- 10 minute Quick Check-in
- 20-30 minutes of instruction/discussion on a crucial element of novel writing
- 60-80 minutes writing new scenes inspired by evocative prompts
- 20-30 minutes each participant is invited to share one of the new scenes and enjoy strength-based feedback from the instructor and fellow writers
Although generating new writing (and sharing/receiving feedback from fellow participants) are the primary activities of the workshops, much of the writing required to achieve the biweekly targets will need to be completed at home.
Participants are welcome to use their preferred writing method in class. Pen and paper or laptops are welcomed, however since we will be working together in ZOOM rooms it is important to have a stable internet signal and good audio and video available on your computer or tablet if you intend to read from material typed on the same device that the zoom room is located.
A NOTE ON USING SMALL SCREENS OR CELLPHONES: Using cellphones will require considerable patience on the part of participants and is not recommended due to the limitations of the Zoom room app.
2026 WORKSHOP DATES & CRAFT TOPICS:
*January 7
*January 14 (These first two workshops are one week apart to energize us after the holiday break!)
January 28
February 11
February 25
March 11
March 25
April 8
April 22
May 6
*May 20
*May 27(These last two workshops in May are one week apart to reenergize us as we head into summer!)
June 10
June 24
July 15
July 29
August 12
August 26
September 9
September 30
Workshop 1 – Introduction to A Novel Approach
Welcome to the safety of AWA Principles and Guidelines
Getting started
sidebar: tips for maintaining a writing practice and creative space
Workshop 2 – Employing Theme and Message to guide your writing
What do you care about?
What is your story about?
How are the two connected?
Workshop 3 – Points of View and Voice
Who is telling your story and what do they want?
sidebar: is your story a comedy or a tragedy?
Workshop 4 – Standard story telling: The Protagonist
Who is the main character and what is their dilemma?
What forces of antagonism intend to stop them?
sidebar: the antagonist believes they are the hero of the story
Workshop 5 – Standard story telling: The Three Act Structure
How reversals and revelations keep stories riveting
sidebar – Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Workshop 6 – Writing the Essential Scenes of Act One
sidebar: Applying the Heroes Journey model to best effect
Workshop 7 – The importance of Dilemma and Agency
When things become difficult, which characters take charge?
How ensuring Protagonist Agency creates empathy
Workshop 8 – Writing the Essential Scenes of Act Two
sidebar: Using Pinch Points to keep the long middle journey on track
Workshop 9 – Tracking the Emotional Journeys of key characters
sidebar: mirroring internal and external responses to stress
Workshop 10 – Writing the Essential Scenes of Act Three
sidebar: writing a riveting, believable climax
Workshop 11 – Finding Connectivity Opportunities
sidebar: Using the connectivity chart to create character intersections
Workshop 12 – Setting, Tone and Atmosphere
sidebar: improvising scene locations to keep the writing fun
Workshop 13 – When to use the Four types of Dialogue
sidebar: avoiding the trap of monologues with listeners
sidebar: the importance of beats in character echo-location
Workshop 14 – Write an off-the-cuff Epilogue
sidebar: Does the epilogue mirror the story you’re writing?
Workshop 15 – Making the best use of Show and Tell
sidebar: the role of the internalized voice
Workshop 16 – Increasing Tension in Scenes
sidebar: Keeping your protagonist moving and feeling
Workshop 17 – Strong Scene Launches
sidebar: show and tell revisited
Workshop 18 – Round & Flat Characters
Is E.M. Forster’s ‘Aspects of the Novel’ still relevant?
sidebar: investing creativity in round characters
Workshop 19 – Slowing down time to best effect
sidebar: applying Jack Grapes’ ingenious IMAGE MOMENT structure
Workshop 20 – Celebration and Next Steps
Tidying up loose ends ahead of a second draft
sidebar: maintaining momentum if you’re not quite finished
“Modernist manuals of writing often conflate story with conflict. This reductionism reflects a culture that inflates aggression and competition while cultivating ignorance of other behavioral options. No narrative of any complexity can be built on or reduced to a single element. Conflict is one kind of behavior. There are others, equally important in any human life, such as relating, finding, losing, bearing, discovering, parting, changing. Change is the universal aspect of all these sources of story. Story is something moving, something happening, something or somebody changing.”
― Ursula K. Le Guin