magination is at the heart of fiction—yet it’s often overlooked in serious discussions of writing. There’s something elusive about it, both abstract and a little kindergarten. What is imagination, exactly? What makes for a well-imagined story? And how can we nurture our own imaginations, in order to write the fiction that is the most specific and particular to us—fiction that is original and alive? 

In this five-session generative seminar, we’ll engage in the practice of imagination. We’ll learn to cultivate and collaborate with our own imaginations. We’ll learn to write vivid fiction that invites readers to imagine alongside us. We’ll study the craft behind well-imagined fiction from concept to imagery to structure to characterization; we’ll read the work of writers who use their imaginations masterfully and apply those lessons to our own work. We’ll explore where our ideas come from, and learn tools for imagining our way out of mental blocks. Through guided in-class writing exercises, you’ll experiment with stretching yourself imaginatively, cultivate tools to exercise your own imagination, sharpen your powers of description and observation, and write with greater specificity and originality. 

At a time when the world feels especially hostile to individual imagination, we’ll consider its role as a tool of resistance and reinvention. Imagination isn’t just playful—it’s powerful. It’s anti-authoritarian. Our intact imaginations are necessary to creating new worlds, both on and off the page. Through visits from guest authors Shruti Swamy, Ruben Reyes Jr., Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, & Hilary Leichter, we’ll study how writers have used imagination to better understand and metabolize current events, and do the same in our own work. Hopefully, we’ll surprise and delight ourselves in the process. 

Register here.