The opening of a novel or short story is a promise: it establishes tone, rhythm, atmosphere, voice, and narrative urgency. In Opening Movements, students will study the first pages of literature through the lens of classical music, examining how composers and authors alike create momentum, tension, anticipation, and emotional resonance from the very first note or sentence.
Exploring essential elements of the art of fiction, like character, voice, and prose style, we’ll develop the building blocks of a theory and practice of how to move one’s readers. We’ll bring our own work to the table to figure out how the emotions therein can be made more real—part of the reader’s own inner life.
Aurora Leigh (1856) was one of the first books to track a woman’s development as an artist, and was an inspiration to Virginia Woolf, Emily Dickinson, Susan B. Anthony, and George Eliot. We will read Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s greatest work together and think about what holds women back and what propels them forward.
This weekend workshop for writers at all levels will help you create new fiction or make progress on a project. You’ll receive generative writing prompts and a primer on craft fundamentals to give you a jolt of insight and inspiration so you can create your best work.
This reading group is not a political seminar but a literary reckoning. Faulkner’s South is a template: we will read him closely—his sentences, his structure, and his radical formal choices—as a way of understanding what Trump’s America is, and has always been.
This weekend workshop for writers at all levels will help you create new fiction or make progress on a project. You’ll receive generative writing prompts and a primer on craft fundamentals to give you a jolt of insight and inspiration so you can create your best work.
Published a century ago, Franz Kafka’s The Castle has a lot to say to readers now—about bureaucracy as theater, but also about the deceptions of desire: when and how can we know what we really want? In this comic, unsettling, and superbly strange novel, a land surveyor’s attempt to do his job widens into an impossible quest for clarity and truth.
This course will enable you to write your authentic and vulnerable self—whether in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry—to create truly unique writing. Through independent writing that surprises one on the page, participants will learn the art of freewriting to open themselves up emotionally.
How did this surprising debut achieve its longevity and set Ellison on a literary trajectory unparalleled at the time for a writer of color?
Don’t miss acclaimed author Valeria Luiselli ( Lost Children Archive , The Story of My Teeth ) when she visits...
Explore three landmark novels that chronicle midlife escapes centered on transgression and pose serious questions about the...
The opening of a novel or short story is a promise: it establishes tone, rhythm, atmosphere, voice, and narrative urgency. In Opening Movements, students will study the first pages of literature through the lens of classical music, examining how composers and authors alike create momentum, tension, anticipation, and emotional resonance from the very first note or sentence.
Join us as we unpack the nuances of Forster’s lyrical prose and explore the social tensions that intersected with love and romance in early-20th-century England. This group explores three of his unabashed love stories: Where Angels Fear to Tread (1905), A Room With a View (1908), and Maurice (1971).
Enter the world of Black children’s fiction, written by literary luminaries past and present. Together, we’ll explore this significant and longstanding form of expression of Black writers, reading historic, formerly out-of-print, and award-winning children’s novels from the 1960s and 1970s.
Exploring essential elements of the art of fiction, like character, voice, and prose style, we’ll develop the building blocks of a theory and practice of how to move one’s readers. We’ll bring our own work to the table to figure out how the emotions therein can be made more real—part of the reader’s own inner life.
Aurora Leigh (1856) was one of the first books to track a woman’s development as an artist, and was an inspiration to Virginia Woolf, Emily Dickinson, Susan B. Anthony, and George Eliot. We will read Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s greatest work together and think about what holds women back and what propels them forward.
Lilith’s Brood, or the Xenogenesis trilogy, is an Octavia E. Butler masterwork: weird, wild, dangerous, compelling, and philosophically potent. It presents a view of humanity at once pessimistic and hopeful, and through its exploration of alien intervention at a time of apocalypse, we can see parallels to our current dangerous trajectory as a species.
This course will enable you to write your authentic and vulnerable self—whether in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry—to create truly unique writing. Through independent writing that surprises one on the page, participants will learn the art of freewriting to open themselves up emotionally.
How did this surprising debut achieve its longevity and set Ellison on a literary trajectory unparalleled at the time for a writer of color?
The opening of a novel or short story is a promise: it establishes tone, rhythm, atmosphere, voice, and narrative urgency. In Opening Movements, students will study the first pages of literature through the lens of classical music, examining how composers and authors alike create momentum, tension, anticipation, and emotional resonance from the very first note or sentence.
Exploring essential elements of the art of fiction, like character, voice, and prose style, we’ll develop the building blocks of a theory and practice of how to move one’s readers. We’ll bring our own work to the table to figure out how the emotions therein can be made more real—part of the reader’s own inner life.
Aurora Leigh (1856) was one of the first books to track a woman’s development as an artist, and was an inspiration to Virginia Woolf, Emily Dickinson, Susan B. Anthony, and George Eliot. We will read Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s greatest work together and think about what holds women back and what propels them forward.
