No genuine writer likes to cheat a reader. No reader likes to feel cheated. No one wants to reach the end of a novel and say, "Whoa-I didn't see that coming, and never could have, given what the author failed to provide." 

That's why it's essential to remain true to the elements and personalities of your narrative. But how to do so when pursuing a storyline that creates a world you (and your readers) wish to inhabit, demonstrates the points you wish to make, provides plenty of interesting surprises and suspenseful drama, and winds up with a satisfyingly believable and natural ending?

This class will open you up to following the cord of your characters' journeys into unexpected territory, sending them off in directions you had not yet thought of, widening your imaginative possibilities, and solving those painted-into-a-corner problems, all while maintaining the integrity of human truth and likelihood in your characters' behavior.

About the instructor...
 

Carol Dawson is both a novelist and nonfiction author whose books include the novels The Waking Spell, Body of Knowledge, Meeting the Minotaur, and The Mother-in-Law Diaries, all published by Algonquin Books, Simon and Schuster, Viking-Penguin, and translated overseas into several languages. Her award-winning non-fiction book House of Plenty: The Rise, Fall, and Revival of Luby's Cafeterias was published by the University of Texas Press. She has taught creative writing and literature at the College of Santa Fe, as well as in numerous workshops. Currently she is working on two historical novels, and researching her latest non-fiction book, Miles and Miles of Texas: The Story of the Texas Highway Department, 1917-2017, to be published in Fall of 2016 by Texas A&M University Press.

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About the Novel-Writing Series

This November we are offering four classes designed to help you develop a work of fiction, touching on necessary elements of story and style. Below are brief descriptions of each class. Click on the titles for more details.

Saturday, November 1, 9 am to 12 noon, at ACC Highland Campus. Learn how to "dig a hole" for your characters, figure out where and when to start your story, and study examples from literary and genre fiction that suggest what great beginnings are supposed to accomplish.

"Complex Characters to Drive Your Fiction"with Charlotte Gullick

Saturday, November 8, 9 am to 12 noon, at St. Edward's University. Delve deeply into your novel's characters to understand how their past affects their present situation. Study great examples from literature. Investigate dialogue, appearance, family, and other traits and how they contribute to overall conflict and enhance your story.

"Plot vs. Truth- Finding the Most Exciting and Suspenseful Path of Your Story" with Carol Dawson

Saturday, November 15, 9 am to 12 noon, at St. Edward's University. 

Lay out your story in a natural and believable, but also gripping, way. A significant portion of time will be spent addressing specific plot problems that students are facing with their drafts, and possible ways to fix them.

"Ending at the Beginning" with Greg Garrett 

Saturday, November 22, 9 am to 12 noon, at St. Edward's University.

Learn the role and importance of a novel's ending; consider varieties of endings, and study some powerful examples of endings in literary and popular fiction. Then start on your own ending...