Writing Workshops

Eight Ways of Looking at a Plot: Embracing Story and Genre with Andy Kifer

$545

8 Sessions

Out of stock

Once a week Wednesdays, 6:00 pm EDT - 8:00 pm EDT January 8 to March 5, 2025

The Center for Fiction

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For some writers, “plot” is a dirty word, reserved for novels meant to entertain but not inspire. In this class, we’ll instead embrace plot, plot theory, genre, genre conventions, and even the vicissitudes of the publishing market as productive constraints that can lead to real art. Plot is one of the least-taught (though most important) elements of fiction. Even if you don’t plan to write a tightly-plotted thriller, taking a step back to look at your own creative process through a top-down rather than a bottom-up lens can be a useful exercise.

In the first part of the class, students will be invited to experiment with starting where the writing process usually ends: the manuscript pitch. We’ll then explore what that pitch implies about each work’s plot and genre, before finally arriving where most writers usually start: with sentences on the page.

In the second part of the class, students—now armed with the germ of a novel idea—will be exposed to a variety of approaches to plot and plot theory, from the classical (Aristotle) up to the contemporary (the idea of the “Trauma Plot”) and everything in between. Along the way, we’ll especially focus on the work of Robert McKee, an author best known in screenwriting circles whose insights provide indispensable tools for novelists as well.

Each week, students will be invited to explore individual approaches to plot through written assignments that we’ll read and discuss the following week in class. This course is designed for writers who have wanted to break ground on a novel but have never known how; for writers who typically make decisions by the seat of their pants but are open to plotting as a useful exercise; and for writers stuck in the middle of a project who need to think about their creative process in a new way.

Course Outline

Week One: The Pitch
Week Two: The Premise
Week Three: Classical Plot
Week Four: The Hero’s Journey
Week Five: The “Turn”
Week Six: The Trauma Plot
Week Seven: The Opposite of the Opposite
Week Eight: Seat-of-The-Pant

This course is held in person at The Center for Fiction. There is no meeting on January 15th.

Led by

Andy Kifer

Andy Kifer

A former literary agent, Andy Kifer is an independent book editor who has worked with New York Times-bestselling novelists and award-winning journalists. He has worked as an international literary scout, a literary agent, as a commissioning editor of original content for Audible, served as a juror for literary fellowships, given lectures to college classes on the intersection of craft and commerce, and has been on faculty at writers conferences across the country. He has written for the New York Times, Smithsonian magazine, Publishers Weekly, Sotheby’s, and LitHub.

About this series

Writing Workshops

We strive to make our classes the most inviting and rewarding available, offering an intimate environment to study with award-winning, world-class writers. Each class is specially designed by the instructor, so whether you’re a fledgling writer or an MFA graduate polishing your novel, you’ll find a perfect fit here.

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