In “The Hofmann Wobble,” Ben Lerner explores the slippage between life and art—as well as truth and fiction—with an eye toward the construction of digital avatars and facts alike. This course will navigate possibilities for human-machine hybridity while investigating the ethics and efficacy of large language model (LLM) usage in art.
The opening of a novel or short story is a promise: it establishes tone, rhythm, atmosphere, voice, and narrative urgency. In Opening Movements, students will study the first pages of literature through the lens of classical music, examining how composers and authors alike create momentum, tension, anticipation, and emotional resonance from the very first note or sentence.
Enter the world of Black children’s fiction, written by literary luminaries past and present. Together, we’ll explore this significant and longstanding form of expression of Black writers, reading historic, formerly out-of-print, and award-winning children’s novels from the 1960s and 1970s.
Join us as we unpack the nuances of Forster’s lyrical prose and explore the social tensions that intersected with love and romance in early-20th-century England. This group explores three of his unabashed love stories: Where Angels Fear to Tread (1905), A Room With a View (1908), and Maurice (1971).
This reading group is not a political seminar but a literary reckoning. Faulkner’s South is a template: we will read him closely—his sentences, his structure, and his radical formal choices—as a way of understanding what Trump’s America is, and has always been.
De’Shawn Charles Winslow will be joined in conversation by Samantha Hunt to discuss his compelling new novel, The Fervent Whites. They will discuss their shared fascination with small towns, family secrets, and the long-simmering tensions that can underlie communities and push inhabitants to the limits of civility.
Published a century ago, Franz Kafka’s The Castle has a lot to say to readers now—about bureaucracy as theater, but also about the deceptions of desire: when and how can we know what we really want? In this comic, unsettling, and superbly strange novel, a land surveyor’s attempt to do his job widens into an impossible quest for clarity and truth.
Delve into this thematically rich, formally daring portrait of adolescence, alienation, and violence as a teenage girl moves...
How did this surprising debut achieve its longevity and set Ellison on a literary trajectory unparalleled at the time for a writer of color?
The opening of a novel or short story is a promise: it establishes tone, rhythm, atmosphere, voice, and narrative urgency. In Opening Movements, students will study the first pages of literature through the lens of classical music, examining how composers and authors alike create momentum, tension, anticipation, and emotional resonance from the very first note or sentence.
This reading group is not a political seminar but a literary reckoning. Faulkner’s South is a template: we will read him closely—his sentences, his structure, and his radical formal choices—as a way of understanding what Trump’s America is, and has always been.
Lilith’s Brood, or the Xenogenesis trilogy, is an Octavia E. Butler masterwork: weird, wild, dangerous, compelling, and philosophically potent. It presents a view of humanity at once pessimistic and hopeful, and through its exploration of alien intervention at a time of apocalypse, we can see parallels to our current dangerous trajectory as a species.
Published a century ago, Franz Kafka’s The Castle has a lot to say to readers now—about bureaucracy as theater, but also about the deceptions of desire: when and how can we know what we really want? In this comic, unsettling, and superbly strange novel, a land surveyor’s attempt to do his job widens into an impossible quest for clarity and truth.
This six-week generative course will consist of weekly craft discussions, lively analyses of short stories and novel excerpts, and hour-long workshops in which 2-3 writers will share 5-10 pages each week. The course encourages writers to think critically about desire as fuel for both plot and characterization.
The Nightlighters is a free, in-person reading group for members of The Center for Fiction. Led by Leah Bronstein, our Bookstore’s Inventory Manager, The Nightlighters read and discuss a wide variety of contemporary fiction.
This course will enable you to write your authentic and vulnerable self—whether in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry—to create truly unique writing. Through independent writing that surprises one on the page, participants will learn the art of freewriting to open themselves up emotionally.
This writing workshop uses the bite-sized, tactile nature of 3×5 notecards—famously used by Nabokov—to break down the arduous process of novel writing into manageable pieces. Participants will engage in generative writing, lectures, and workshops to gain greater clarity and momentum in their novel-in-progress.
Exploring essential elements of the art of fiction, like character, voice, and prose style, we’ll develop the building blocks of a theory and practice of how to move one’s readers. We’ll bring our own work to the table to figure out how the emotions therein can be made more real—part of the reader’s own inner life.
The opening of a novel or short story is a promise: it establishes tone, rhythm, atmosphere, voice, and narrative urgency. In Opening Movements, students will study the first pages of literature through the lens of classical music, examining how composers and authors alike create momentum, tension, anticipation, and emotional resonance from the very first note or sentence.
