Character 1: Creation is structured as an Intensive course, which means learning happens in a concentrated timeframe: one day for in-person sessions in NYC, two days for Zoom-based instruction, or three weeks for online self-paced learning. The curriculum combines instructional lectures with hands-on writing exercises and welcomes participants at all skill levels. A detailed syllabus is available below for your review.
If you already have confidence in your character development abilities, you may advance directly to Character 2. However, if you're uncertain about your foundation, beginning with Character 1 is recommended; you'll gain valuable insights even if some content reviews material you've encountered before.
Characters form the emotional core of every narrative. When readers connect with and feel the presence of characters, the entire story comes alive, and audiences follow those individuals wherever the plot takes them, whether they're likable or flawed, young or elderly, recognizable or completely foreign to our experience.
Across fiction, nonfiction, and scriptwriting, we'll guide you through the process of creating characters that possess genuine presence and authenticity, making them feel as though readers could encounter them on the street or live beside them in their community.
Character 1 focuses on the conception stage of character development, exploring where characters originate, their internal and external dimensions, their internal contradictions and complexities, the source of their deepest motivation, and the qualities that make them compelling and memorable.
Character 2 builds on this foundation by teaching you how to bring characters fully to life on the written page with such vividness that they feel real enough to bump into in the neighborhood or strike up a conversation with at the grocery store.
Course components include:
- Instructional lectures
- Writing exercises and practice assignments
Zoom Classes:
Course content varies based on instructor and term, though many topics align with those presented in online formats.
Details About Zoom Learning:
- Zoom classes operate in synchronous, real-time sessions.
- These classes bring together students from across the globe who participate through Gotham, New York City's most established and respected writing school.
- Zoom instruction happens via videoconference in real time, creating an experience similar to in-person instruction, except participants attend from their own location on their computer or device. The Zoom platform is free and straightforward to use.
- You can attend Zoom writing classes from anywhere with a reliable internet connection. While most Zoom participants are based in the United States, we regularly enroll students from nearly every country worldwide.
- Technical support is provided throughout the course. All Zoom sessions remain unrecorded out of respect for participant privacy and confidentiality.
