Masha reading in Long Island
“Balanced, substantive critiques combine with meaningful exercises and readings to create a productive and memorable workshop experience. ”
– MAGGIE, NEW YORK

Guidelines & Descriptions

Before You Take An Online Workshop:

  • •Make sure to pick a workshop that best fits your present needs. What is your current focus? Do you want a broad-based workshop that covers skills ranging from dialogue to character development to psychic distance? Do you prefer a specialty seminar such as one aimed at writing from life, or probing forbidden topics, or exploring character? Are you partway through a novel draft and want an intensive novel-writing workshop? Have you finished a novel manuscript or short-story collection and want a one-on-one consultation?
  • •Look for a workshop that lasts long enough to give you what you need, but not so long that you can't commit to it. Also, ask about workshop requirements. How many pages of your own work will you be able to submit? What is mandatory in terms of critiquing the work of others? Are there weekly opportunities to submit writing in the form of exercises and freewrites?

During The Workshop:

  • •Commit yourself to writing six out of seven days, even if just 20 minutes a day. This way, you will be exercising the particular muscle under discussion, really incorporating what is being covered in the workshop.
  • •Drop your inner censor and free yourself to explore new techniques or ideas being presented in the workshop, at least for a week or two!
  • •Reach out to fellow workshop participants. Often, you can find long-term writing buddies in workshops.
  • •If something is troubling you, raise your concerns. We workshop leaders want "our writers" to feel satisfied, inspired, and creatively fueled by the workshop. If that's not happening, speak up so we can make a change!

Class Descriptions

  • Stirring the Pot: Turn Your Life Into Fiction
    We all have stories, be they comic or tragic, brief dramatic encounters or life-altering events that unfolded over months. The stories most likely to move your readers to laughter or tears come directly from the heart and feel authentic, often stemming from personal experiences. This ten-week workshop explores how to incorporate our own lives into fiction while moving beyond journaling. Examining everything from short-shorts to novel excerpts, we will mold our life material to write more meaningful fiction. The workshop includes lectures, exercises, freewrites and critiques of your work. Class size limited.
    Email with questions or to enroll
  • Writing The Forbidden:
    Going to Secret Places to Fuel your Fiction
    Everyone has secrets, be they personal, family, or the hushed confidences whispered by a friend. Sometimes these involve untouchable events you try to avoid considering; sometimes they are moments you cannot for a second forget. Fiction is a valuable tool for exploring those deeper, sometimes darker, human truths. In this ten-week workshop, we examine everything from short-shorts to novel excerpts as we explore how to use emotion but not melodrama to shape forbidden moments into meaningful fiction. The workshop includes lectures, exercises, freewrites and critiques of your work. Class size limited.
    Email with questions or to enroll
  • Creating Inspired Characters
    Characters are the lifeblood of our stories. Without strong characters, it is virtually impossible to find a publisher or hook your readers. In this four-week workshop, we explore the three C's of creating character, as well as how and why to make your good guys bad and your bad guys good. We'll look at voice, appearance, inner monologue and action as ways to bring your story people fully to life. Class size limited.
    Email with questions or to enroll
  • Private Manuscript Consultation
    Have a novel manuscript almost ready to go? In this market, it's more important than ever that it be in the best shape possible. Masha does private critiques of novels, beginning at $800.
    Email with questions or to enroll
Masha teaching Stonecoast MFA,
Maine, 2009

Student Comments

“Masha is a born writer–and a born teacher...I turn to Masha for something that no academic environment offers: concise, practical advice that brings results immediately. ”
– JOHN, BROOKLYN
“Masha's insights as a reader, writer and teacher were invaluable to me in understanding how to overcome the challenges of my story...If what you want is feedback and guidance, then Masha's class is the way to go. ”
– TERI, New York