The Art of Creating the Fictive Dream

University-level study and support

During your time on the Oxford University Summer School for Adults you will:

• Study in small seminar groups with no more than 12 students, guided by expert tutors
• Receive two one-to-one tutorials
• Have the opportunity to attend guest lectures and participate in social events
• Have access to the on-site Bodleian Library and IT facilities
• Gain experience of studying at university level
• Develop new skills
• Experience a friendly and supportive learning environment
• Connect with a global community of lifelong learners

Seminars

Participants are taught in small seminar groups of up to 12 students, and receive two one-on-one tutorials with their tutor.

Sunday

Seminar 1:

Introductions. Course overview and in-course assignment setting.

We discuss the fictive dream, its exciting effect on the reader, and then we begin to identify its component parts.

Sensory and free-writing exercises follow, to sharpen our awareness and open up our range.

Seminar 2:

Location 1 – Worldbuilding. We’ll look at how to drop the reader immediately into a vivid specific scene, and how to incorporate key details that resonate to imply the wider world, familiarising the reader with an unfamiliar place or vice-versa. We’ll examine extracts from a wide variety of sources and develop skills in creating our own worlds with precision and immediacy.

Monday

Seminar 3:

Location 2 – Location and character. We close in on the precise worlds of the characters and how they inhabit and react to them. We also look at dream shifts and how to switch from one location to another with equal impact for both. ‘Core objects’ writing exercises follow, to examine how the descriptions we offer the reader can be emotionally revealing of the character’s current situation and mindset.

Seminar 4:

We workshop our writing with a focus on locations – the wider world and the immediate surroundings.

Tuesday

Seminar 5:

The Fictive Dream and Voice Session 1 – Emotional (Psychic) Distance. We will experiment with moving the narrative closer to and further from the character’s interior world, to learn how to use this range to best engage the reader at all times. We’ll also look at the dream shift from one character to another, and how to keep the reader hooked through the transition.

Seminar 6:

We workshop our writing with a focus on emotional/psychic distance.

Wednesday

Seminar 7:

Voice Session 2 – Tone of voice. A close look at how every word chosen, every sentence’s rhythm sends a message to the reader about the characters and their world. Through a series of bold experimental exercises, we will free up and expand our vocal range, then apply this new knowledge to our current work in progress.

Seminar 8:

Workshopping our writing with a focus on vocal tone and range.

Thursday 

Seminar 9:

Pageturners. We explore how to lure readers in and keep them engaged through a series of hooks and seeds; we discuss the difference between the two techniques and the payoff for the reader of in-jokes and easter-eggs.

Today’s writing exercises play around with boldness and subtlety in hooking and seeding.

Again, we will also draw on extracts from a wide range of mainstream, literary and genre prose for small group analysis and class discussion.

Seminar 10:

Workshopping our writing with a focus on how to introduce and develop hooks and seeds.

Friday

Seminar 11:

Momentum. What gives a quiet novel pace? An experimental novel coherence? A genre novel propulsion? We look at how pace and structure can keep the fictive dream alive, keeping the action pacy yet credible and allowing readers to invest their own imagination and sleuthing power to the story.

Seminar 12:

Troubleshooting. Our final session is a Q&A to address any aspects of the fictive dream which are not yet clear. We will also look at common mistakes and misuse of the fictive dream and how to avoid them.

We will end by reviewing what we’ve learned and create individual plans for developing the fictive dream within our current work-in-progress.

Programme timetable

The daily timetable will normally be as follows:

Saturday

14.00–16.30: Registration

16.30–17.00: Orientation meeting

17.00–17.30: Classroom orientation for tutor and students

17.30–18.00: Drinks reception

18.00–20.00: Welcome dinner

Sunday – Friday

09.00–10.30: Seminar

10.30–11.00: Tea/coffee break

11.00–12.30: Seminar

12.30–13.30: Lunch

13.30–18.00: Afternoons are free for tutorials, individual study, course-related field trips or exploring the many places of interest in and around Oxford.

