UNC Asheville Pre-College Program: Great Smokies Young Writers Workshop 2: Nature-Based Poetry & Worldbuilding 101 Recently Updated

Hone your literary skills through workshops with experienced local authors and poets. Generate new pieces, revise works-in-progress and critique works of others in a collaborative workshop setting.

Nature-Based Poetry: What does it mean to be a nature-based poetry writer? In this creative writing workshop, participants will learn how to incorporate aspects of nature into their poems through prompts. They’ll read samples from established poets to explore the techniques that writers have used to create compelling works. In addition to craft, participants will gain knowledge in using their senses not only to write well, but also to pay close attention to the non-human beings teeming with life or endangered in the natural world.

Worldbuilding 101: You’ve got your characters developed, with compelling backstories and witty banter. You have a compelling plot, sure to keep your readers breathlessly turning pages. All that’s left is everything else: the physical, cultural, socio-economic, and temporal setting. When and where does this story take place. This class will work on world building, the process of creating a believable setting for your story. This might mean creating whole cultures and political systems for a fantasy or sci-fi story, or the intricacies of a local high school for a realistic YA. But the process and techniques are the same. We’ll analyze a range of examples of setting in fiction, and then work on our own world building skills. Students will receive feedback from the instructor and fellow writers, revising towards 5-8 pages of prose focusing on setting.

• June 22 - 27, 2025
• $1,440
• Scholarships are available through Great Smokies Writing Program
• Price includes lodging, meals, all course materials, activities, and excursions
• A $500 deposit is due upon registration with remaining balance due by May 1.
• Students reside in campus residence hall and dine in campus dining hall
• Enrollment is open until spaces are filled