Class Description
Speculative fiction — including science fiction, fantasy, magical realism, horror, slipstream, and beyond — is a fast-evolving genre with unique demands and endless possibilities. It asks writers to build worlds from scratch, embed social commentary beneath the surface of a story, and make the uncanny feel inevitable. It is also, at its best, some of the most urgent and imaginative literature being written today.
In this workshop, we'll explore what makes speculative fiction distinct while also sharpening the craft fundamentals that underpin all great short fiction: voice, character, dialogue, point of view, and revision. We'll draw on the work of K.S. Walker, V.H. Chen, Angel Leal, Tobias Buckell, Kelly Link, and many more, using their stories as a lens for understanding both the possibilities of speculative writing and the choices that make individual stories come alive.
You'll have the opportunity to develop and workshop two complete short stories, with dedicated class time for writing prompts and exercises to help you generate and push your ideas further. Feedback will address both content (theme, character, the deeper questions a story raises), and craft, giving you a clear framework for revision.
Writers of any experience level with an interest in speculative fiction are welcome. Come prepared to write, read generously, and offer thoughtful feedback to your peers. You'll leave with revised work, a stronger sense of your voice, and clear next steps for submitting your stories to magazines and anthologies.
Writing Roadmap: We've created a simple, goal-based writing roadmap to help you find the perfect GrubStreet course for your writing needs.
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 detailed information about GrubStreet scholarships, including how to contribute to scholarship funds for other students, click here.
This class will take place using Zoom videoconferencing. After registering, a yellow Resources tab will appear in this section containing a link to join class. Please note that you will need to be logged into view the Resources tab.
Zoom Participation:
In our experience, the intimate nature of a writing workshop benefits from on-camera participation. Students are of course welcome to turn their camera off whenever they need to, but it is a community norm for cameras to be on most of the time. You can learn more about using Zoom here.
Zoom Accessibility:
You can enable closed captioning at any time during the meeting by clicking the CC button at the bottom of the screen. If you'd like to access the transcript after class, please make sure to let your instructor ahead of time that you'd like a copy.