Fiction, writes Ursula K. Le Guin, is simply ‘imagination working on observation’. This Masterclass with novelist and travel writer Nick Hunt will explore how grounded experience can be developed into sci-fi, fantasy and other speculative genres. Tales of alien worlds or magic are never about the future or past – they are always about now. What do you really care about? Whether you write stories set on distant planets or in other dimensions, the themes that motivate you – politics, culture, climate breakdown, love, death, sexuality – are no less ‘real’ than in non-fiction (and often even more so).
Following in the footsteps of Octavia E. Butler, Margaret Atwood, Alan Moore, Ted Chiang, Susanna Clarke, Kim Stanley Robinson, Adrian Tchaikovsky and others, alternate realities can give your writing greater freedom and allow you to explore bold ideas from unexpected angles. Speculative fiction is also really fun. Nick will use writing exercises, provocations and examples to help you write the fantastical with solid ground beneath your feet. Please bring a pen, paper and your imagination.
For more information, and how to book, see here.