Crafting Characters with Care with Carrie R. Moore
Mondays, April 29-May 20
Craft Course
$300
$275
To be an avid reader is to fall in love with characters unlike ourselves. Yet to be a fiction writer is to be responsible for creating them. What does it mean to be attentive to our characters’ humanity? To look beyond their functions as propellers of plot or sites of history? In this four-week course, we will approach the page with humility, considering how to create complex characters—even if their experiences differ from our own. We will examine strategies for writing traumatic events without veering into exploitation, for making secondary characters feel as full-fledged as our protagonists, and for writing against stereotype. Above all, we will make discomfort a tool in our writing, so that we might avoid denying our characters the fullness of their lives. Course participants can expect to write weekly scenes or reflections of approximately five hundred words, as well as to read excerpts from Mohsin Hamid, Lauren Groff, Toni Morrison, and other authors. Novelists and short story writers of all levels welcome!
This is a craft course. Our craft courses analyze fiction from a craft perspective and include generative writing exercises. Class will meet once a week for a live Zoom lecture based on the assigned reading, along with a discussion and writing prompt. Students are encouraged to share their work on the discussion board for light feedback by fellow students and the instructor.
About Carrie R. Moore:
Carrie R. Moore’s fiction and essays have appeared in One Story, New England Review, The Sewanee Review, Virginia Quarterly Review, For Harriet, EPOCH, The Southern Review, and other publications. She has received scholarships and fellowships from the Community of Writers, the Sewanee Writers’ Conference, and the Martha Heasley Cox Center for Steinbeck Studies. She earned her MFA in Fiction at the Michener Center for Writers, where she won the Keene Prize for Literature and served as Fiction Editor of Bat City Review. Most recently, she was the inaugural fellow at the John Steinbeck Writers’ Retreat in Sag Harbor, New York. Photo: Matt Valentine
Schedule
All sessions will take place on Zoom.
Session 1: Monday, April 29: 7-8:30pm ET
Session 2: Monday, May 6: 7-8:30pm ET
Session 3: Monday, May 13: 7-8:30pm ET
Session 4: Monday, May 20: 7-8:30pm ET
FAQ
When can I register for this class?
Registration will open in spring 2024 and close when the class reaches its cap.
Will class sessions be recorded?
Class sessions will not be recorded. If you need to miss a class, the instructor can provide notes on the content that you miss.
How does the class work?
This class meets weekly for live Zoom discussions for the duration of the course. Reading and writing assignments will be distributed in Thinkific, our online learning platform. That is also where students will share responses to the assignments for feedback from their fellow students and the instructor.
Is participation on the discussion board required?
We encourage all students to share work and to participate in discussions to get the most out of the experience.
Is there homework?
The class will include reading assignments, writing exercises, and discussion questions. The instructor will be providing light feedback on student work.
How much time will the class take?
Live lessons run for an hour to an hour and thirty minutes. Plan to spend about 2 hours a week on reading and writing assignments, plus however long you decide to spend on the discussion boards.
How many students are in the class?
This class is capped at 25 students.
Can I take the class on my phone?
Yes, the class can be taken on a phone, but we recommend a computer or tablet to get the most out of the experience.
Can I save the material for later use?
There will be downloadable readings and writing exercises, but otherwise class content lives on the learning platform. To prevent distribution of the material without our knowledge, students are not permitted to copy/paste the lessons but are of course welcome to take notes.
What if I can’t wait to get started?
The classroom will open one week before the class start date, so that students can download any reading and writing assignments and familiarize themselves with the learning platform.
Do you offer financial aid or scholarships for this class?
Yes, we will be offering a limited number of partial scholarships for this class (50% off), which will be selected by lottery. If you are interested in entering, you can do so using this form.
Discounts & Policies
Our online classes are designed to be safe spaces for all who participate. One Story will not tolerate hate speech, bullying, or harassment directed toward instructors or fellow students, and reserves the right to remove participants who engage in such behavior from our classes.
Patron Discount: In order to qualify for our patron discount, you must be a member of our patron circle at the time of registration. Patrons commit to annual donations and receive benefits that allow them to participate in our non-profit organization in more meaningful ways. Not all One Story subscribers or supporters are patrons. If you’d like to find out more about becoming a patron, you can do so here.
Refund Policy: Students can receive full refunds prior to one week before the class start date, and 50% refunds from in the week leading up to the class. Class payment is non-refundable on or after the class’s start date. For questions about the refund policy, or if you are unable to take the class after you have registered, please contact maribeth@one-story.com.
If you have any questions, please contact edu.support@one-story.com.
