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How Do They Do It?
In this new workshop series, we’ll do a deep dive into a popular novel that made it big—and look for the “secret sauce” that made it work so well. Then, each week, you’ll get the chance to try your hand at every technique or approach revealed.
Ever get to the end of a novel and wonder just how the author did it – built mind-blowing tension, transported you to a whole new universe, or created such an irresistible character that you couldn’t help but fall in love? In this new workshop series, we’ll do a deep dive into a popular novel that made it big—and look for the “secret sauce” that made it work so well. Then, each week, you’ll get the chance to try your hand at every technique or approach revealed, with personal feedback from the instructor. Get ready to add new tools to your writers toolbox – and to begin to use them with confidence and insight.
For the summer session, we’ll be delving into Bonnie Garmus's wildly successful debut novel LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY. Participants should prepare by reading the full novel before the first class session.
Who Should Take This Class?
Writers working on fiction, linked short stories, memoir, and nonfiction book manuscripts.
Instructor
Barbara Josselsohn
Writing Institute Instructor
Barbara Josselsohn is an award-winning author who loves crafting stories about strong protagonists facing a fork in the road. She is the author of the best-selling Sisters of War series, set on the Mediterranean coast during the darkest days of World War 2. The series includes three novels: THE FORGOTTEN ITALIAN RESTAURANT, THE LOST GIFT TO THE ITALIAN ISLAND and SECRETS OF THE ITALIAN ISLAND. Her previous, contemporary novels include THE LILAC HOUSE, THE BLUEBELL GIRLS, THE LILY GARDEN, THE CRANBERRY INN, and THE LAST DREAMER. She has also written hundreds of articles and essays in major and regional publications about family, home and relationships, and she teaches novel writing at The Writing Institute at Sarah Lawrence College, at Westport Writers Workshop, at the Scarsdale Library, and privately. She lives just north of New York City and enjoys escaping to the beach or the mountains whenever she can. Other than writing, her biggest passion is her family: her husband, her three kids, and her rescue pup, a mini-schnauzer named Albie. She is currently at work on a new World War 2 novel set in France, which is set to release in the summer of 2025.