Sackett Street Writers

5,000 creative writers since 2002 in NYC & ONLINE

Class Schedule

Sackett Street workshops are limited to eight writers and meet in private spaces in Brooklyn, in the instructors’ homes NYC-wide, and online. Every class includes the opportunity to have work critiqued in class, written feedback from both the instructor and classmates, and private consultations with the instructor.

A $250 deposit is required to reserve a spot (refundable up to two weeks before the class start date). To register, please complete the application and include a sample of work (1500-2000 words).

All returning writers receive a discount – $25 discount for writers returning for a second workshop and $50 discount for writers returning for a third or more workshop.

Looking for ONLINE CLASSES?

Check out our Online Workshops in Fiction, Creative Nonfiction and Novel Intensive!

Not sure what class is right for you?

Submit an application and we’ll let you know!

6-week Creative Nonfiction Writing I/II – begins 7.10.19 – taught by Brian Gresko in Williamsburg

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A writing sample is not required for this class. Please fill out an application with your contact info.

Through group discussion of student work, plus that of published authors, writers in this workshop will examine the art and craft of creative nonfiction. The focus will be on learning to understand and use a full range of literary techniques in order to tell a truly compelling nonfiction story. Topics such as the use of dialogue, the creation of scene, attention to style and how to craft structure from true events will be discussed. Participants will also spend time talking about the particular responsibilities that come with writing creative nonfiction. In-class writing prompts will be used to inspire and motivate students to produce new work.

This workshop is open to writers working on memoir, personal essays or in-depth journalism.

A private conference with the instructor is included.

Instructor: Brian Gresko
Begins: Wednesday, July 10, 2019
Day/Time:  Wednesdays 7:30pm – 9:30pm
Location: Williamsburg
Fee: $495

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Brian Gresko is the editor of When I First Held You: 22 Critically Acclaimed Writers Talk About the Triumphs, Challenges, and Transformative Experience of Fatherhood. His short fiction has appeared on Joyland Magazine and Vol. 1 Brooklyn, and his essays, interviews, and criticism have appeared in numerous publications, including Salon, The Atlantic, VICE, Guernica Magazine, the Literary Hub, the Los Angeles Review of Books, The Brooklyn Rail, and Poets & Writers Magazine. He runs the “authors in conversation” series for Slice Literary Magazine, and is the co-host of Pete’s Reading Series. Brian received his MFA in Creative Writing from The New School, and studied film and literary theory at Oberlin College.

6-week Fiction Writing I/II – begins 7.8.19 – taught by Khaliah Williams in Park Slope

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A writing sample is not necessary to apply for this workshop. Please fill out name, contact info, and writing/writing class experience fields below.

In this workshop, writers will learn how to manipulate the tools of fiction-writing (point-of-view, plot, characterizing detail, tone, etc.) to craft complete and unique stories that engage the reader. In-class critiques and exercises, as well as lectures and feedback from the instructor, are used to help students further develop their writing. This course is intended for writers with some writing experience who are looking to learn more about what makes a story, “a story.”

A private conference with the instructor is included.

Instructor: Khaliah Williams
Begins: July 8, 2019
Day/Time: Mondays 7:30pm – 9:30pm
Location: Park Slope
Fee: $495

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Khaliah Williams is a graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and received her MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Her fiction has been published in Hawaii Women’s Journal, Frontier Psychiatrist, and Day One, and her non-fiction at Buzzfeed, American Short Fiction and Book Country. She is a current fellow at the Kimbilio Center for African American Fiction and an Instructor and Advisory Board member of Writers in Baltimore School. Originally from Philadelphia, she lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.  She is at work on a novel and collection of short stories.

6-week Writing Sprints: A generative class for fiction & nonfiction writers – begins wk of 7.8.19 – Park Slope

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A writing sample is not required to register for this class. Please fill out an application with your contact info.

Writing Sprints is an exercise-intensive course designed to “unstick” writers struggling to start or continue new projects, boosting writing productivity.  The course relies heavily on in-class writing exercises, as well as weekly writing share-outs.  Students will be expected to read out loud; participate in in-class writing exercises; and produce approximately 5-8 pages of new writing EACH week for group feedback.

Begins: week of July 8, 2019
Day/Time: weeknight tbd 7:30-9:30pm
Instructor: tbd
Location: Park Slope
Fee: $450.00

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6-week Master Fiction Writing (Level III) – begins 7.23.19 – taught by Ted Thompson in Park Slope

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A writing sample is required for this class. Please fill out an application with your contact info, writing experience and a writing sample.

