Creative Writing Classes in NYC, New York

Do you wish there was a place you could go for writing inspiration and practice? Where you could hang out with other writers? Without needing to make a long-term commitment or spend a lot of money? With food and drink involved? Gotham Write-Ins are that place. Here’s what happens. The teacher gives an interesting writing prompt. Everyone writes...

Are you eager to test the waters of creative writing but not sure where to start, or how? Have you written previously but been away for a while and hope to dip back in? Here you will be guided surely and safely into the writing life. There’s no pressure to work on a specific project or even settle on which type of creative writing you prefer. The...

Are you eager to test the waters of creative writing but not sure where to start, or how? Have you written previously but been away for a while and hope to dip back in? Here you will be guided surely and safely into the writing life. There’s no pressure to work on a specific project or even settle on which type of creative writing you prefer. The...

Fiction is a wonderful conjuring act. With only words and the reader’s imagination, a work of fiction can sail across the world in pursuit of a whale, or time-travel to another dimension, or zero in on a few minutes in line at the local bank, enveloping the reader in a made-up story that feels real.  To pull off this feat requires a balance...

The quiet magic of Goodnight Moon grows into the zaniness of Dr. Seuss and widens into the dazzlement of Harry Potter then matures into the straight talk of Judy Blume and the gritty reality of The Outsiders. Such is the amazing journey children take through books. These stories are a treasured part of childhood and they linger for a lifetime. To...

They say everyone has a story and this new writing class with Irish novelist Yvonne Cassidy will help you tell yours. Over the course of eight weeks, Yvonne will work with you to develop your story while you discover the fundamental tools of the craft of creative writing. Whether you want to write fiction, memoir, or about the lives of your Irish ancestors,...

Nonfiction—pieces that spring from the real world—is everywhere. Magazines, newspapers, books, blogs, websites. And nonfiction has grown more diverse and creative than ever, embracing all styles from straight to zany to lyrical, encompassing every topic imaginable from schoolyard memories to a trek in Nepal to the creation of the universe. Here...

As Rhett tells Scarlett in the movie Gone With the Wind, “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.” (In the book version, there’s no “frankly.”) Either way it’s a good line, and you should give a damn about your dialogue. Dialogue is crucial to any kind of story—fiction, nonfiction, any kind of script. Bad dialogue can sink it like a...

This course gives you a firm grounding in the basics of fiction craft and gets you writing a short story (or two) or a novel. Course components: Lectures Writing exercises Workshopping of student projects (each student presenting work two times) Fiction I is for beginners or anyone who wants to brush up on the fundamentals. Students must be...

Characters are the beating heart of every story—fiction, nonfiction, any kind of scripted show.  In fact, it’s their actions, dialogue, habits, quirks, appearance, gestures, hopes, dreams, fears, triumphs, failures, and flaws that make a story what it is. We follow people like Sherlock, Hamlet, Katniss, Batman, Lolita, and ________ (fill...

If you're ready to share a bold statement but want to leave a more lasting impact than you might with a Facebook rant, join us to explore the art of satire writing. For people who love The Onion, Reductress, McSweeney's and even Shakespeare, this class will offer an introductory lesson in satire, complete with writing exercises to help you hone the...

In this weekly class we'll spend 1.5 hours a session writing to two or three new prompts. This class is meant for the most tenderfoot-ed of fledglings, participants with some workshop experience, or veterans who are looking for something new. Multifaceted prompts are designed to encourage writers of all levels to approach their work through varying...

Feature articles are the human side of journalism—pieces that go beyond the facts, exploring the world in a personal and compelling way. Such articles can examine virtually any topic, from the latest news to the newest trends to profiles of interesting people. And they can even grow into narrative nonfiction books. To succeed at features, you need...

Ground and grow into your creative spirit with a journaling practice. Why journal? Think of journaling as a clearing the clutter of the mind, a tilling of the soil: writing is an embodied experience that, when practiced regularly, helps us weed out and sift through all the things floating around in our squirrel-like minds in order to make space...

In this class, beginning and intermediate-level fiction students work toward building short stories and novel chapters by learning the elements of craft, which include conflict, tension, characterization, voice, setting, dialogue, and scene vs. summary.   Class sessions will be devoted to craft lessons, studying excellent published works,...