From First Word to Published

There are three key stages between having a story idea and reading the finished product in a literary journal: writing the rough draft, editing it into its best form, and submitting it to publishers.

The 3 modules in this course will walk you through each step of that process step-by-step. Each module has 8 lessons (24 lessons total across the course), consisting of a video (with a transcript version for people who prefer text-based learning) along with one or more resources or worksheets to reinforce the learning or practice the techniques discussed in the lesson.

You can watch the course introduction to learn more and get a sample of what the lessons are like:

The lessons in this course are:

Module 1: Write

• Lesson 1: Where do story ideas come from?
• Lesson 2: Short story genres
• Lesson 3: Planning, form, and plot
• Lesson 4: Core components of a short story
• Lesson 5: Beginnings
• Lesson 6: Worldbuilding and setting
• Lesson 7: Dialogue and narrative voice
• Lesson 8: Endings

Module 2: Edit

• Lesson 1: Goals of the editing process
• Lesson 2: The value of feedback
• Lesson 3: Story length and structure
• Lesson 4: Crafting and refining an arc
• Lesson 5: Common first draft issues
• Lesson 6: Identifying and solidifying themes
• Lesson 7: Editing for consistency
• Lesson 8: Language and voice edits

Module 3: Publish

• Lesson 1: Where to find journals and presses
• Lesson 2: Choosing where to submit
• Lesson 3: Submission guidelines
• Lesson 4: Cover letters and bios
• Lesson 5: FAQs and common mistakes
• Lesson 6: Submission process walk-through
• Lesson 7: Tracking submissions
• Lesson 8: What comes next?