Her 1950 short story “The Summer People” is a masterpiece that turns the simple tale of a middle-aged couple renting a summer home in small-town Vermont into a slow-cooking nightmare. Our group will trace Jackson’s layered narrative skills—how she makes her readers look over their shoulders and invites them to reflect on class and regional tensions, all in one sentence.
In his story, two Americans encounter mysterious events while Mussolini and the fascists are in power. The story is remarkable for the parallels that can be drawn between Faulkner’s native Mississippi in the 1920s and fascist Italy, and it has much to say about the grip of fascism on two seemingly different cultures.
Exploring essential elements of the art of fiction, like character, voice, and prose style, we’ll develop the building blocks of a theory and practice of how to move one’s readers. We’ll bring our own work to the table to figure out how the emotions therein can be made more real—part of the reader’s own inner life.
Aurora Leigh (1856) was one of the first books to track a woman’s development as an artist, and was an inspiration to Virginia Woolf, Emily Dickinson, Susan B. Anthony, and George Eliot. We will read Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s greatest work together and think about what holds women back and what propels them forward.
In this 90-minute craft workshop, author Sarah L. Kaufman will guide participants through the artistic and poetic powers of verbs, drawing from her new book, Verb Your Enthusiasm. You’ll discover how precise, dynamic verbs bring stories to life, with examples from great literature and nonfiction works.
Explore three landmark novels that chronicle midlife escapes centered on transgression and pose serious questions about the...
Enter the world of Black children’s fiction, written by literary luminaries past and present. Together, we’ll explore this significant and longstanding form of expression of Black writers, reading historic, formerly out-of-print, and award-winning children’s novels from the 1960s and 1970s.
This six-week generative course will consist of weekly craft discussions, lively analyses of short stories and novel excerpts, and hour-long workshops in which 2-3 writers will share 5-10 pages each week. The course encourages writers to think critically about desire as fuel for both plot and characterization.
A vivid, macabre story—and a perfect introduction to Singer’s work—this tale plunges into the world of Eastern European...
This course will enable you to write your authentic and vulnerable self—whether in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry—to create truly unique writing. Through independent writing that surprises one on the page, participants will learn the art of freewriting to open themselves up emotionally.
This writing workshop uses the bite-sized, tactile nature of 3×5 notecards—famously used by Nabokov—to break down the arduous process of novel writing into manageable pieces. Participants will engage in generative writing, lectures, and workshops to gain greater clarity and momentum in their novel-in-progress.
How did this surprising debut achieve its longevity and set Ellison on a literary trajectory unparalleled at the time for a writer of color?
The opening of a novel or short story is a promise: it establishes tone, rhythm, atmosphere, voice, and narrative urgency. In Opening Movements, students will study the first pages of literature through the lens of classical music, examining how composers and authors alike create momentum, tension, anticipation, and emotional resonance from the very first note or sentence.
This reading group is not a political seminar but a literary reckoning. Faulkner’s South is a template: we will read him closely—his sentences, his structure, and his radical formal choices—as a way of understanding what Trump’s America is, and has always been.
Lilith’s Brood, or the Xenogenesis trilogy, is an Octavia E. Butler masterwork: weird, wild, dangerous, compelling, and philosophically potent. It presents a view of humanity at once pessimistic and hopeful, and through its exploration of alien intervention at a time of apocalypse, we can see parallels to our current dangerous trajectory as a species.
Join writer Mai Sennaar for a conversational, dynamic writing workshop that examines how writers such as Zora Neale Hurston, Jhumpa Lahiri, and Sandra Cisneros leverage the concept of community—local, global, cultural, spiritual—in their storytelling to shape literary forms, voice, and structure.
Published a century ago, Franz Kafka’s The Castle has a lot to say to readers now—about bureaucracy as theater, but also about the deceptions of desire: when and how can we know what we really want? In this comic, unsettling, and superbly strange novel, a land surveyor’s attempt to do his job widens into an impossible quest for clarity and truth.
Exploring essential elements of the art of fiction, like character, voice, and prose style, we’ll develop the building blocks of a theory and practice of how to move one’s readers. We’ll bring our own work to the table to figure out how the emotions therein can be made more real—part of the reader’s own inner life.
Aurora Leigh (1856) was one of the first books to track a woman’s development as an artist, and was an inspiration to Virginia Woolf, Emily Dickinson, Susan B. Anthony, and George Eliot. We will read Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s greatest work together and think about what holds women back and what propels them forward.
This weekend workshop for writers at all levels will help you create new fiction or make progress on a project. You’ll receive generative writing prompts and a primer on craft fundamentals to give you a jolt of insight and inspiration so you can create your best work.
Join us as we unpack the nuances of Forster’s lyrical prose and explore the social tensions that intersected with love and romance in early-20th-century England. This group explores three of his unabashed love stories: Where Angels Fear to Tread (1905), A Room With a View (1908), and Maurice (1971).
