Class

Short Story: A to Z—Creative Short Story Writing for Ages 15 to 18

Welcome back to Summer Youth at Open Book! We'll spend the week writing, reading, and building community.

At the start of the first class, there will be a discussion based on the pre-reading where we discuss what makes the story successful. Following will be a lecture about the essential components of a short story: character, plot, POV, theme, and conflict. Then, there will be an in-class exercise that kicks students off crafting their short story. Students will be taught “Workshop Etiquette,” which is used in most group writing sessions that call themselves “workshops.”

Subsequent classes will each begin with a lecture on an element of the short story form. After the lecture, there will be a generative exercise followed by a discussion of the results. Then there will be in-class writing time. The remaining time will be spent “workshopping” pieces.

In a sample activity, students will look at a famous painting and write down possible names for the subjects as if they were characters in a story description given by the teacher. Students will share the favorite names they decided upon with the rest of the class.