Writers participating in this selective workshop will learn to recognize successful techniques in their fiction–what engages the reader, and how that success is achieved. In-class discussions will focus on analyzing student work, particularly the many choices (point-of-view, tone, detail, pacing, etc.) a writer must make concerning structure, character and language. Each writer will have two opportunities to have his or her work critiqued in class (up to 25 pages each time) and will receive typed feedback from both the instructor and his or her classmates.

A private conference with the instructor is included.

This course is intended for writers who have extensive writing and workshopping experience.

Begins: July 23, 2019
Day/ Time: Tuesdays 7:30pm – 9:30pm
Instructor: Ted Thompson
Location: Park Slope
Fee: $495.00

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Ted Thompson is the author of The Land of Steady Habits, which was published by Little, Brown in 2014 and was a finalist for the Center for Fiction Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize. The novel is being adapted by Nicole Holofcener for a feature film starring Ben Mendelsohn, Edie Falco and Connie Britton, to be released in late 2017. His short stories have been published in Tin House, American Short Fiction, One Teen Story and Best New American Voices, and he’s had fellowships from the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference and the MacDowell Colony. A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, Ted has proudly taught for Sackett for over six years, as well as at Amherst College and in the Brooklyn College MFA program. He lives in Brooklyn with his family.

20-wk Manuscript Generator (meets every other week) – for writers working on novels, memoirs, story and/or essay collections – begins 7.17.19 – Stuyvesant Heights, Brooklyn

By

This generative workshop meets ten times total, and every OTHER week. Students have the opportunity to hand in chapters (up to 5000 words pages) every other week, and receive feedback from the instructor on these pages. The workshop is open to writers working on novels, memoirs, story and/or essay collections. Writers participating in this course will learn how to recognize the successful techniques in their writing – what engages the reader, and how that success is achieved. In-class discussions will focus on analyzing the many choices (point-of-view, tone, characterizing details, pacing, etc.) a writer must make concerning structure, character and language. This course is intended for writers who have some experience writing and workshopping.

Begins: Wednesday, July 17, 2019
Day/Time:  Wednesdays (class meets every other week) 7pm – 9pm
Instructor: Heather Aimee O’Neill
Location: Stuyvesant Heights, Brooklyn
Fee: $1350.00

APPLY NOW

Heather Aimee O’Neill has worked with hundreds of novelists in Sackett Street’s popular Novel Intensive Workshop (online and in Brooklyn). A novelist, essayist and poet, her most recent collection of poetry, Obliterations, is co-authored with Jessica Piazza and forthcoming by Red Hen Press. A recent Lambda Literary Poetry Fellow, her poetry chapbook, Memory Future, won the University of Southern California’s Gold Line Press Award, chosen by judge Carol Muske-Dukes. She is a freelance writer for publications such as Time Out New York, Parents Magazine and Salon.com.

8-week Fiction Writing I/II – begins 9.11.19 – taught by Kyle McCarthy in Park Slope

By

A writing sample is not necessary to apply for this workshop. Please fill out name, contact info, and writing/writing class experience fields below.

In this workshop, writers will learn how to manipulate the tools of fiction-writing (point-of-view, plot, characterizing detail, tone, etc.) to craft complete and unique stories that engage the reader. In-class critiques and exercises, as well as lectures and feedback from the instructor, are used to help students further develop their writing. This course is intended for writers with some writing experience who are looking to learn more about what makes a story, “a story.”

A private conference with the instructor is included.

Instructor: Kyle McCarthy
Begins: September 11, 2019
Day/Time: Wednesdays 7:30pm – 9:30pm
Location: Park Slope
Fee: $595

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Kyle McCarthy’s work has appeared in Best American Short Stories 2017, American Short Fiction, the Harvard Review, Southwest Review, and the Los Angeles Review of Books. A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, she lives in Brooklyn, New York. Her debut novel, Everyone Knows How Much I Love You, will be published by Ballantine Books in 2020.

8-week Master Fiction Writing (Level III) – begins week of 9.9.19 – Park Slope

By

A writing sample is required for this class. Please fill out an application with your contact info, writing experience and a writing sample.

Writers participating in this selective workshop will learn to recognize successful techniques in their fiction–what engages the reader, and how that success is achieved. In-class discussions will focus on analyzing student work, particularly the many choices (point-of-view, tone, detail, pacing, etc.) a writer must make concerning structure, character and language. Each writer will have two opportunities to have his or her work critiqued in class (up to 25 pages each time) and will receive typed feedback from both the instructor and his or her classmates.

