ONLINE Writing for Fantasy and Science Fiction
10 Weeks | Wednesdays | Begins January 21, 2026
6pm-8pm PT | 7pm-9pm MT | 8pm-10pm CT | 9pm-11pm ET | 10pm-12am AT
Instructor: Bevan Thomas
MEMBER PRICE: $395.00
NON-MEMBER PRICE: $525.00
From ancient myths to modern sagas such as Game of Thrones and Star Wars, imaginary worlds have fascinated people for thousands of years. It’s no surprise that speculative fiction (which includes fantasy and science fiction) is one of the most popular story genres; it lets the author stretch their imagination in any direction. Few things are as exciting as someone taking you to a strange place that couldn’t ever exist and yet somehow feels so real.
This extensive course studies the building blocks of speculative fiction writing. We’ll explore how to make plots fantastical yet believable, as well as explore world-building (and universe-building!), the usage of strange magic and weird science, and a menagerie of human and nonhuman characters, gods and monsters. We’ll also study a wide selection of subgenres (urban fantasy, swords & sorcery, space opera, dystopia, etc.) so that you will be able to discover what particular style best suits you. By the end of the class, you’ll have opened a door to your own unique, exciting speculative world.
This is an interactive online class using the Zoom web platform.
Bevan Thomas is an award-winning author, editor, and writing instructor with an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia. He has written short stories and comics in the fantasy and science fiction genres for a wide range of publications, and is always fascinated by how the strange and unreal can capture such powerfully real emotions. Bevan often uses speculative fiction to explore mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. He created Through the Labyrinths of the Mind, an anthology that features a range of stories about mental health (including Bevan’s own retelling of an Arthurian legend), and Epic Canadiana, a comics series that pays tribute to classic Canadian superheroes, and which won the 2016 Gene Day Award at the Joe Shuster Awards. Bevan lives in Vancouver with his wife, the cartoonist Reetta Linjama.
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