Upcoming Opportunities
The 8th Annual Taos Writing Conference
Keynote Speaker: Alison Hedge Coke
Presented by SOMOS, a Place for Words in Taos
Friday, July 19, to Sunday, July 21, 2024
Visit the SOMOS: Taos for details: fee and registration.
Early Bird registration by end of day, June 17, 2024
All registrations close on July 11, 2024
Some of the sessions are available online via ZOOM.
Sharon Oard Warner (F) – online only via Zoom
Writing the Novella
Why write a novella? And why write one before embarking on a novel? Because the novella is the intermediate form: It’s more expansive than a short story, but trimmer than a novel. Novellas used to be considered awkward—too long to fit comfortably in the pages of most literary magazines and too short to be published alone. But, in our current culture, the novella is, to quote Debra Sparks: “Goldilocks form, not too much this and not too much that but just right.”
Browse any of the dozens of novella listicles online and see what I mean:
- 60 Short Books You Can Finish in Basically One Sitting
- 20 Extraordinary Books You Can Read in One Sitting — Esquire
- 11 Short Novels from around the World That You Can Read in One Sitting — Electric Literature
In this three-hour Zoom class, you will learn about the history and structure of the novella. We’ll sort out the distinctions between short stories, novellas, and novels. Finally, I will propose a method for drafting a novella of your very own. We’ll conclude by brainstorming and sharing ideas.

Taos Writing Conference
SOMOS Taos
108 Civic Plaza Dr
Taos, NM 87571
Faculty
Allison Hedge Coke
Sawnie Morris
Catherine Strisik
Veronica Golos
Minrose Gwin
Sharon Oard Warner
Lauren Camp
Jamie Figueroa
Allegra Huston
Connie Josefs
Valerie Martinez
Johnny Boggs
Sean Murphy
Letitia Gomez
Julia Goldberg
Tommy Archuleta
Jean-Marie Saporito
Lauren Bjorkman
Mark Lipman
Susannah Simpson
Susan Mihalic
English 424: Advanced Creative Writing Workshop: Script
(Online Max)
Eight-week Summer Session (June 6 to August 1)
Human beings are addicted to stories. Most of us recognize a good one when we see or hear it because we humans are literally wired to listen and learn from narratives. Writing a good story does not come as naturally as listening or watching one. Like all skills, we learn through engagement and energy. In this course, we will begin with an overview of traditional three-act structure. Over the course of the semester, we will address all the important issues involved in screenwriting: idea, structure, character, scene, dialogue, and action. Students will learn about and practice film and television screenplay structure and complete both a beat sheet and a short script. Those enrolled should expect to view feature films, read several screenplays (both short and feature-length), and participate in small-group workshops.

