Writing and Appreciating the Short Story: A Fiction Intensive with Kim Suhr

Contrary to popular belief, a short story isn’t simply a short version of a novel or a long piece of flash fiction. The short story is its own art form with its own nuance and emphasis. Edgar Allen Poe spoke of the form as providing “a single and unique effect” and believed that every word must be in service to that effect–more in line with poetry, maybe, than other types of prose writing. In this weeklong intensive, we’ll discuss selected example stories, practice writing techniques and exercises, and have an opportunity to give and receive feedback on work in progress.

Class meets in person, Monday – Friday, March 16 – 20, 2026, 9 am – noon

Class size: minimum 5, maximum 12.

Member discount: Members of Write On receive a 10% discount on all classes and workshops. To become a member, please click here. To receive the discount, members must log in to the website using their unique password and enter member10 in the promotion code box. The code is case sensitive.

Teaching artist: Kim Suhr is the Director of Red Oak Writing and the author of the story collections, Close Call (2024) and Nothing to Lose (2018), both from Wisconsin publisher Cornerstone Press. She leads critique groups, teaches craft and publishing workshops, and provides manuscript critiques and coaching for individual clients. Her work has appeared in many journals, including Wisconsin People & Ideas, Midwest Review, Stonecoast Review, and Solstice Lit. Her story, “Play-School,” received the Wisconsin Writers Association Jade Ring award in 2024. She holds an MFA from the Solstice program where she was the Dennis Lehane Fellow in Fiction.