Description
In this class, you’ll take a close look at the writing and research skills needed to craft engaging nonfiction about scientific discovery, research, and policy, and practice them over the course of five weeks. We will discuss how literary elements such as scene, character development, and narrative can bring scientific topics alive for general readers, as well as how to document research and interviews to prepare for the fact-checking process. You will complete in-class writing exercises that can later be incorporated into a longer essay. We will also discuss how to identify and query markets for science-based nonfiction and receive personal feedback on your work from the instructor and peers.
Each week provides:
- Lecture and writing prompt
- Discussion of assigned readings and other general writing topics with peers and the instructor
- Opportunities to share and discuss your writing with the group
WEEK 1: THE HOWS AND WHYS OF GREAT WRITING ABOUT SCIENCE
In this first week, we will look at the current landscape of science writing opportunities and discuss the need for exciting, accurate writing about scientific research and discovery. You’ll also discuss some practicalities, such as ways of recording and note-keeping that can make the fact-checking process go more smoothly.
WEEK 2: SCENES AND CHARACTERS: FINDING A WAY INTO THE STORY
What if you weren’t there when the eureka moment happened? What if the eureka moment is months or years away? This week we will look at how to bring research alive on the page—even if it seems static in the lab—by learning note-taking and interviewing techniques that will help with writing three-dimensional actors and putting them into realistic spaces.
WEEK 3: LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION! FINDING SCENES WITHIN RESEARCH
This week you will put yourself in the shoes of a new science writer (regardless of your scientific expertise) and hit the metaphorical pavement. We will talk about how to find newsworthy stories about research and track down experts who can help. We will cover questions such as how to ask for an interview if you haven’t sold the story yet, when to write the story first and when to pitch first, and how to be sure your sources are reliable. We will also discuss some of the ethical concerns of popular science writing.
WEEK 4: THE BEGINNING, MIDDLE, AND END: FINDING AN ARC
Scientific research is often a very long-term, on-going process. Discoveries and findings are announced intermittently and often with inconclusive or anti-climactic results. How can you find an engaging story within such an unpredictable process? How can you craft relatable stories about inanimate objects, non-human organisms, complex policies, or scientific theory? We will discuss techniques for making large stories small enough to reach a non-expert reader and connecting those small stories back to your larger concepts.
WEEK 5: FINDING MARKETS
During this final week, we’ll discuss how to find markets for science-based nonfiction. Which literary publications foster science and nature writing? Which popular markets publish literary coverage from the science frontiers? We will discuss how to query editors and how the revision and fact-checking process works once your piece or project is accepted for publication.
We are able to offer a limited amount of both 50% scholarships for our multi-week classes and 100% scholarships for our single-session classes on a first-come, first-serve basis. Students may receive one scholarship per term. Click here to apply for a scholarship spot.