This six-week generative course will consist of weekly craft discussions, lively analyses of short stories and novel excerpts, and hour-long workshops in which 2-3 writers will share 5-10 pages each week. The course encourages writers to think critically about desire as fuel for both plot and characterization.
This weekend workshop for writers at all levels will help you create new fiction or make progress on a project. You’ll receive generative writing prompts and a primer on craft fundamentals to give you a jolt of insight and inspiration so you can create your best work.
This course will enable you to write your authentic and vulnerable self—whether in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry—to create truly unique writing. Through independent writing that surprises one on the page, participants will learn the art of freewriting to open themselves up emotionally.
This writing workshop uses the bite-sized, tactile nature of 3×5 notecards—famously used by Nabokov—to break down the arduous process of novel writing into manageable pieces. Participants will engage in generative writing, lectures, and workshops to gain greater clarity and momentum in their novel-in-progress.
How did this surprising debut achieve its longevity and set Ellison on a literary trajectory unparalleled at the time for a writer of color?
Don’t miss acclaimed author Valeria Luiselli ( Lost Children Archive , The Story of My Teeth ) when she visits...
The opening of a novel or short story is a promise: it establishes tone, rhythm, atmosphere, voice, and narrative urgency. In Opening Movements, students will study the first pages of literature through the lens of classical music, examining how composers and authors alike create momentum, tension, anticipation, and emotional resonance from the very first note or sentence.
Explore three landmark novels that chronicle midlife escapes centered on transgression and pose serious questions about the...
Join writer Mai Sennaar for a conversational, dynamic writing workshop that examines how writers such as Zora Neale Hurston, Jhumpa Lahiri, and Sandra Cisneros leverage the concept of community—local, global, cultural, spiritual—in their storytelling to shape literary forms, voice, and structure.
Exploring essential elements of the art of fiction, like character, voice, and prose style, we’ll develop the building blocks of a theory and practice of how to move one’s readers. We’ll bring our own work to the table to figure out how the emotions therein can be made more real—part of the reader’s own inner life.
Aurora Leigh (1856) was one of the first books to track a woman’s development as an artist, and was an inspiration to Virginia Woolf, Emily Dickinson, Susan B. Anthony, and George Eliot. We will read Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s greatest work together and think about what holds women back and what propels them forward.
Explore three landmark novels that chronicle midlife escapes centered on transgression and pose serious questions about the...
Join the Brooklyn Caribbean Literary Festival and The Center for Fiction for a keynote conversation with Booker Prize-winning novelist Marlon James on The Disappearers with Mary Karr.
Enter the world of Black children’s fiction, written by literary luminaries past and present. Together, we’ll explore this significant and longstanding form of expression of Black writers, reading historic, formerly out-of-print, and award-winning children’s novels from the 1960s and 1970s.
We are pleased to welcome celebrated writer Edwidge Danticat back to The Center for Fiction for the launch of her new novel...
Exploring essential elements of the art of fiction, like character, voice, and prose style, we’ll develop the building blocks of a theory and practice of how to move one’s readers. We’ll bring our own work to the table to figure out how the emotions therein can be made more real—part of the reader’s own inner life.
Aurora Leigh (1856) was one of the first books to track a woman’s development as an artist, and was an inspiration to Virginia Woolf, Emily Dickinson, Susan B. Anthony, and George Eliot. We will read Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s greatest work together and think about what holds women back and what propels them forward.
This weekend workshop for writers at all levels will help you create new fiction or make progress on a project. You’ll receive generative writing prompts and a primer on craft fundamentals to give you a jolt of insight and inspiration so you can create your best work.
This reading group is not a political seminar but a literary reckoning. Faulkner’s South is a template: we will read him closely—his sentences, his structure, and his radical formal choices—as a way of understanding what Trump’s America is, and has always been.
This weekend workshop for writers at all levels will help you create new fiction or make progress on a project. You’ll receive generative writing prompts and a primer on craft fundamentals to give you a jolt of insight and inspiration so you can create your best work.
Published a century ago, Franz Kafka’s The Castle has a lot to say to readers now—about bureaucracy as theater, but also about the deceptions of desire: when and how can we know what we really want? In this comic, unsettling, and superbly strange novel, a land surveyor’s attempt to do his job widens into an impossible quest for clarity and truth.
This course will enable you to write your authentic and vulnerable self—whether in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry—to create truly unique writing. Through independent writing that surprises one on the page, participants will learn the art of freewriting to open themselves up emotionally.
How did this surprising debut achieve its longevity and set Ellison on a literary trajectory unparalleled at the time for a writer of color?
Don’t miss acclaimed author Valeria Luiselli ( Lost Children Archive , The Story of My Teeth ) when she visits...
Explore three landmark novels that chronicle midlife escapes centered on transgression and pose serious questions about the...