18.00–19.00: Dinner (there is a formal gala dinner every Friday to close each week of the programme).

Social programme

A range of optional social events will be offered throughout the summer school. These are likely to include a quiz night, a visit to historic pubs in Oxford, a visit to Christ Church for Evensong, and after-dinner talks and discussions.

Beyond the summer school, Oxford is a vibrant and cosmopolitan city with a busy cultural and social scene offering a wide variety of plays and shows, concerts, films and exhibitions.

Residential options are outlined below.

Please see the ‘how to enrol’ section below for guidance on how to book or request the right accommodation for you.

Residential option

This includes accommodation and all meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Our central Oxford accommodation combines the character of an historic building with the convenience of a modern hotel. All rooms are located in Wellington Square, a short walk to Oxford city centre, and include tea and coffee making facilities and free Wi-Fi.

View full details of Rewley House accommodation.

Non-residential option

We also offer places on a non-residential basis whereby participants can take classes and have meals (lunch and dinner) at Rewley House, having arranged their own accommodation elsewhere.

Course aims

This course aims to:

• Define the fictive dream and its key elements
• Examine how it functions within vastly different prose forms
• Equip writers with craft tools to develop and enhance the fictive dream in their own work.

Course objectives

• Recognise the fictive dream within a wide range of prose styles and analyse how writers have achieved it.
• Understand how to create strong dream-shifts from one location, timeline or character viewpoint to another, so the reader’s interest is held.
• Identify how well their own writing is currently creating a vivid world for the reader to enter.
• Break the fictive dream down into component parts to discover which they most need to focus on in their own development.
• Redraft their own material, using specific craft techniques to draw the reader in subtly and powerfully.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this course, students will have been given the opportunity to understand:

• What the fictive dream is, and how to identify it across genres
• How an author is using it to catch and hold the reader’s attention
• How to adapt their own work to strengthen the impact of the fictive dream
• Where to seek inspiration from other writers and how to use it productively, to continue to deepen their understanding of the value and impact of the fictive dream.

Teaching methods

The teaching methods on this course may include:

• Short lectures/presentations
• Physical handouts
• Seminars/group discussions
• Student presentations
• Video recordings

Participants will attend two one-on-one tutorials with their tutor during the week.

Pre-course assignment and reading

Participants are required to undertake preparatory reading and complete a pre-course assignment of 1,500 words. Although this does not count towards credit, it is seen as an important way of developing your ideas and is mandatory. The pre-course assignment is typically due in the first week of June.

Please see recommended reading (see ‘Books and reading’) for details of preparatory reading and comments from the course tutor.

IT requirements

Students are encouraged to bring a laptop to Oxford to assist them with their studies.

For residential students, wireless internet access is available in all bedrooms; for all students, wireless access is available in communal spaces of the college.

All students will be eligible to use the computers and printer in the computer room at Rewley House.

Assessment methods

You will be assessed during the summer school by either a 1,000 word written assignment or a presentation supported by individual documentation. To successfully gain credit (10 CATS points) students should attend all classes and complete the on-course assignment.

Please see the ‘certification’ section for more details about CATS points.

Ms Susannah Rickards

Susannah Rickards is a widely published and anthologised short story writer, editor and creative writing tutor. Her Hot Kitchen Snow (Pub. Salt) won the International Scott Prize for a debut collection. Other awards include the HG Wells,  Alpine, Commonwealth Broadcasting, Carve USA, Society of Authors, Conan Doyle and shortlistings with Bridport, Mogford, BBC Opening Lines.  

Certificate of Attendance

All participants who complete the course will receive a physical Certificate of Attendance.

Academic credit

OUSSA is an accredited summer school taught at undergraduate level; each one-week course carries 10 CATS (Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme) points at FHEQ (Framework for Higher Education Qualification) Level 4.

