Adventure Writing Course

Five Weeks

November 10-December 15
(Break for Thanksgiving Week)

Meet Live via Zoom

2 hours on Tuesdays from 4:00-6:00 PT/7:00-9:00 ET

$475. Limit 10 participants.

Learn. Write. Receive feedback. Emerge on a path to publication.

Adventure is one of the most fun genres to write. It’s also a container for exploring big and culturally relevant themes from climate change, public lands and politics, to trauma, healing, community and hope. Adventure is one of the main ways that we explore the natural world, how we make sense of awe and fear, and an avenue to ultimately understanding our place in the world. And note that "adventure" doesn't have to be synonymous with high adrenaline epics or risk-taking. An adventure can be tubing down the river with a beer. Or a major life change that caught you unawares. It’s a big umbrella. 

The question is: how do you break through the noise of our current content-heavy moment? How do you write gripping pieces that reach mainstream audiences? How do you craft stories that people not only want to read, but can’t put down? And how do you get those stories published?

The Workshop Course

In this live course, we will:

• Read short excerpts of great published works to learn about craft and narrative engines, including structure, action, pacing, arc, and emotional depth.

• Learn how to couch bigger issues inside compelling, and often edge-of-the-seat, stories.

• Write based on prompts.

• Discuss how to find editors, develop relationships, and write a killer pitch.

• You will write (or submit one already written) nonfiction piece or excerpt of a larger piece, anywhere from 500 to 1500 words. Style can be memoir, personal essay, researched essay, narrative journalism, profile, or any other frame you want that utilizes immersive scenes, vivid landscapes, complex characters (including yourself, in first-person), and compelling journeys, both interior and exterior.

Each student will receive feedback from the group, and from me, on your written piece to help put it on a path to publishing. By the end of the course, you’ll have one workshopped draft and the start of a few more.

Who Is This Course For?

This course is designed for people who’ve only dabbled in writing, as well as experienced writers who want to learn something new about craft, find inspiration from others, and workshop their writing.

Feel like you’re not an adventure writer, and just want to write in general? The tenets of this class - killer structure, compelling arc, gripping narrative - can apply to other genres of writing as well. All kinds of writers are welcome.

About Your Instructor

Hi, I’m Cassidy. I’m an award-winning author and journalist writing on adventure, environment, and the West, and the Kittredge Distinguished Visiting Writer at the University of Montana. My latest book, Thirty Below: The Harrowing and Heroic Story of the First All-Women’s Ascent of Denali, won the Banff Mountain Grand Prize, was long-listed for the Reading the West award, and named one of The Washington Post’s Noteworthy Books of the Month.

My first book, The Hard Parts with Paralympian Oksana Masters, won an Alex Award from the American Library Association and was listed as one of the best sports books of the year by The Times.

My journalism has appeared in Esquire, Rolling Stone, National Geographic,  New York Times, TIME, Women’s Health, Outside, and Men’s Journal, among others. My work has been awarded Lowell Thomas Gold Medals in Adventure Travel Writing, short listed for The True Story Award, and twice anthologized in The Year’s Best Sports Writing.

Dates

November 10-December 15

This 5-week class meets on Zoom for 2 hours on Tuesdays from 4:00-6:00 PT/7:00-9:00 with a break for Thanksgiving week.

Pricing 

$475/person. Limit 10 students.

Register:

If the registration link gives you trouble (sigh, websites), you can Venmo me at @Cassidy-Randall-2.
Questions? Email me at cassidy@cassidyrandall.com

Cancellation Policy

Course payment is fully refundable through October 13, then 50% refundable through October 27. Course is non-refundable beginning October 28.