Feb 14
Online
Masterclass: Pacing Your Fiction
From breathless plotting to breathtaking details

One of the greatest challenges of writing non-fiction is wrestling with the research. How do you decide what to put in and what to leave out? What is the most important thing to consider when creating a narrative? How do you know whether a piece of first-hand material is reliable? Does the truth really matter? And how do you deal with the gaps? Julie Summers is the author of fourteen books of non-fiction, including British Vogue: The Biography of an Icon, Dressed for War, Stranger in the House and Jambusters, the story of the WI, which became a major TV drama series, Home Fires. She will take you through some of the joys and pitfalls of oral history, factual claims and reliable and unreliable witnesses. Be prepared to suspend disbelief and for a fun and engaging session, with exercises that will help you pin down the way you use your material to create a compelling story.
The Masterclass will be delivered via Zoom webinar, so you can take the session at your own pace, without the pressure of having your video or camera on. Sessions are also recorded so if you are unable to attend live, you will have access to the recording for a month afterwards.
Online: £40
Concessions: £20
As part of our effort to increase participation in the arts, half-price concessions are available for this course at checkout. There are a limited number of free subsidised places for those who cannot afford the concession price.
We are committed to making our Arvon at Home programme accessible to as many people as possible.
Across all of Arvon at Home
Masterclasses
Online Writing Day
How I Write
Online Writing Weeks and Evening Courses
Subject to funding/permissions (please contact arvonathome@arvon.org for more details)
If you have any access issues that we have not covered here, please contact us on access@arvon.org
See here for more access information.
"These zoom opportunities are really helping to open my world and keep me inspired to write."— Masterclass participant
"Arvon at Home creates a model to participate in inspirational tutoring for writers, at a distance. The feeling of attending to my writing life in an excellent fashion, and still having a half-day for my work and caring responsibilities at home, felt like a good balance."— Masterclass participant
"It was an absolutely brilliant session and very very useful. And it made me realise how much I’ve missed this kind of workshop because of having children and family that I can’t leave. Now we’re all in the same boat the online stuff is truly transformative."— Masterclass participant