Creative Writing

Short Fiction & Flash Fiction

Write short fiction that editors can't put down

12 lessons4 modules9h 0m durationbeginner level

Instructor: StretchLearn Faculty

About this course

Learn the structural and line-level craft that makes short fiction land in 500 to 6,000 words, from the controlling image to the turn. You will draft, cut, and revise complete pieces using techniques drawn from working writers and editors. Finally, you will research markets, format submissions to Shunn standard, and build a tracking system that turns scattered attempts into a publishing pipeline.

Curriculum

Module 1: The Shape of a Short Story3 lessons

Why Short Fiction Is Its Own FormPreview45m
Inciting Incident, Turn, and Resonant Ending🔒45m
Mapping Your First Story🔒45m

Module 2: Compression and the Art of Flash3 lessons

Scene Versus Summary🔒45m
Flash Fiction Forms and Constraints🔒45m
The Controlling Image and White Space🔒45m

Module 3: Voice, Openings, and Endings at the Line Level3 lessons

Point of View and Psychic Distance🔒45m
Openings That Earn the Next Sentence🔒45m
Last Lines and the Resonant Close🔒45m

Module 4: Revision and Getting Published3 lessons

Diagnostic Revision Passes🔒45m
Finding and Ranking Markets🔒45m
Formatting, Submitting, and Tracking🔒45m