Start Writing Fiction

12-week online writing course begins Monday 19 September.

Learn the foundational skills of fiction writing with an online creative writing course designed for new writers and anyone wanting to write more regularly. Over 12 weeks of inspirational teaching, exercises and assignments you will receive personalised feedback on your work and learn how to create great characters, stories and voices.

What the course covers

1. Getting started – explore exercises to release your creativity and meet your fellow students.
2. Character – getting to know your characters inside-out and how to write credible dialogue.
3. Finding the story – how finding the right structure can make even the simplest story engaging.
4. Whose story is it, and who is telling it? – how does your story change depending on the point of view?
5. Making it better – redrafting and self-editing and how to take and provide constructive criticism.
6. Beginnings and endings – how to hook a reader and subvert expectations.

By the end of the course you will:

• Be familiar with the basic elements of a short story
• Have examined some published short stories in detail
• Write a complete short story, using what you have learnt about the workings of fiction
• Know how to give and receive useful, precise feedback and revise and improve your work
• Know how to keep your own writer’s notebook and generate new ideas

Designed by the School of Literature, Drama and Creative Writing at University of East Anglia and the National Centre for Writing.

Feedback from students

‘The course exceeded my expectations in every aspect with how well-structured it was, the exercises and the feedback. I couldn’t have asked for anything more!’ — Rebecca Lewis Smith

‘My output has improved a thousand-fold in both content and quality.’

‘The course had a therapeutic effect. I gained a sense of freedom from getting lost in the characterisations and dramas of my stories.’ — Sarah Barton

‘I have learned a huge amount on this course. I feel I have leapt ahead in my knowledge of writing and what I am capable of writing at the moment.’ — Eleanor Beck

‘I’ve taken away a much greater confidence in my creative work, an ability to be much more flexible but also decisive with my writing ideas and have learned many new writing techniques and ways of working.’ — Maddie Northern

This course is intended for writers aged 18+. If you’re looking for courses suitable for younger writers, check out these online workshops!

Browse all online courses →

About the tutors

There are two tutors to choose from for this course.

Ashley Hickson-Lovence is a writer and educator from Hackney, currently based in Norwich. While working as a secondary school English teacher, he completed his MA in Creative Writing and Publishing and is currently completing his PhD in Creative and Critical Writing at the University of East Anglia.  His debut novel  The 392, set almost entirely on a London bus over just 36 minutes, was released with OWN IT! in April 2019. His second novel Your Show was released with Faber in Spring 2022.

Yan Ge was born in Sichuan, China in 1984. She is a fiction writer in both Chinese and English, and is the author of thirteen books in Chinese, including five novels. She has received numerous awards and was named by People’s Literature magazine as one of twenty future literature masters in China. Her work has been translated into eleven languages, including English, French and German. The English translation of her latest novel The Chilli Bean Paste Clan was published in 2018. Another translated novel, Strange Beasts of China, was published in 2020/2021; both won English PEN Translates Awards. She was on the judging panel of the International Dublin Literary Award 2019. In 2021, she was on the final selection panel for the Laureate for Irish Fiction.

Yan’s English writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Irish Times, TLS, the Stinging Fly and elsewhere. She has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia where she was the recipient of the UEA International Award 2018/19. Her English language debut short story collection Elsewhere will be published by Faber in the UK and Scribner in the USA in spring 2023, followed by a novel Hotel Destination. Yan lives in Norwich with her husband and son.

How it works

All you need is a computer and an internet connection. You can find out more about the requirements here.

The course is divided into six modules, each of which introduces an aspect of the craft of writing fiction. Your knowledge will be developed through writing exercises, the analysis of samples of writing and discussion with your tutor and fellow students.

The modules are posted fortnightly. Every two weeks you will submit an assignment to your tutor, who will then respond with constructive feedback and advice.

There are two live Zoom sessions during this course — dates to be announced.

Module assignments are between 500 and 1,000 words. Your tutor will give you written feedback on every assignment you submit, but only the third and final assignments will be assessed for your Certificate of Completion.

Click here to find out more about how our courses work and whether they’re right for you!

This is a practical and engaging course with direct, expert tutor feedback.

Designed by the University of East Anglia and the National Centre for Writing.