Whether your story takes place in the foothills of the Catskills, in the speakeasies of Manhattan in the 1920s, or on a stormy August night during cicada season, a clear and specific setting can enhance the conflict and develop the theme of your short fiction. Using both short writing assignments and reading stories by E. Annie Proulx, Tobias Wolff, Ada Zhang and others, we will examine how to use place to underscore tension and character in our stories. Each student will have the opportunity to complete short weekly creative writing exercises for feedback and a longer short story for a group critique. All levels welcome.