Short and Sweet: Structure in Short Nonfiction (Tod Olson)

Description:

Everyone has a great personal story to tell, but how do you tell it well? What’s the heart of the story? What makes a good lead? A good ending? What’s the through-line? We’ll discuss some general principles, then take apart a couple of short narrative essays (yes, a little bit of pre-reading) to see how they work. Bring your own work in progress—a short essay, a chapter of a memoir, or just the germ of an idea. During the second half of class we’ll apply what we’ve talked about to your work.

 Instructor Bio:

Tod Olson is author of award-winning narrative nonfiction for middle-grade and young adult readers, including Into the Clouds: The Race to Climb the World’s Most Dangerous Mountain, the narrative nonfiction series LOST, and the historical fiction series How to Get Rich. He has traveled the country to report on the school shooting at Columbine, the murder of Matthew Shepard, drunk driving accidents, homeless kids, and other only slightly more uplifting topics. He has 30 years of experience as an editor and book developer for the education and school/library markets, and as a writer for Scholastic’s classroom magazines. He holds an MFA from Vermont College of the Fine Arts.