A private conference with the instructor is included.

This course is intended for writers who have extensive writing and workshopping experience.

Begins: week of September 9, 2019
Day/ Time: tbd 7:30pm – 9:30pm
Instructor: tbd
Location: Park Slope
Fee: $595.00

APPLY NOW

8-week Advanced Creative Nonfiction (level II/III) – begins wk of 9.9.19 – taught by Michele Filgate in Park Slope

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Through group discussion of student work, plus that of published authors, writers in this workshop will examine the art and craft of creative nonfiction. The focus will be on learning to understand and use a full range of literary techniques in order to tell a truly compelling nonfiction story. Topics such as the use of dialogue, the creation of scene, attention to style and how to craft structure from true events will be discussed. Participants will also spend time talking about the particular responsibilities that come with writing creative nonfiction. This workshop is open to writers working on memoir, personal essays or in-depth journalism. Writers should have some writing and writing class experience.

A writing sample is required to register for this class.

A private conference with the instructor is included.

Instructor: Michele Filgate
Begins: week of September 9, 2019
Day/Time: weeknight tbd 7:30pm – 9:30pm
Location: Park Slope
Fee: $595

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Michele Filgate is a contributing editor at Literary Hub. Her work has appeared in Longreads, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, Refinery29, Slice, The Paris Review Daily, Tin House, Gulf Coast, The Rumpus, Salon, Interview Magazine, Buzzfeed, The Barnes & Noble Review, Poets & Writers, CNN.com, Fine Books & Collections Magazine, DAME Magazine, The Brooklyn Quarterly, Time Out New York, People, The Daily Beast, O, The Oprah Magazine, Men’s Journal, Vulture, Vol. 1 Brooklyn, The Star Tribune, The Quarterly Conversation, The Brooklyn Rail, and other publications. She is the founder of the Red Ink series. In 2016, Brooklyn Magazine named her one of “The 100 Most Influential People in Brooklyn Culture.” Michele is currently at work on an anthology called What My Mother and I Don’t Talk About, forthcoming from Simon & Schuster in 2019.

8-wk Creative Nonfiction I/II – begins 9.9.19 – taught by Yahdon Israel in Park Slope

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A writing sample is not required for this class. Please fill out an application with your contact info.

Through group discussion of student work, plus that of published authors, writers in this workshop will examine the art and craft of creative nonfiction. The focus will be on learning to understand and use a full range of literary techniques in order to tell a truly compelling nonfiction story. Topics such as the use of dialogue, the creation of scene, attention to style and how to craft structure from true events will be discussed. Participants will also spend time talking about the particular responsibilities that come with writing creative nonfiction. In-class writing prompts will be used to inspire and motivate students to produce new work.

This workshop is open to writers working on memoir, personal essays or in-depth journalism.

A private conference with the instructor is included.

Instructor: Yahdon Israel
Begins: Monday, September 9, 2019
Day/Time:  Mondays 7:30pm – 9:30pm
Location: Park Slope
Fee: $595

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 Yahdon Israel is a writer from Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn who has written for Avidly, The New Inquiry, Brooklyn Magazine, LitHub, and Poets and Writers. He graduated from the MFA Creative Non-Fiction Writing program at the New School and is the Awards and Membership VP of the National Book Critics Circle. Yahdon runs a popular Instagram page which promotes literature and fashion under the hashtag Literaryswag, and hosts a web show for writers called LIT. Yahdon is the Editor-in-Chief of Brooklyn Magazine.

8-week Master Fiction Workshop – begins 9.9.19 – taught by Austin Ratner in Park Slope

By

A writing sample is required for this class. Please fill out an application with your contact info, writing experience and a writing sample.

Writers participating in this course will learn to recognize successful techniques in their fiction–what engages the reader, and how that success is achieved. In-class discussions will focus on analyzing student work, particularly the many choices (point-of-view, tone, detail, pacing, etc.) a writer must make concerning structure, character and language. Each writer will have two opportunities to have his or her work critiqued in class (up to 25 pages each time) and will receive typed feedback from both the instructor and his or her classmates.

A private conference with the instructor is included. This course is intended for writers who have extensive writing and workshopping experience.