CATS points will be awarded to students who attend all classes and complete the on-course assignment to the required standard. Please see the ‘assessment methods’ section below for more details.

Certificate of Higher Education

Credit (CATS points) earned from OUSSA can be transferred towards our flexible Certificate of Higher Education. This part-time, award-bearing course lets you decide what, how and where you study by gaining credit from short courses, including short online courses, in-person weekly classes and OUSSA.

For full details, including transfering credit gained from OUSSA to the programme, see our Certificate of Higher Education programme page.

English language requirements

As students are expected to participate fully in seminar discussions and are required to produce written work, it is important that applicants can demonstrate an appropriate level of proficiency in the four language skills: listening, reading, writing and speaking.

If English is not your first language, you must provide evidence of your proficiency in the form of an original certificate, or a certified copy, that is not more than two years old on the date the summer school starts. You must satisfy one of the following requirements:

• IELTS Academic: minimum overall score of 7.5, with not less than 7.0 in each of the four components
• TOEFL iBT: minimum overall score of 110, with not less than 22 for listening, 24 for reading, 25 for speaking and 24 for writing
• C1 Advanced, formerly known as Cambridge English: Advanced or CAE: minimum overall score of 191, with not less than 185 in each of the four components

For further information on English language qualifications:

• IELTS
• TOEFL
• Cambridge English

The requirement to provide English language test scores may be waived in either of the following circumstances:

• If you have completed a full-time degree-level programme at a recognised institution where teaching and assessment throughout the course was undertaken entirely in English, and the programme was completed with a gap of no more than two academic years to the course to which you are applying. If you studied this course in a country that is not majority English speaking, you will need to provide evidence that the course was taught in English. This can either take the form of a link to the appropriate page of the institution’s website or a statement from the institution confirming this.
• If you have worked for a minimum of two years in a majority English-speaking country where the main language for the role was English, and your role involved daily professional use of each of the four language components: reading, writing, listening and speaking.

Visa requirements

The Department welcomes international students on all its courses. However, it is the responsibility of successful applicants to ensure that they comply with UK immigration law.

If you are not a UK or Irish national, you might need to apply for a visa before coming to the UK, depending on which passport you hold. You can check if you need a visa before coming to the UK on the UK Government’s website. We strongly recommend that you establish whether you will require a visa before submitting your application.

If you do not require a visa to come to the UK for a short period of study, you will need to apply for an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA).

The Programme Administrator will provide non-UK/Irish nationals enrolled on the summer school with a standard-format PDF letter by email confirming enrolment and course details once their fees have been paid in full. These letters are issued on request only.

If you require a visa, you should ensure your summer school application is submitted as early as possible to allow yourself sufficient time to complete the visa application process. See current visa processing times.

For legal reasons, the Programme Administrator is not permitted to provide any visa advice to applicants; any queries should be addressed to student.immigration@admin.ox.ac.uk.

Information about visiting the UK to study is available on the UK Government’s website and Oxford University’s Student Immigration website.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you have taken the necessary steps to enable you to be admitted to the UK. The University takes no responsibility for a visa being denied at any point before or during a course.

Please note that the standard cancellation policy applies in all cases. See ‘Cancellations’ in the section below.

Fees

Payment

All fees are charged on a per week, per person basis.

Please be aware that all payments made via non-UK credit/debit cards and bank accounts are subject to the exchange rate on the day they are processed.

Course change administration fee: please note that course transfers may be permitted in exceptional circumstances; however, in accordance with our Terms and Conditions, an administration fee of £50 will be charged.

Payment terms

• If enrolling online: full payment by credit/debit card at the time of booking
• If submitting an application form: full payment online by credit/debit card or via bank transfer within 30 days of invoice date

Cancellations and refunds

Please see the terms and conditions for our open-access courses.

The Department cannot be held responsible for any costs you may incur in relation to travel or accommodation bookings as a result of a course cancellation, or if you are unable to attend the course for any other reason. You are advised to check the terms and conditions carefully and to purchase travel insurance.

