Narrative Structure: Constructing the Scaffold

Stories are our human inheritance, but when it comes time to put pen to paper we sometimes abandon our natural storytelling instincts. Often, what’s missing is structure—you can’t decorate the house before you build out the frame. Whether it’s a 400-page fantasy epic, a chapter of your memoir, or a 15-second elevator pitch, compelling narratives have a similar foundational arc. Over the course of two sessions, we’ll explore meaningful and practical frameworks of story structure and cultivate tools for generative drafting, including innovative strategies for plotting and pacing as well as big-picture revision solutions for moving closer to a final draft.
Open to prose writers of all levels. This is a 2-week workshop with a 2-hour session each week. Please prepare for approximately 2 hours of work between sessions.
This 2-week workshop meets on Thursdays from 6-8pm at LitArts RI on the following dates:
Thurs, Sept 17
Thurs, Sept 24

About Your Teaching Artist

Courtney Denelle (she/her) is the author of It’s Not Nothing (SFWP, 2022), a novel-in-fragments drawn from her experience of homelessness and recovery. Winner of the 2021 Poets & Writers Maureen Egen Award, Courtney has been granted a Hawthornden Fellowship, as well as residencies from Hedgebrook and the Jentel Foundation. She lives in Providence, where she received her education from the public library. Find Courtney on Instagram @courtneydenelle or at courtneydenelle.com.

Community Access Lottery
LitArts RI offers a lottery for free admission to those who are from a community that has faced institutional barriers in the writing and publishing worlds or who lack access to resources and could not otherwise afford to attend. The lottery closes 2 weeks before each workshop, at which time entrants will be notified if they are a recipient of one of the free seats.
To enter the lottery, press the red "Get tickets" button at the top right of your screen, then scroll down to add a "Community Access Lottery Ticket" to your cart and check out.
Funding for LitArts RI’s Community Access Lottery was provided in part by a Community Priority Grant from the Rhode Island Foundation.

Safe and Brave Space Policy

Writing workshops can be vulnerable spaces. As a literary arts organization, LitArts RI is committed to providing a safe, brave, inclusive and accessible space to all participants, regardless of race, ethnicity, class, citizenship status, age, size, abilities, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression. Be sensitive, be supportive, be respectful and engage with care. Discriminatory, hateful, and threatening content will not be tolerated; we ask that you bring any concerns to our attention immediately.

Accessibility

LitArts RI is wheelchair accessible. The organization is actively committed to cultivating a community that values and reflects diversity, equity and inclusivity and to providing programming that is accessible to all attendees. Please let us know about any accommodations we can make to allow you to participate fully in this event.

Health Safety Guidelines

If you have tested positive for Covid-19 within a few days of attending an event at LitArts RI, please contact Staff so we can let others know of possible exposure. We ask that you wait 14 days or until testing negative to return to the Center.

LitArts RI Refund Policy
All ticket sales are final except in the case of illness or emergency. If you are unable to make an event due to illness or other circumstances outside of your control, LitArts RI will issue a refund for the amount of the ticket (not including Eventbrite fees) as soon as we are notified.
If an event is cancelled at the discretion of the organization, we will issue refunds in the full amount (including Eventbrite fees) to all registrants.