The Gripping Read: Plot and Suspense for Fiction and Nonfiction

(EGL 319 W)

In this course, students will focus on how to write the kind of gripping novels and stories they’ve loved to read their whole lives. Regardless of whether it’s a mystery, creative nonfiction book, a memoir, novel or collection of short stories, one thing always applies: the need to keep readers engaged and eager to keep turning pages. Using a combination of exercises for writing effective dialogue, visual scenes, fast-paced action, and suspense, we will learn how to write the clean, taut prose that readers won’t want to put down. During the second half of the course, students will workshop their own stories and novel excerpts to get valuable feedback from the instructor and from their peers. Students will also learn how to build their own online author platform using social media and serialization— just like the old-time pulps and radio serials!

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Seth Harwood, Lecturer in Continuing Studies

Seth Harwood received an MFA in fiction from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. He has taught creative writing at the University of Iowa, UMass Boston, and the City College of San Francisco, and his fiction has appeared in more than a dozen literary and crime/noir journals. His first novel, Jack Wakes Up, which he first serialized as a free audiobook, was published by Three Rivers Press (Random House) and reached #1 in Crime/Mystery and #45 overall in books on Amazon.com on the first day of its print release.