Introduction to Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy
A course by Andrea Chapela , Science Fiction and Fantasy Writer
Joined November 2020
Discover how to develop your ideas and build literary worlds with writing structures and techniques that can transport your readers
Discover how to develop your ideas and build literary worlds with writing structures and techniques that can transport your readers
Joined November 2020
Fantasy and science fiction writing is rooted in the art of world-building, which involves creating a fictional universe where a story takes place. Award-winning writer Andrea Chapela has unraveled magical worlds of her own in her Vâudïz tetralogy series and other short stories, which earned her international recognition throughout Latin America, Spain, and the United States.
In this course, discover how to build a fictional universe of your own design and bring it to life on paper through a compelling story. Discover the elements of speculative fiction and how to incorporate them into world-building. Explore the golden rules of writing science fiction and fantasy to create a page-turning world that transports your readers to another dimension.
What will you learn in this online course?
19 lessons & 45 downloads
- 98% positive reviews (503)
- 23,336 students
- 19 lessons (3h 44m)
- 45 additional resources (2 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: English, Turkish
- English · Spanish · Portuguese · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
What is this course's project?
Write a fantasy or sci-fi short story based on speculative fiction and set in a fictional world of your design.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
This course is great for writers, both professional and hobbyists, who want to write a story set in another world or anyone who wants to explore science fiction or fantasy writing.
Requirements and materials
No previous experience is necessary
To take this course, you only need something to write with, whether it be a notebook or a computer. The most important tool is your imagination.
Reviews
A course by Andrea Chapela
Andrea Chapela is a Mexican science fiction and fantasy writer, and author of the fantasy tetralogy Vâudïz (La heredera, El creador, La cuentista and El cuento). She studied Chemistry at UNAM, and has a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from the University of Iowa. Andrea has also written the essay collection Grados de miopía, and the short story collections Un año de servicio a la habitación and Ansibles, perfiladores y otras máquinas de ingenio.
She is the recipient of numerous awards like the National Gilberto Owen Literature Prize for Stories in 2018, the National Juan José Arreola Literature Prize in 2019, and the National Joven José Luis Martínez Essay Prize in 2019. She has been a FONCA scholar twice (2016-2017 for stories and 2019-2020 for novels) and a scholar at the Ayuntamiento de Madrid. Currently, she teaches workshops, language classes, and contributes to magazines like Este País, Literal Magazine, Vaso Cósmico, and Tierra Adentro.
Content
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U1
Introduction
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About Me
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Influences
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U2
Finding an Idea
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What Is Speculative Fiction?
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Where Do Ideas Come From?
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How to Pay Attention and Ask Questions?
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How to Develop Your Notebook?
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How to Stop Caring about Originality?
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U3
How to Build a World
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What Is Worldbuilding?
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How to Go from Little to Extremely Different?
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How to Build a Second-World?
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Do We Have to Choose between Magic and Technology? 1
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Do We Have to Choose between Magic and Technology? 2
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What Is Worldbuilder Disease and How to Avoid It?
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U4
Writing a Story
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How to Find a Story?
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What’s the Shape of Your Story?
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Who Tells the Story?
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How to Avoid Infodumping?
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U5
Keep on Working
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How to Make a Story Better?
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What’s Next?
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FP
Final project
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Introduction to Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy
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What to expect from a Domestika course
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Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
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Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
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Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
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Certificates
PlusIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
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Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
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Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
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Connect with a global creative community
The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.
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Watch professionally produced courses
Domestika curates its teacher roster and produces every course in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience.
FAQs
Domestika's courses are online classes that provide you with the tools and skills you need to complete a specific project. Every step of the project combines video lessons with complementary instructional material, so you can learn by doing. Domestika's courses also allow you to share your own projects with the teacher and with other students, creating a dynamic course community.
All courses are 100% online, so once they're published, courses start and finish whenever you want. You set the pace of the class. You can go back to review what interests you most and skip what you already know, ask questions, answer questions, share your projects, and more.
The courses are divided into different units. Each one includes lessons, informational text, tasks, and practice exercises to help you carry out your project step by step, with additional complementary resources and downloads. You'll also have access to an exclusive forum where you can interact with the teacher and with other students, as well as share your work and your course project, creating a community around the course.
You can redeem the course you received by accessing the redeeming page and entering your gift code.
michbjork
The tutor appears to be an extremely kind, nice and dedicated person and author. The course is for beginners. I am not. I have, for instance, already a sci-fi with 130,000 page. So I did not lear anything, really. But the course was so pleasant and the tutor so interesting that I took the course nevertheless.
Will highly recommend it to beginners and to people who feel lost in their writing processes.
Well done, Andrea Chapela, and keep up the good work!
Kind regards from Michael/Denmark
michelle.charlotten
Great course. Really helped me understand the theory and structure of writing. I am walking away with lots of tools and full of ideas.
ysreydecastro
PlusBuena explicación y buenas referencias bibliográficas!
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demarccoisis
Gostei demais desse curso, recomendo.
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taqarrabie
PlusShe really knows what she's talking about and she describes everything in a comprehensive and easily-understood manner! Favorite!