By application only.
Calendar:
Class meets on selected Mondays from 6 – 8 PM at WriterHouse.**
2025: October 20, November 3, November 17, December 1, December 15
2026: January 12, January 26, February 9, February 23, March 9, March 16, April 13, April 27, May 11, May 18, June 8, July 13, August 17, September 14, September 28, October 19
**Instructor reserves the right to change dates as needed, with student input, due to unforeseen circumstances
Class Description:
Writing a novel can be a long and sometimes mysterious process … but you don’t have to do it alone. With this class, you’ll join a group of other aspiring authors on a year-long journey to help you increase your productivity and hone your craft as you write and revise your work.
The class will meet in person regularly over the course of a year, for a total of approximately 20 sessions. (Most meetings will be in person although we may schedule occasional meetings on Zoom.) During this time, the instructor and class will offer you feedback on two submissions of fifty pages each. You will also get a series of lessons on the fundamentals of writing, including creating characters, pacing your story, revising your work, and more.
Students are encouraged to already have a manuscript of at least 20,000 words, with a focus on moving forward in their work and revising as needed. In addition to having a support network as they write, students will complete exercises to help deepen their understanding of their work-in-progress and get the chance to ask questions about challenges they face in their work. They’ll also have the opportunity to meet with the instructor one-on-one twice during the year to talk more in-depth about their novels.
Finally, we will look at selections from classic novel writing how-to guides, including This Year You Write Your Novel by Walter Mosley, Spider, Spider, Spin Me a Web by Lawrence Block, Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott, and more.
Application Guidelines:
Prospective students are asked to submit a writing sample of up to 20 pages double-spaced or 6,000 words. Identifiers on pages are ok. Writers may submit work in any genre of fiction, with all levels welcome to apply. Admissions will be made on a rolling basis until the class reaches a maximum of 10 students, with all decisions made by October 6th. Please note, this program is for novelists who are prepared to make a strong commitment to their work; students will be expected to participate in the entire program. Submission deadline is September 25th. Send your writing sample to programs@writerhouse.org.
Tuition and Fees
A nonrefundable deposit is due at the time of application, payable by check ($100) or online (with credit card fees, $103). The deposit will be applied to the cost of tuition for students who are accepted to this program. If you are paying by check, email programs@writerhouse.org to let us know the check is in the mail.
Tuition is $1,379 payable by check, or you may pay online with a credit card for an additional fee (assessed by the card company) of $40 for a total of $1,419. If paying by check, you must email programs@writerhouse.org to let us know the check is coming. Quarterly payment plans will be available for students who are accepted to the class. Email programs@writerhouse.org to learn more about payment plans. Upon acceptance, the balance of the tuition or the first installment payment will be due within a week to hold your space.
About the Instructor:
Adam Meyer is the author of the novel The Last Domino (Putnam), an ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, and the Derringer award-winning novella Two Shrimp Tacos and a .22 Ruger among other works. His short fiction has been nominated for the Shamus Award and appeared in Best American Mystery Stories 2024, and he’s edited the short story anthologies Hollywood Kills and In Too Deep. He’s also written more than two hundred hours of television for Discovery, National Geographic, Lifetime and PBS, including the Emmy Award-winning PBS series Made With Love.
