Start Writing Your Novel

Description

Course dates: October 28, 2025 – December 16, 2025
Time: Tuesdays 7pm GMT
Frequency: weekly lessons, 90 minutes per lesson
Duration: 8 weeks
Suitable for: beginner/intermediate writers

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Have you always wanted to write a novel, but feel daunted by the prospect of getting started?

Do you have an idea (or maybe several) but you have no idea how to actually start writing your novel?

This eight week course will guide you through the process of starting, from testing your ideas to understanding how (and whether!) to plot it all out. Your tutors, who between them have published fourteen novels, will share their processes, tools that help them to get started, and troubleshooting tips for when you feel stuck (because all of us, at some point, feel stuck).

Ask questions, give and receive feedback, and be ready to dive into 2026 with a novel you feel confident you can finish.

By the end of the ‘Start Writing Your Novel’ course you will have tested your idea/s, know where to start and where your story is going, and be connected to a writing community who will cheer you on every step of the way!

Course details

Week one (Oct 28): Whose story is it anyway? – LIVE

• Characters: what makes them compelling, and how to get to know them inside out.

Week two (Nov 4): Building plot from character – LIVE

• How strong characterisation will help you to build your plot.
• First workshop session based on last week’s work.

Week three (Nov 11): Testing your ideas – LIVE

• Where do ideas come from?
• Test your idea to make sure it’s strong enough for a whole novel by applying the ‘two things test’.

Week four (Nov 18): Opening your novel – LIVE

• Starting your novel with a bang, using techniques to draw your readers in.
• Analyse some of the best openings in fiction.

Week five (Nov 25):  Inciting incidents – LIVE

• What is the event that kick-starts your story?
• Why does it matter?

Week six (Dec 2): Edit your novel’s opening – SELF-LED

• Take this week at your own pace with a pre-recorded video lesson, worksheets and homework.
• Using what you’ve learned so far, you will edit the opening of your novel and double-check your characters’ motivations.
• Upload your work for review by peers.

Week seven (Dec 9): Edit your novel’s inciting incident – SELF-LED

• Take this week at your own pace with a pre-recorded video lesson, homework and worksheets.
• You will edit your inciting incident, and write any scenes to get from your opening to this point.
• Upload your work for review by peers.

Week eight (Dec 16): Blurbs – LIVE

• We round the course off by writing a blurb for your novel, making sure you understand how to get a ‘god’s-eye’ view of your story.
• Final Q&A session with your tutors.