{"product_id":"fiction-writing-workshop-online-july-2026","title":"The Alien in Me: Writing Beyond Identity 4-Week Fiction Intensive (Zoom) with Kritika Pandey starts on Sunday, July 19th, 2026","description":"\u003ch2\u003eClass Starts on Sunday, July 19th, 2026\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe class will meet on Sundays via Zoom (1:00PM ET - 4:00PM ET).\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e🌍 \u003cem\u003eClass Times by Time Zone:\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e Los Angeles (PDT): 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM \/ Chicago (CDT): 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM \/ New York (EDT): 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM \/ London (BST): 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM \/ Berlin (CEST): 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAny questions about this class? Use the Chat Butto) to talk with us. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"background-color: white;\"\u003eLed by Kritika Pandey, the global winner of the 2020 Commonwealth Short Story Prize and was on the shortlist in 2018 and 2016. A graduate of the MFA for Poets and Writers, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, she was a resident writer at The Helene Wurlitzer Foundation of New Mexico in 2021. Her writing has been generously supported by a grant from the Elizabeth George Foundation and appeared in \u003cem\u003eGranta, Kenyon Review, BBC Radio 4, \u003c\/em\u003eand\u003cem\u003e The Common\u003c\/em\u003e, among others.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the era of artificial intelligence, when stories are reduced to patterns and predictions, this workshop invites you to unlearn those patterns. Explore the versions of yourself that won’t hold still. Let language do something you wouldn’t normally permit. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAfter all, to be human is to resist interpretation. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe are creatures who don’t quite cohere and keep going anyway.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo how do you write fiction that is, in the words of Albert Camus, “the lie through which we tell the truth?” Now that machines can pass as human, how do you write something that goes beyond personal history, identity markers, and a stable sense of self? How do you expand that mysterious entity called consciousness when even quantum physicists are unsure about it? And in an increasingly polarized world, how do you tell stories about people’s myriad universal complexities, not just their narrow political leanings?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis workshop will explore those questions and more.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTogether, we’ll encounter \u003cem\u003eThe Thunder, Perfect Mind\u003c\/em\u003e, a 2nd-century CE Gnostic text of unknown authorship. We’ll place it alongside the ancient Chinese wisdom of the Dao De Jing and the ascetic Upanishadic philosophy of neti neti. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut we won’t get lost in abstraction.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe’ll ground ourselves in the work of writing as we think through elements of craft such as:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow to pass the time in fiction\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEscalation and causality in storytelling\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe narrative significance of not knowing what comes next\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHow the best dialogue can reveal character, present information, and move the plot forward, all at once\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis class is for any writer who has ever attempted to write a short story, irrespective of whether they have a complete work to submit. You’re welcome to share fragmentary notes, multiple excerpts, as well as finished stories under 5000 words.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn addition to receiving lots of feedback on your writing, as well as commenting on the works of your fellow writers, there will be in-class generative writing to demonstrate the aspects of writing that can't quite be taught.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTake this class if you’ve ever wondered if:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAll stories have already been told\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWhat makes fiction original is not the WHAT but the HOW\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAs a new writer, your job is to touch upon the age-old conundrums of the human condition that have been tackled by other writers a million times before, such as love, loss, spite, loneliness, guilt, and belonging, in a way that feels fresh and exciting\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCOURSE TAKEAWAYS:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eYou will have one thoroughly considered short story by the end of this workshop.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eYou will have a clearer understanding of how to write in a way that amplifies your unique voice.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eYou'll be equipped with new psychoanalytical and philosophical methods of abstracting all works of fiction, including your own. \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSELECTED COURSE TEXTS:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eUncanny, the Singing that Comes from Certain Husks\u003c\/em\u003e: Joy Williams\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eAngles on Dialogue\u003c\/em\u003e: Douglas Unger\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe School\u003c\/em\u003e: Donald Barthelme\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eRise, Baby, Rise\u003c\/em\u003e: George Saunders\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Feminist\u003c\/em\u003e: Tony Tulathimutte\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eBorges and I\u003c\/em\u003e: Jorge Luis Borges\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Thunder, Perfect Mind\u003c\/em\u003e: Anonymous\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eNot Knowing\u003c\/em\u003e: Donald Barthelme\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCOURSE OUTLINE\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWeek 1: Time and Dialogue\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTechniques for handling time within a story, and employing dialogue to advance the plot while developing character. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWeek 2: Causality and Meaning \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003eUsing patterns and repetition to create structure in the absence of a clear, logical progression.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWeek 3: The Self That Doesn’t Hold \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003eApproaches to employing shifting narrative voices and points of view.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWeek 4: Say It and It Exists \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAn inquiry into how speech functions as action and how language can carry risk.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eONLINE COURSE STRUCTURE:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eThis class meets via Zoom. Come prepared for a super fun class with live interaction on Zoom each weekend and plenty of writing, reading, and talking!\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePAYMENT OPTIONS\u003c\/strong\u003e: \u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eTuition is $330. You can pay for the course in full\u003cspan style=\"box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eor\u003c\/i\u003e use Affirm to pay over time with equal Monthly Payments. Both options are available at checkout.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cul data-rte-list=\"default\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eInstructor: Kritika Pandey\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThis class starts on Sunday, July 19th, 2026\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe class will meet on Sundays via Zoom (1:00PM ET - 4:00PM ET).\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTuition is $330. \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Writing Workshops Org","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48218755367160,"sku":null,"price":498000.0,"currency_code":"KRW","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0287\/3917\/4532\/files\/Kritika_Pandey_Headshot_2.png?v=1736866275","url":"https:\/\/writingworkshops.com\/en-kr\/products\/fiction-writing-workshop-online-july-2026","provider":"Writing Workshops","version":"1.0","type":"link"}