{"product_id":"flash-fiction-place-and-time-writing-workshop-online","title":"Flash Fiction Writing Workshop: Intensifying Flash Fiction Through Time and Place with Maureen Aitken (Zoom) on Tuesday, November 10th, 2026","description":"\u003ch2 class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eBegins Tuesday, November 10th, 2026\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003ch2 class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eLive Seminar via Zoom from 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM ET \u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eNow Enrolling! Any questions about this class? Use the Chat Button to talk with us.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eInstructor Bio\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eInstructor Maureen Aitken is an award-winning fiction writer whose short-story collection, \u003cem\u003eThe Patron Saint of Lost Girls\u003c\/em\u003e, received a Kirkus star and won the Nilsen Prize and the Foreword Review INDIE Gold Prize for General Fiction. It was reissued by Wayne State University Press in September 2025. Her stories have earned a Minnesota State Arts Board's Artist Initiative Grant, a Loft Mentor Award, an award from Ireland's Fish Short Story Prize, and two Pushcart Prize nominations. The book was also a finalist for the Minnesota Book Award. Her stories have been widely published in journals including \u003cem\u003ePrairie Schooner, The Missouri Review, \u003c\/em\u003eand\u003cem\u003e New Letters\u003c\/em\u003e. She has taught writing at the University of Michigan, the University of Minnesota, and Hamline University.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWho is this class for?\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eThis online fiction workshop is for writers at all levels who want to draft new flash fiction pieces or intensify moments within a larger story or novel. If you're drawn to compressed, high-pressure storytelling and want to see how master writers make it work, this seminar is for you. Come ready to study, discuss, and generate new writing in a single focused session.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhat to expect:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eWhen you write flash fiction, description and dialogue do much of the heavy lifting. A well-rendered sense of place can compress years, fuel mood, and deepen nostalgia; time can condense a lifetime into a single sentence or use a ticking clock to raise the stakes. In this two-hour online writing class, we'll look closely at how time and place put pressure on characters as they move through haunted lands, tense relationships, and family rituals.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eThis live Zoom seminar pairs close reading with hands-on generative work. We'll study three master flash pieces, discuss what makes each one land, and use guided prompts to write your own. The practice of study, discussion, and generative writing is a strong foundation for your best work, and we'll model that path together throughout the session.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eYou'll leave with fresh drafts in hand. Writers who choose to read their work aloud will receive verbal feedback from the instructor, and every prompt is designed so your new writing can stand alone as flash fiction or feed a story or novel you're already building.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhat are the writing goals?\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eIn this course, students will write two new flash fiction pieces in draft form and study three master flash fiction works for craft in scene, description, and dialogue. Writers who read their work aloud during the session will receive verbal feedback from the instructor.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReadings\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eReadings may include excerpts from \"Reunion\" by John Cheever, \"Beach City\" by Jaquira Diaz, and \"Sticks\" by George Saunders. Reading the three pieces before class is encouraged; if you're unable to, we'll quote them as models for scene, description, and dialogue so you can follow along.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCOURSE OUTLINE\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eIntroduction: A brief discussion of writing time and place, followed by a two-minute freewrite.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePart 1: Cheever's \"Reunion\" and a Single Day \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e— Discussion of how the father\/son relationship is compressed into a single day, with a prompt on time and place in a fictional family.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePart 2: \"Beach City\" — Nostalgia and What Haunts Us\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e — Discussion of nostalgia, the unseen, and imagery, with a prompt on characters looking back.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePart 3: \"Sticks\" and Ritual Time Warps\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e — Discussion of strange holiday rituals stuck in time, with a prompt on a weird ritual.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eBonus: Reading a piece or two aloud to the group.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCOURSE TAKEAWAYS:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"[li_\u0026amp;]:mb-0 [li_\u0026amp;]:mt-1 [li_\u0026amp;]:gap-1 [\u0026amp;:not(:last-child)_ul]:pb-1 [\u0026amp;:not(:last-child)_ol]:pb-1 list-disc flex flex-col gap-1 pl-8 mb-3\"\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\"\u003eTwo new flash fiction pieces in draft form\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\"\u003eA working understanding of how place compresses time, fuels mood, and builds nostalgia\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\"\u003eTechniques for using time — condensed spans and ticking clocks — to raise narrative pressure\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\"\u003eClose-reading insight into scene, description, and dialogue drawn from three master flash pieces\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\"\u003eGenerative prompts you can carry into your stories and novels\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePAYMENT OPTIONS:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eTuition is $99 USD. You can pay for the course in full or use Shop Pay or Affirm to pay over time with equal Monthly Payments. Both options are available at checkout.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eONLINE COURSE STRUCTURE:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"[li_\u0026amp;]:mb-0 [li_\u0026amp;]:mt-1 [li_\u0026amp;]:gap-1 [\u0026amp;:not(:last-child)_ul]:pb-1 [\u0026amp;:not(:last-child)_ol]:pb-1 list-disc flex flex-col gap-1 pl-8 mb-3\"\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\"\u003eInstructor: Maureen Aitken\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\"\u003eBegins Tuesday, November 10th, 2026\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\"\u003eThis one-time live seminar meets via Zoom on Tuesday, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM ET\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli class=\"font-claude-response-body whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\"\u003eTuition is $99 USD.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"Writing Workshops Org","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49991094337784,"sku":null,"price":1749.0,"currency_code":"MXN","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0287\/3917\/4532\/files\/MaureenAitkenHeadshot2026.png?v=1784115239","url":"https:\/\/writingworkshops.com\/en-mx\/products\/flash-fiction-place-and-time-writing-workshop-online","provider":"Writing Workshops","version":"1.0","type":"link"}