Welcome!

Welcome to English 407: Advanced Fiction Writing!

If you're reading this page you are enrolled (or have been invited to participate in) this advanced fiction short story course at Boise State University.

I'm Cynthia Hand, the instructor for the course. See the Professor page for more information about me and how you can get in contact with me throughout the semester.

Also, please take a minute RIGHT NOW to subscribe to this page, so that you will receive notice whenever I post anything you need to know. Just put your preferred email in the Follow By Email section in the column on your right.

Then take a minute to purchase your books, if you haven't already (they should be available at the BSU bookstore), which you can do by clicking on the books on the Required Reading list at the column on your right.

So, a little basic information about the course. In this class we will:

• Write. In the next fifteen weeks you'll write and workshop two literary short stories, the goal being that at the end of the course you will have revised one of these stories to be good enough to submit to a literary journal. We'll also do a myriad of writing exercises along the way.

• Read. A lot. At the end of this class you'll have read 16 published short stories, a book of the craft of the short story, and 28 unpublished stories written by your peers. Your eyes will be tired.

• Learn the ins and outs of publishing across the different genres, but focused especially on literary fiction. Nearly every week we will discuss a different topic that's related to publishing and/or the advancement of a writer's career. 

• Talk to the pros. We'll get to chat with the managing editor of a literary journal, a literary agent, and a real-live Big Four publishing house editor. Come with questions.

• Discuss a writer's education in its many forms: MFAs, crit groups, conferences, mentors, and good books and references for self study. 

• Learn what literary journals are, how they work, and why that's important. We will study all kinds of different literary journals, and you will research them yourself and pick one to submit to at the end of the semester.

• Actually try to get published. Yep, that's right. When your portfolio is due at the end of the semester, you'll bring your polished-up short story in, along with your submission letter and a SASE to be MAILED OFF to a journal after it's graded.

Eager to get started?  Check out the Syllabus for more information.

See you in class! Be sure to bring some paper and something to write with, because oh, yeah, we'll be writing on the first day.