Next Level Short Fiction: Revise and Submit

Class Description

Revision means exactly that: Re. Visioning. In this class, we'll dive deep into the process of taking apart a draft: figuring out what exactly is at the heart of your story; how to deepen characters and tighten narrative; how to distinguish between text and subtext. Just finished a story you're proud of, but not sure you got the ending right? In love with your characters, but don't know, exactly, what your story is about? Terrified to cut a pretty sentence, or rearrange a scene, for fear the whole story might fall to pieces? This is the class for you. In Next Level Short Fiction, each writer will submit to workshop twice: once in the first few weeks, and again in the last few weeks. Your first submission will be an early draft–a beautiful, messy pile of uncut inspiration–and your second will be a revision of that story, after you've gotten feedback from the workshop. The rest of our time will be dedicated to discussing various aspects of craft and revision; reading and discussing a wide range of short stories; learning about submitting stories for publication; and in-class writing exercises. Authors whose work we may look at include Margaret Atwood, Jhumpa Lahiri, Ken Liu, Amal El-Mohtar, Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, George Saunders, Elizabeth McCracken, Alice Sola Kim, ZZ Packer, Samanta Schweblin, and others.

Important dates:

This application deadline has now passed. Late applications will not be reviewed, but we encourage you to explore our many similiar short fiction classes coming up this term: Developing Your Short Fiction (PM), Short Story Study Hall: "Best American Short Stories 2021 (AM), Global Fiction Study Hall: Writers from Around the World (PM), Jumpstart Your YA/MG Fiction (PM).

The payment deadline for admitted students is Monday, March 14th.

To apply, please click the red "SEE DIRECTIONS TO APPLY" button in the top right corner of this page. This application will ask you to detail your workshop experience; copy your answer to question 1 from the application and paste it into this field. This page will also ask you to upload a writing sample. Your writing sample and application (from step 1) should all be contained in a single document. Use the "choose file" button to locate your combined application and writing sample. Once you have located and uploaded your combined application & writing sample, click the "Apply" button. You will receive a confirmation email once our system has received your submission.

Class Format

This class will take place using Zoom videoconferencing. About 15 minutes before your class is scheduled to begin, you'll receive an email from your instructor with a link to join the class meeting!

Scholarship Information

Thanks to the excellent literary citizenship of our donors, scholarships are available for all GrubStreet classes. To apply, click the gray "APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIP" button. In order to be considered for a scholarship, you must complete your application at least one week before the start date of a class. Please await our scholarship committee's decision before registering for the class. We cannot hold spots in classes, so the sooner you apply, the better. Scholarships cannot be applied retroactively.

For more more detailed information about GrubStreet scholarships, including how to contribute to scholarship funds for other students, click here.