannot make it to this week's session at the regular time, I will teach the same lesson during this session, as it is an important topic (story structure) and will set the scene for the rest of the series. I will also answer any questions anyone might have about this lesson or about the assignments I released.
If you cannot attend this extra session or the one on Saturday, please message me and we can figure something out for next weekend or on one of the weekdays.
24
Sep
OT
Session 5
Other Topics
Character time!
In this session, we’ll look at some characters and discuss what makes them great and not so great. Then, you’ll brainstorm ideas for characters and pick the protagonist, or main character, for your story. If there is time, we will look at conflict and antagonists (aka the forces preventing your main character from getting what they want).
1
Oct
OT
Session 6
Other Topics
Conflict and antagonists!
Now that we’ve covered some things about characters, we will talk about the antagonists of stories and about conflict and tension.
8
Oct
OT
Session 7
Other Topics
Time to cover settings and descriptions!
We'll discuss what makes a great setting and how to create one, as well as practice writing descriptions.
15
Oct
OT
Session 8
Other Topics
A deep dive into prose-writing!
To write a story, you have to know how to...well, write. I'll share some tips on what makes great prose and you'll have the opportunity to practice writing a scene.
22
Oct
OT
Session 9
Other Topics
Story time!
During this session, we'll cover the brainstorming process and use everything we've learned so far to start outlining our stories.
29
Oct
OT
Session 10
Other Topics
Where do I begin?
During this session, we'll cover what a beginning should establish and how to write one. You'll also have some time to start drafting your story.
3
Nov
OH
Session 11
Office Hours
This is an optional session you can attend if you have any questions about anything we've covered so far, or to get some writing done! We'll have two writing sprints of about 15 minutes, and a break in between, as well as time for questions. You don't have to stay for the whole time unless you want to.
5
Nov
OT
Session 12
Other Topics
Help, I'm stuck!
What do you do if you are stuck writing? We'll cover how to get through writing block and I will also answer any questions you might have about drafting you story.
13
Nov
OH
Session 13
Office Hours
[Optional session]
I can answer any questions you have and/or hold some writing sprints!
19
Nov
OT
Session 14
Other Topics
Editing tips!
We'll discuss tips on editing your story and improving it, and we'll wrap up the series with some goodbyes.