The Foundations of Fiction

Learn how to write compelling novels, memoirs, short stories, or screenplays. Explore the fundamentals of great fiction and get practical tips to you sharpen your own writing.

1. What to Expect from This Course

• Welcome and what to expect
• How this course works

2. Foundation Block 1: Character

• Appearance (foundation)
• Mini lecture: Too much information (foundation)
• Thought (foundation)
• Action (foundation)
• Goals (foundation)
• Mini lecture: What do they want (foundation)
• Uniqueness (advanced)
• Mini lecture: Five surprises (advanced)
• Flaws (advanced)
• Mini lecture: What needs fixing (advanced)
• Change (advanced)

3. Foundation Block 2: Dialogue

• Too realistic or too fake (foundation)
• Mini lecture: A very bad conversation (foundation)
• The two types of dialogue (foundation)
• Mini lecture: Zoom in and zoom out (foundation)
• Dialogue tags (foundation)
• Characterizing dialogue (advanced)
• Mini lecture: Guess who's talking (advanced)
• Subtext (advanced)
• Dialect (advanced)

4. Foundation Block 3: Point of View

• Who is telling the the story? (foundation)
• Third person (foundation)
• Mini lecture: Two characters, one point of view (foundation)
• First person (foundation)
• Multiple first and third (advanced)
• Second person (advanced)
• Mini lecture: You should listen to me (advanced)
• Unreliable narrator (advanced)
• Mini lecture: Trust me, I'm lying (advanced)

5. Foundation Block 4: Narrative Style

• Tense (foundation)
• Show and tell (foundation)
• Mini lecture: Slow it down (foundation)
• Flashbacks (advanced)
• Mini lecture: I remember when (advanced)
• Different formats (advanced)
• Mini lecture: Not your average story (advanced)

6. Foundation Block 5: Setting

• Why we need a setting (foundation)
• Familiar settings (foundation)
• Mini lecture: Build a living room (foundation)
• Unfamiliar settings (foundation)
• Mini lecture: Instant scene (foundation)
• Mood, atmosphere, and emotion (advanced)
• Mini lecture: Singing (or crying) in the rain (advanced)
• Time period (advanced)

7. Foundation Block 6: Plot

• The story skeleton (foundation)
• Act 1: Set up (foundation)
• Act 2: Journey and conflict (foundation)
• Act 3: Resolution (foundation)
• Putting it all together (foundation)

Final Farewell

• Wrapping up