Discover the mechanics and strategies for creating contemporary short stories with author Julie Koh.

"Short stories are tiny windows into other worlds and other minds and other dreams. They’re journeys you can make to the far side of the universe and still be back in time for dinner,” says Neil Gaiman, renowned author of The Sandman, Coraline, American Gods and many other collections, comic books and novels.

There's an assumption that short stories are easy to write because they’re short. Nothing could be further from the truth. But they do train writers to finish something, to take an idea and complete it into a cohesive whole, which is an art in itself as well as a way to build your skills towards writing longform novel manuscripts.

Short fiction is a form that requires a great deal of precision and skill where every word matters and every element contributes something integral. There's also often significant revision work to be done.

Join author Julie Koh, one of Australia's most inventive contemporary short story writers, for this three-hour workshop to develop your short story writing craft. Through a series of exercises, Julie will take you through the mechanics of short stories, and strategies for revising your drafts. She will also give you tips on working with editors and building your own body of work into full-length collections.

Participants will learn:

• how to approach the short-story form
• the mechanics of short stories, including elements like structure, plot, character and voice
• how to identify issues in draft stories and resolve them effectively
• how to work with an editor and know when to push back on suggestions
• how to build a portfolio of short stories, with a view to producing a collection.

Members $88 / Non-members $140

This workshop will be delivered via Zoom. Instructions will be emailed to you, please check your spam/junk folders. A recording will be available to registered participants for two weeks after the event.

—Not a Writers SA member? Members receive more than 30% off the full price of this workshop, you’ll also get a free 20 minute consult, expert advice about your career and your work, and join a community of like-minded creatives. Join now for as little as $60! 

—Writers SA members must be logged in to receive the member discount. If you would like to use a workshop credit to book in, please contact [email protected] at least five working days before the workshop commencement date. Our staff don’t work full time and we don’t want you to miss out!

—If you are a member of another state based writers centre, SCBWI SA or Editors SA, please contact [email protected] at least five working days before the program commencement date to get a code for the member price.

—Writers SA provides complimentary membership for First Nations writers and for writers experiencing economic hardship. Please contact [email protected] to redeem.

About Julie Koh

Julie Koh is the author of two short-story collections: Capital Misfits and Portable Curiosities. The latter was shortlisted for several awards and led to Julie being named a 2017 Sydney Morning Herald Best Young Australian Novelist. Her short stories have been published widely, including in the Best Australian Stories and Best Australian Comedy Writing. Outside Australia, her fiction has been published in nine countries. She has written radio plays for ABC Radio National and the libretto for the opera Chop Chef. She has also judged numerous literary prizes including the 2018 Stella Prize. Julie is the current Prose Editor for Westerly.