Live Workshops on Writing Fantasy Fiction

WRITING FANTASY FICTION with Lara Ameen

START DATE: May 13, 2025

END DATE: July 1, 2025

DURATION: 8 weeks

LOCATION: Live Zoom Classes

MEETING TIME: Tuesdays, 4 pm - 6 pm PST

FEEDBACK: Instructor Feedback and Critique; Peer Workshopping

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Do you love fantasy? Have you always been captivated by magic and fantastical themes in novels? Do you have an idea for a young adult or adult fantasy novel, but are unsure where to start? In this eight-week course, screenwriter and novelist Lara Ameen will take you through the process of writing a young adult or adult fantasy novel.

Each week, you will focus on a different aspect of writing a fantasy novel and creating your own. You’ll learn about the tropes common in fantasy novels and what elements make fantasy novels work by reading from a variety of selected young adult and adult fantasy books. Each week includes assignments that build toward creating your fantasy novel, including individual feedback/critiques from Lara on novel outlines and novel chapters.

We will workshop and discuss your ideas, outlines, and novel chapters in every Zoom class.

This class is structured for beginners and those new to the fantasy genre as well as more seasoned writers looking to strengthen their writing craft.

Goal:
Students will learn about the various subgenres of fantasy, along with some tropes typically found within the genre. Students will be expected to complete weekly reading and writing exercises. This class will teach students how to write compelling and propulsive fantasy, no matter the subgenre. By the end of this class, they will have a 3-5-page outline and opening three chapters (8-10 pages per chapter or 10-15 pages per chapter), plus revision to their first two chapters of their Young Adult or Adult fantasy novels. They will also have a plan to tackle the rest of their first draft.

Format:
8 weeks for 2 hours via Zoom each week: Tuesdays, 4-6 PM PST.

Lara is an experienced, genuine, and kind instructor. She started with a clear agenda for her Writing Disability in Fiction course—the first of its kind, as far as I know—but quickly pivoted based on our intimate class size and an understanding of where we were all at in our works in progress. She was also incredibly understanding of absences and worked to ensure everyone could still be included and get the most they could out of the course! Her enormous list of vetted book recommendations was very impressive and much appreciated. I’ll be returning to this list again and again as I work my way through my WIP! Lara’s careful attention and in-depth feedback—from callouts of ableist language to line edits and developmental questions—was hugely helpful, and I feel more motivated than ever to finish my WIP and make it the best it can be. So grateful for this course and for Lara’s expertise! ~ Lily Barrett (WOW student)

Taking the Writing Disabled Characters in Fiction course was a fantastic experience! I worked closely with my cohort and the instructor (Lara Ameen), improving my writing immensely. I hope that I can retake the course in the future. My biggest takeaway from the course was learning how to incorporate my disabilities into my characters in such a way that could help someone without a disability get a better grasp on what this disability looks like. Those who write characters with disabilities need to understand affirming ways to express that in their characters. Take this class! You will love it! ~ Cassandra Andresky (WOW student)

Lara’s background in screenwriting helps inform her unique approach to fiction, allowing her to create a cinematic experience for her readers, fully realized, vibrant characters, and heart-pounding plot twists. ~ Lillie Lainoff, author of One for All

Lara’s queer, speculative fiction centers disabled characters and opens doors to fantasy, darkness, and whimsy. I’ve had the pleasure of reading Lara’s work across multiple genres and mediums (novellas, novels, short stories, and screenplays), and am always blown away by the vibrant imagination and depth of characterization. Lara will help students dream up worlds while ensuring characters and their readers are treated with the dignity and adventure they so deserve. ~ Jen St. Jude, author of If Tomorrow Doesn’t Come

Lara was a valuable expert reader for Martin McLean, Middle School Queen by Alyssa Zaczek. She provided detailed feedback on a disabled character who uses a wheelchair as well as guidance on eliminating ableist language from the text. Lara was a pleasure to work with and her notes went above and beyond to strengthen the book. ~ Rachael Stein, Freelance Children's Book Editor, Formerly Editor, Sterling Children's Books

Lara Ameen brings deep expertise and a passion for story to her sensitivity reading. The thoughtful comments and excitement Lara brought to my project, The Way We Haunt Now, helped me add depth to my world building and approach one of my characters with a new perspective. ~ Courtney Floyd, Creator & Showrunner, The Way We Haunt Now Podcast

Hiring Lara Ameen to be a sensitivity reader for The Reckless Kind was one of the best decisions I made. Her insightful feedback not only helped improve the manuscript but helped me grow as a writer. I have no doubt her guidance will inspire aspiring writers in so many ways. ~ Carly Heath, author of The Reckless Kind

WEEKS AT A GLANCE:

Week One: Introduction to Fantasy Fiction and Its Subgenres
We will examine fantasy fiction as a speculative fiction genre and what sets fantasy apart from science fiction and horror.

The excerpts of novels we will examine will be either young adult or adult novels.

We will also examine the subgenres of fantasy, including epic, gothic, historical, magical realism, contemporary/low fantasy, fantasy horror, and fantasy romance/romantasy.

Assignment:

Read Chapters 1&2 of Belladonna by Adalyn Grace (gothic YA fantasy)
You will write and submit two 500-word excerpts, where you are experimenting with writing in the different subgenres of fantasy we discussed in class

Week Two: Creating Your Characters in a Fantasy World
We will examine how to create characters/characterization in a fantasy world.