Funding

Concessionary rates are available on a non-residential basis for those that qualify.

The concessionary fee is for non-residential attendance only; participants will then be responsible for finding their own accommodation. For full details, including eligibility, see our OUSSA FAQ page.

Recommended reading

Tutor note

Due to the nature of this course, we will be looking at small extracts of work from a very wide variety of modern classics and contemporary authors. I don’t expect you to read in full every one of these, but we will be looking at extracts from works by Strout, Moshfegh, Lahiri, Saunders, St Aubyn; Herron; Dodie Smith and others. Extracts will be provided in the course notes.

Instead, please find at least one book from each of these bullet points that you loved and couldn’t put down. It does NOT have to be by one of the suggested authors. Some can be books you have already read, but do read one or two new ones, especially outside your normal chosen genres. Don’t persevere with books you dislike. The point is to find ones you can’t put down.

• A mainstream genre novel – bestseller crime, spy, historic or romance writer of fiction or non-fiction (e.g. Anthony Horowitz; Mick Herron; Colleen Hoover; Katherine Rundell; Hallie Rubenhold)
• A book by a bestselling or award-winning experimental prose writer (e.g., George Saunders; Russell Hoban; James Kelman; Eimear McBride; Jon McGregor; Sally Bayley)
• A mainstream contemporary bestselling realist literary novel or memoir (e.g., Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie; Paul Murray; Edward St Aubyn
• A quiet novel in which nothing much seems to happen (e.g., Elizabeth Strout; Virginia Woolf; Otessa Moshfegh; Tara Westover; Helen MacDonald)
• A non-naturalistic genre such as sci-fi; fantasy; magic realism (e.g., John Wyndham; Ray Bradbury; Isabelle Allende; Angela Carter;

Module code: O26I107SSR

Most courses fill quickly so early registration is strongly recommended. If your preferred course is fully booked, you may wish to add yourself to the waiting list and the Programme Administrator will contact you should a place become available.

Please note, the programme is only open to those over the age of 18.

Online enrolment (single person accommodation and non-residential)

Single accommodation, double room for 1 person and non-residential places should be booked online by clicking on the ‘Book now’ button on this page.

Online enrolments require payment in full at the time of registering.

Enrolment form (multi-occupancy or accessible accommodation)

Those requiring twin, double or accessible accommodation (including ground/lower floor accommodation) should complete an enrolment form as these rooms cannot be booked or requested online.

Please send the completed enrolment form to the email address below. Both the PDF and Word option of the form below are editable, so you can complete them online before saving and sending to us as an email attachment. You do not need to print and scan them. (Please use these forms only if you are making a twin or double booking for two people.)

Enrolment form:

• PDF
• Microsoft Word

Please send your completed enrolment form to oussa@conted.ox.ac.uk.

Accessibility and disability support

Disabled students who have registered for, or are planning to attend, the OUSSA summer programme should contact the Programme Administrator by email at oussa@conted.ox.ac.uk to discuss any support needs.

Students with a mobility impairment can consult the University Access Guide and should contact the Programme Administrator at oussa@conted.ox.ac.uk to request any accommodation they need in this regard.

There is a special access ramp and a self-contained bedroom suite on the ground floor at Rewley House, equipped for use by people with mobility problems, with an adjoining room for carers. Two public disabled parking bays provided by Oxford City Council are situated on Wellington Square close to the Department. If you need this accessible room, please indicate this on your enrolment form, or contact the Programme Administrator prior to your arrival. Please also let us know of any support needs you may require.

If you need a room on a ground or lower floor, please indicate this on your enrolment form or contact the Programme Administrator prior to your arrival.

If you would like more information about support available to students with disabilities, please see our support page.

Terms and conditions

View our terms and conditions

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact us at oussa@conted.ox.ac.uk.

You may also find our frequently asked questions help page useful.

Choose fee option