You could hit submit and hope for the best.
Or you could unlock the full potential of your novel.
WHAT WE DO
Tell your story.
Change the world.
Workshops Against Empire is the ONLY program that combines a complete framework for writing a publishable novel with a focus on the social impact of your story.
That’s right. An alternative MFA in Writing program with social justice at its core.
WHAT WE DO
Tell your story.
Change the world.
Workshops Against Empire is the ONLY program that combines a complete framework for writing a publishable novel with a focus on the social impact of your story.
That’s right.
An alternative MFA in Writing program with social justice at its core.
The fourth signature course of the Workshops Against Empire alternative MFA program
—now available in a self-paced format for just $197!
A solid story, compelling characters, and strong writing are a great start. But if you want your novel to stand out from the competition, it has to have something extra.
It has to have a sense of meaning.
In this 4-week class, I'll help you elevate your command of craft—
by taking a stand on the issues that matter most to you
by connecting with your reader on a deeper level
by accurately reflecting the complex truths of our world (and avoiding harm to historically marginalized people in your work)
And in the process, I'll help you cure your novel of some of THE most common ailments that keep otherwise great books from getting published. (*See below!)
If you're ready to break through with your first published novel, then it's time to embrace your true power as a storyteller.
What difference could your story make, if you took that power seriously?
Covered in This Course
Section One: Taking a Stand
A great story is a meaningful story—one that intersects with matters of justice and leaves us with a sense of insight on the things that matter most in life.
Taking a stand in your work on the things that matter most to you is also a way of standing out on submission—a way of saying "this story matters NOW."
In section one of this course, you will learn:
How to engage with the issues that matter most to you in your fiction without coming across as preachy or didactic
Strategies for engaging "big topics" in ways that feel artful and intimate
Strategies for touching on political and social issues in ways that matter, regardless of the focus of your novel
*Common problems in novels addressed by this module:
Lack of cohesion
Lack of depth
This section features a special guest interview with Aya de León, award-winning author of nine novels, including the Justice Hustlers series.
Section Two: Reflecting Reality
Writing historically marginalized characters with care and sensitivity isn't a matter of being "woke"—it's a matter of reflecting the reality of those characters' lived experience.
Moreover: Getting these things wrong in this day and age can keep you from getting published (which MIGHT just be preferable to the sort of backlash you'll face if you do…).
In section two of this course, you will learn:
How to engage with the issues that matter most to you in your fiction without coming across as preachy or didactic
Strategies for engaging "big topics" in ways that feel artful and intimate
Strategies for touching on political and social issues in ways that matter, regardless of the focus of your novel
*Common problems in novels addressed by this module:
Sensitivity issues (race, culture, gender, orientation, etc.)
This section features a special guest interview with Suzanne Wertheim, author of The Inclusive Language Field Guide: 6 Simple Steps for Avoiding Painful Mistakes and Communicating Respectfully.
Section Three: Centering the Heart
The key to generating strong emotion in your reader is centering the truth of their emotional journey in your story. (It's also a key strategy for getting published because, as more than one editor has put it, "You cry; you buy").
In section three of this course, you will learn:
How to establish a strong emotional connection with your reader from your very first page
How to maintain that connection, and deepen it, as the story unfolds
The key to an emotionally powerful climax
*Common issues in novels addressed by this module:
Emotional flatness
Pacing issues
Issues with plot
This section features a special guest interview with Jennie Nash, founder of the Author Accelerator book-coach certification program and author of seven books in three genres.
Section Four: Illuminating the Dark
Protagonists aren't all good, antagonists aren't all bad—and all of us, at some point, have been impacted by trauma.
Digging into that truth is the key to creating a sense of complex characterization in your characters, while leveling up both your craft and your social impact with your story.
In section four of this course, you will learn:
How to leverage the power of backstory to increase the sense of complexity in your main characters
The key role of your protagonist's past struggles in their internal journey
How to make your antagonists feel convincing and real by digging down to the level of their internal logic
*Common issues in novels addressed by this module:
Issues with characterization (lack of complexity, "relatability," etc.)
