Piecing together your Novella-in-Flash
Do you love to write flash? Do you write flash pieces that interconnect to form a larger story? The Novella-in-Flash is a magical thing, merging the speed and intensity of flash pieces with the depth and complexity a novella allows. In this online course, we’ll meet fortnightly to talk about how flash functions as a standalone form, and how juxtaposition and ‘stepping stones’ weave your flash pieces together to form a larger narrative. This course takes place over six sessions on Zoom on Friday evenings: by the end, you’ll have crafted a polished Novella-in-Flash which will automatically enter the running to be published as an Inkfish Press chapbook. Each workshop session will consist of in-class exercises, periods of discussion and analysis, and time for sharing the work we’re writing. Simple homework assignments along the way will help you develop your story.
During this course, you will discover:
- How flash functions as a standalone form.
- How to craft subtle links between flash pieces.
- Great examples of novellas and memoirs-in-flash.
- Techniques for strengthening your short work.
- The exciting market for this magical form.
What is a Novella-in-Flash?
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- How do we define a Novella-in-Flash?
- Fiction and creative non-fiction examples.
- Choosing the right story for your novella.
Flash Character, Novella Character
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- How to convey character in under-800 words.
- Creating ‘link characters’ for your novella.
- Whose story is this? Find your POV & voice.
Emotional Threads
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- Creating intense emotional effects.
- Making your turns impact the reader.
- Using emotion as a structuring device.
White Space, Spirals & Explosions
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- How space on the page enhances flash.
- Making the most of spaces between ‘chapters’.
- Working turns into the larger story arc.
Voices in Flash
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- Creating distinctive voice for flash.
- Good dialogue strategies for very short fiction.
- Dialogue, conflict and character.
Editing for Publication
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- How to shape your novella for publication.
- What to look for when editing your work.
- The publishing market for Novella-in-Flash.
Kate Horsley has a BA from Oxford and a PhD From Harvard University and has lectured at Harvard, Lancaster, Chester and Hull universities. Her first novel, The Monster’s Wife, was shortlisted for the Scottish First Book of the Year Award. A subsequent novel, The American Girl, was published by William Morrow (US) and Harper Collins (UK) and translated into Korean by Tomato Publishing – both books have been optioned for film and television.