We will discuss the 500-word excerpts you wrote last week and the first two chapters of Belladonna. We will examine what the author does well in setting up a gothic fantasy world.

Assignment:

Read Chapters 1&2 of Song of Silver, Flame Like Night by Amelie Wen Zhao (epic YA fantasy)
You will brainstorm your fantasy novel idea (either Adult or YA) and bring a one paragraph pitch to class next week

Week Three: Examining Tropes in Fantasy Novels and Outlines
We will examine popular tropes in fantasy novels.

We will discuss the first two chapters of Song of Silver, Flame Like Night and how the author sets up an epic fantasy world. We will discuss and workshop your one paragraph novel pitches and move onto what goes into novel outlines (any format is fine).

Assignment:

Read Chapters 1&2 of The Undetectables by Courtney Smyth (urban/paranormal Adult fantasy)
Write a 3-5-page novel outline for your book (any format, bullet points, or full paragraphs)

Week Four: Writing Your First Chapter
We will discuss the first two chapters of The Undetectables by Courtney Smyth and how the author sets up a paranormal/urban fantasy world. We will discuss and workshop your novel outlines. We will also discuss what goes into writing the first chapter of your fantasy novel.

Assignment:

Read Chapters 1&2 of A Dark and Secret Magic by Wallis Kinney (Adult contemporary/urban fantasy)
Write the first chapter of your fantasy novel.

Week Five: Writing Your Second Chapter
We will discuss the first two chapters of A Dark and Secret Magic by Wallis Kinney and discuss how the author sets up an urban and more contemporary fantasy world. We will discuss and workshop the first chapter of your fantasy novel and discuss what goes into the second chapter.

Assignment:

Read prologue, plus Chapters 1&2 of Legendborn by Tracy Deonn (YA contemporary fantasy)
Revise the first two chapters of your fantasy novel

Week Six: Revising Your First Two Chapters
We will briefly discuss the opening chapters of Legendborn by Tracy Deonn and the way the author sets up a contemporary fantasy world. We will discuss and workshop the second chapter of your fantasy novel and brainstorm how to tackle revisions of the first two chapters.

Assignment:

Read Chapters 1&2 of What the River Knows by Isabel Ibanez (YA historical fantasy)
Revise the first two chapters of your fantasy novel

Week Seven: Writing Your Third Chapter
We will briefly discuss the opening chapters of What the River Knows by Isabel Ibanez and the way the author sets up a historical fantasy world. We will workshop the revisions for your first two chapters and what should go into the third chapter.

Assignment:

No reading this week
Write the third chapter of your fantasy novel

Week Eight: Writing the Rest of Your First Draft
We will workshop your third chapters and discuss where to take your novels from here.

Assignment:

Keep writing your novel!

Materials needed: Computer with Internet access. Access to Zoom. Access to a word processing program and an email account. Please have access to the following books as we will be referring excerpts in class, or they may be part of an assignment. Books may be purchased via Amazon, Bookshop, or Barnes & Noble.

Belladonna by Adalyn Grace

Song of Silver, Flame Like Night by Amelie Wen Zhao

The Undetectables by Courtney Smyth

A Dark and Secret Magic by Wallis Kinney

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn

What the River Knows by Isabel Ibanez

Lara Ameen is a screenwriter, novelist, short fiction writer, sensitivity/authenticity reader, and holds a PhD in education with a disability studies emphasis from Chapman University. She received an MFA in screenwriting from California State University, Northridge. Her YA contemporary fantasy novel, SPAER, was awarded a disabled writers’ grant from Suffering the Silence, longlisted in Voyage YA's First Chapters Contest, and their Book Pitch Contest. A 2022 Lambda Literary Screenwriting Fellow, 2022 Mentorship Matters TV Writing Program Finalist, and a 2022 NBC Launch TV Writing Program Finalist, she was a 2023 Screenwriting Mentee as part of 1in4 Coalition’s mentorship program for disabled screenwriters. She is a 2021 alum of the Tin House YA Workshop and 2021 and 2024 alum of the Futurescapes Writers' Workshop. She was also a mentor for Round Table Mentor in 2024, a program dedicated to bringing diversity and equity into publishing and will return as a mentor in 2025. As a writing instructor and freelance fiction editor for Women on Writing, she believes in uplifting marginalized writers across all backgrounds. Her short fiction has been published in Prismatica Magazine, Disabled Voices Anthology, Flash Fiction Magazine, Drunk Monkeys, just femme & dandy, Hairstreak Butterfly Review, and elsewhere. She made her traditional publishing debut as a contributor to the 2024 Lambda Literary finalist Young Adult multi-genre anthology Being Ace, published by Page Street YA.

COST: $210, which includes eight live Zoom classes, instructor feedback, group workshopping, and discussions.

BUY NOW: Writing Fantasy Fiction with Lara Ameen (8 weeks, starting 5/13/2025) Limit: 8 students. Early registration is recommended.

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Notes: Upon successful completion of payment, your name, email address, and contact info will be submitted to your instructor.

Questions? Email Marcia & Angela at:
classroom[at]wow-womenonwriting[dot]com

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