Agent feedback like "I'm just not in love with this story"
This section features a special guest interview with Reema Zaman, author of I Am Yours.
Frequently asked Questions
Who is this course for?
This course was designed for intermediate fiction writers with a work-in-progress.
Story Medicine IS for you if:
You know how competitive traditional publishing is, and your want your novel to stand out on submission
You’re ready to take a stand in your work on the issues that matter most to you
You know that writing characters of different racial and cultural backgrounds isn’t something you’re going to get right just because your intentions are good
You’re ready to level up your game as a fiction writer, period
You don’t just want your story to be good—you want it to be great
You want to generate real emotion in your reader
You’re ready to stop spinning your wheels with your novel and get over the finish line with it
Who is this course NOT for?
Story Medicine is NOT for you if:
You're relatively new to the art of fiction (e.g., have not taken classes or received feedback on your work, or have only started writing fiction within the last year or so)
You aren’t working on a novel or don’t have one under development
You don’t believe that Black Lives Matter, love is love, climate change is real, or that critical race theory is critical to the conversation
You just want to write a basic airport thriller
You’re not particularly interested in going deep with character
You just want to express your righteous anger via a thinly veiled political screed
How is the course organized?
There are four core sections of Story Medicine:
Taking a Stand
Reflecting Reality
Centering the Heart
Illuminating the Dark
Each section incorporates one written lecture, 3–4 short videos, one worksheet, and a homework exercise, as well as one longer interview with an author or expert whose work exemplifies these core strategies. The course also includes bonus resources and recommended reading.
The special guests featured in this course include Aya d Léon (the Justice Hustlers series), Suzanne Wertheim (The Inclusive Language Field Guide: 6 Simple Steps for Avoiding Painful Mistakes and Communicating Respectfully), Jennie Nash (Blueprint for a Book), and Reema Zaman (I Am Yours).
Each section takes around 4.25 hours to complete, so if you complete one section each week, you can expect to finish the course in around 17 hours over the course of 4 weeks.
Is there feedback or accountability?
No, I do not offer feedback on the self-paced version of this course. (Stay tuned for the next live version of this course.)
What you DO get with the self-paced version of this course (and all my courses!) is access to the Story Medicine Community Facebook group, where you can post any questions you'd like me to answer, and connect with like-minded fiction writers who want to have a positive impact on the world with their stories.
Can I download the lectures in Story Medicine for offline viewing?
Yes, the lectures and assignments are fully downloadable.
Is Story Medicine part of a larger curriculum?
Yes! Story Medicine is one of the five core courses at the heart of my year-long alternative MFA program, Workshops Against Empire.
About Your Instructor
An American with roots in the Caribbean and upper Midwest, Susan DeFreitas is the author of the novel Hot Season, which won a Gold IPPY Award, and the editor of Dispatches from Anarres: Tales in Tribute to Ursula K. Le Guin, a finalist for the Foreword INDIES. Her work has been featured, or is upcoming, in the Writer’s Chronicle, LitHub, Story, Story Quarterly, Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet, Daily Science Fiction, and elsewhere. She holds an MFA from Pacific University and lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Praise for "Story Medicine"
"I registered for Story Medicine, and I'm LOVING IT!!! In fact, I submitted a short story for an anthology. The story is very strong because of your course, and I'm proud of it."
- K.A. Phillips
"I thought the course was just terrific—light-your-work-on-fire inspiring!"
- J. Langdon
"An invaluable how-to guide on conveying authentic emotion in fiction."
- A.S. Gunn
"Getting all the feels from this Story Medicine course. I’m so glad to have found it!"
- E. Rice
"I found the material massively helpful. Particularly in a few areas where I was having doubts about whether I should be telling another person's story. I am benefiting a great deal from your wisdom."
- M. Wickens
"Your last lecture was a show stopper. It pulled back the layers for me on what makes a story meaningful."
- A. Craig
"Thank you on repeat—these courses have been life-changing!"
- L. Porter
Ready to take your story to the next level?
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