With personalised feedback
Short Story Essentials is ideal for anyone keen to develop their fiction writing skills, enter writing competitions and build a body of work.
You will:
Learn the essentials of short form fiction
Discover 20 storytelling techniques you can use immediately
Build memorable characters with clear narratives
Write a polished 2500 word short story
Receive personalised feedback on your final piece
“Short Story Essentials is a treasure trove of information about short-form writing presented in a well-paced and entertaining manner. It’s more than nuts and bolts. It captures the essence, excitement, and joy of short story writing. By the end, you’ll be up to the challenge of penning short tales. You’ll be hooked.”
– Paul Rodriguez, Short Story Essentials graduate
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You’re invited to join Short Story Essentials SPECIAL EDITION!
Starts: 12 October 2022
This course runs for 7 weeks but you have access to the course for a full 12 months.
Why is it special? Because in addition to the comprehensive course materials, you’ll gain access to:
- 7 weeks of comprehensive instruction to show you how to improve your short story manuscript and get it ready for publication
- 2 x Live Zoom Q&A sessions with your tutor and experienced fiction editor, Cathie Tasker. Over the past 25 years, Cathie has edited and commissioned about 800 books, many of which went on to become bestsellers and win awards. She has worked with authors including Garth Nix, Jackie French, Nat Amoore, Wendy Orr, Garry Disher, Pamela Freeman, Judith Rossell, Sue Whiting and more.
These include:
- 1 x Live Zoom at the start of your course so you can plan what you need to do next for your manuscript and how to get the most out of the course. Cathie will also discuss concepts that are critical for the development of your short story. You’ll also have a chance to ask any burning questions.
- 1 x Live Zoom at week 7. This will be a great opportunity to ask any questions and discuss the application of the information contained in the course modules so that you can refine and enhance your short story. It doesn’t matter if you haven’t completed all 7 modules by this date as you’ll still have access to the course materials for a full 12 months. You’re welcome to attend the session regardless of how much of the course you’ve completed. If you can’t make the sessions, don’t worry, they’ll be recorded for you.
- One-on-one written feedback from Cathie Tasker on your short story. If you’re busy, don’t worry. You have up to 12 months from the start of the course to submit your short story.
- Private online portal only for students of this course.
Let’s cut a long story short
Short stories are the new black. Their popularity is growing among readers and publishers alike – bite-sized gems and fully-formed pieces that elicit the same emotions as their bigger siblings. In short, there has never been a better time to pen your own short story.- Have you ever struggled to finish a story?
- Are you looking for new opportunities to showcase your work?
- Just starting out on your creative writing journey?
- Want to feel the rush of entering (and winning) writing competitions?
Short stories defined
As a reader, a good short story will immediately draw you into another world. It can move and intrigue you in your lunch break or on the train. One that introduces you to compelling characters that you’ll never forget. It pulls you into a narrative for a brief period of time, but makes you want to come back for another dose. For creative writers, short stories are a fantastic tool to help you better understand plot and technique. If you have ever struggled to finish a story (whether a novel, short story or anything in between) then this shorter format is the single best way to practise and polish your writing skills. Requiring similar techniques in a more condensed form, short stories can help you understand how to get those longer projects to the finish line too. “I just read the feedback for my story and I wanted to pass on my gratitude to her for a wonderful course. I really appreciate the amount of work she put into critiquing my story and the excellent content in the modules. After taking this course I now know what makes a good short story and the importance of fully engaging in all stages of the editing process. My sincerest thanks.” Andrea Wilson, Short Story Essentials graduateWhat you’ll learn in this course
This online course focuses on helping you to write a 2500-word short story – the ideal length for entering most short story competitions (where you can win cash prizes!) or submitting to publishers of anthologies. Specifically, you’ll discover how to write stories that move, entertain and compel readers to want more. That’s the main aim of this course – to have you create a story that you can be proud of, and which could even be the basis for a future novel. This course is split into seven modules – each a milestone to complete as you work towards writing your full story. You'll discover how to:- Write your short story in the classic 3-act structure
- Write an opening that grips readers from the first line
- Build your characters, especially your protagonist, create a narrative voice, and a dialogue voice
- Use storytelling techniques that will keep readers riveted
- Identify and write about your protagonist’s journey, their setbacks and joy
- Create powerful dialogue and other aspects of style
- Keep your reader's interest with tension and good pace
- Write a climax that is both astonishing and satisfying, leaving your reader thunderstruck and wanting more
- Write an ending that really works
- Polish your story with effective editing techniques
- And much more!
- 9 hours of content – access anytime at your own pace
- 9 audio lessons plus 12 supporting handouts
- Personalised feedback on your completed short story
What you’ll get out of this course
This course has a very clear goal – to help you write your own short story that you can be proud of. One that you can enter in short story competitions and share with your friends and family. By completing all seven modules, you will have created your own short story. We give you the blueprint to structure it, teach you vital techniques so that your characters come to life, and give you the tools to bring your own ideas and creativity to the process. And of course, all of the principles you learn can be applied to longer forms of storytelling too. If you’re an emerging creative writer, then writing short stories is a wonderful springboard into longer works like novels. They’re also a great way to get publishers interested in your writing.Bonus personalised feedback
This is usually $370 but you receive it as a bonus when you enrol in this course. If you choose to submit your final assignment (your completed short story) at the end of your course, you will receive personalised feedback from creative writing tutor Nat Newman. A fantastic opportunity!Feedback on your short story provided by Nat Newman
Nat Newman is an award-winning writer who won the prestigious Commonwealth Short Story Prize for the Pacific Region with her story “The Death of Margaret Roe”. Her novella The Office of Dead Letters was published in 2022 and the sequel The Door of Inconvenience is due out in 2023. Her stories have appeared in Granta, Structo, Brittle Star, Overland and Shoreline of Infinity. Born and raised in Australia, Nat has walked across two countries, lived and worked in six, and now calls the universe her home.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q: I'm a complete beginner. Will this course suit me? A: Yes, there's no assumed prior knowledge. If you'd love to learn how to write stronger short stories, this course takes you through the process, step by step.Q: What's the difference between this course and Creative Writing Stage 1? A: Creative Writing Stage 1 gives you a solid grounding in storytelling principles, ideal for novel writing or simply dipping your toes in the fiction-writing waters. This course, Short Story Essentials, is focused purely on the art of short-form fiction. You'll discover genre-specific skills that will help you to create tightly woven, compelling short stories. You could begin with either course – whichever takes your fancy. Short Story Essentials is particularly useful if you'd like to strengthen your existing storytelling skills. After all, there's no room for error in short story writing, so it can be a beneficial way to sharpen your techniques.
Q: Will I receive feedback on my writing? A: Yes, if you complete all the modules and submit your final story, you'll receive personalised feedback on your story. It's a golden opportunity for you to cement all the techniques you've learnt in the course.- Make short work of your short story.
- Work at your own pace to learn the essentials of short story writing.
- Receive invaluable feedback about your finished piece.
- Start today!