Science Fiction and Fantasy II: The Novel

Class Description

You've laid the groundwork for your world and begun to explore the tools of genre. In this course, we will delve deeper into the craft of the speculative novel, exploring how world-building and thematic aspects of genre interact with the beats of a novel. Writers will work on a single project over the course of this class, adding both scenes and world-building every week. We will begin by creating project summaries that allow us to envision the full arc of our stories from beginning to end. Over the six weeks, we will study the craft of beginnings, middles, and endings within speculative novels, and explore traditional and experimental structures. We will discuss serial vs. standalone novels in the sci-fi and fantasy world and study excerpts and craft resources from writers like N.K. Jemisin, Octavia E. Butler, Ursula K. Le Guin, Daniel José Older, Nnedi Okorafor, Ken Liu, Liu Cixin, Sofia Segovia, Brandon Sanderson, Rebecca Roanhorse, and Tomi Adeyemi. At the end of this class, you will have advanced in your novel, gained a sense of its overall structure, and developed a plan to move forward. You will have a deeper understand of the craft of speculative novels and the tools they use to imagine new and different worlds.

You should come to class with a novel that you've already started working on and planning, as well as a copy of your first page, as we will be workshopping the first pages of our novels in Week 1. Writers who have an idea for a novel but haven't started writing or planning it yet are welcome to join but should contact the instructor in advance for additional resources. Science Fiction & Fantasy I is not a pre-requisite, but please know that this course is intermediate to advanced and that many of the basics of world-building are covered in SFF I.

Class Format

This is an Online: On-Demand class that will take place on our asynchronous online learning platform, Wet.Ink. Weekly lessons and assignments open each Wednesday. Students will receive an invitation to Wet Ink before 5pm on the first day of class!

*NOTE that while our handy dandy "Schedule" tab states a 6-7pm class time, there are actually no live meetings for this class! Weekly lessons and assignments open each Wednesday. Students will receive an invitation to Wet Ink, our online class platform, before 5pm on the first day of class.

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.