Begins: week of September 9, 2019
Day/ Time: weeknight tbd 7:30pm – 9:30pm
Instructor: Austin Ratner
Location: Park Slope
Fee: $595.00

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Austin Ratner is the author of the novels In the Land of the Living and The Jump Artist, winner of the Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature. His non-fiction has appeared in The New York Times Magazine andThe Wall Street Journal and his short fiction has been honored with the Missouri Review Editors’ Prize. He attended the University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop and received his M.D. from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He is co-author of the textbook Concepts in Medical Physiology.

20-wk Manuscript Generator (meets every other week) – for writers working on novels, memoirs, story and/or essay collections – begins 9.18.19 – Stuyvesant Heights, Brooklyn

By

This generative workshop meets ten times total, and every OTHER week. Students have the opportunity to hand in chapters (up to 5000 words pages) every other week, and receive feedback from the instructor on these pages. The workshop is open to writers working on novels, memoirs, story and/or essay collections. Writers participating in this course will learn how to recognize the successful techniques in their writing – what engages the reader, and how that success is achieved. In-class discussions will focus on analyzing the many choices (point-of-view, tone, characterizing details, pacing, etc.) a writer must make concerning structure, character and language. This course is intended for writers who have some experience writing and workshopping.

Begins: Wednesday, September 18, 2019
Day/Time:  Wednesdays (class meets every other week) 7pm – 9pm
Instructor: Heather Aimee O’Neill
Location: Stuyvesant Heights, Brooklyn
Fee: $1350.00

APPLY NOW

Heather Aimee O’Neill has worked with hundreds of novelists in Sackett Street’s popular Novel Intensive Workshop (online and in Brooklyn). A novelist, essayist and poet, her most recent collection of poetry, Obliterations, is co-authored with Jessica Piazza and forthcoming by Red Hen Press. A recent Lambda Literary Poetry Fellow, her poetry chapbook, Memory Future, won the University of Southern California’s Gold Line Press Award, chosen by judge Carol Muske-Dukes. She is a freelance writer for publications such as Time Out New York, Parents Magazine and Salon.com.

6-week Fiction II/III – begins 7.11.19 – taught by Chandler Klang Smith – Upper West Side

By

A writing sample is required for this class. Please fill out an application with your contact info and writing sample.

Writers participating in this course will learn to recognize successful techniques in their fiction–what engages the reader, and how that success is achieved. In-class discussions will focus on analyzing student work, particularly the many choices (point-of-view, tone, detail, pacing, etc.) a writer must make concerning structure, character and language. Each writer will have two opportunities to have his or her work critiqued in class (up to 25 pages each time) and will receive typed feedback from both the instructor and his or her classmates.

A private conference with the instructor is included. This course is intended for writers who have writing and workshopping experience.

 

Instructor: Chandler Klang Smith Begins: July 11, 2019 Day/Time: Thursdays 7:30pm – 9:30pm Location: Upper West Side Fee: $495

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  Chandler Klang Smith is a graduate of the MFA creative writing program at Columbia University. Her new novel The Sky Is Yours (Hogarth/Crown, 2018) was listed by Entertainment Weekly as a “Best New Book.” The Wall Street Journal called it “mesmeric… a great and disturbing debut,” and NPR described it as “a wickedly satirical synthesis that underlines just how fractured our own realities can be during periods of fear, unrest, inequality and instability.” Chandler has worked as an editorial assistant at literary agencies and as a ghostwriter. She is currently serving as a juror for the Shirley Jackson Awards for the second year in a row. She teaches and tutors in New York City.

6-week Advanced Creative Nonfiction (II/III) – begins 7.11.19 – taught by Xeni Fragakis in Brooklyn Heights

By

Through group discussion of student work, plus that of published authors, writers in this workshop will examine the art and craft of creative nonfiction. The focus will be on learning to understand and use a full range of literary techniques in order to tell a truly compelling nonfiction story. Topics such as the use of dialogue, the creation of scene, attention to style and how to craft structure from true events will be discussed. Participants will also spend time talking about the particular responsibilities that come with writing creative nonfiction. This workshop is open to writers working on memoir, personal essays or in-depth journalism. Writers should have some writing and writing class experience.

A writing sample is required to register for this class.

A private conference with the instructor is included.

Instructor: Xeni Fragakis
Begins: Thursday, July 11, 2019
Day/Time: Thursdays 7:30pm – 9:30pm
Location: Brooklyn Heights
Fee: $495

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Xeni Fragakis received her BA in English from Yale University and her MFA in Nonfiction Writing from the University of Iowa. At Iowa, she was awarded an Iowa Arts Fellowship and taught Creative Nonfiction. Her work has appeared in The New York Times and Salon, and she is a winner of the Moth GrandSLAM Championship.