Plotting Conflict with Susan Choi

Conflict is the heartbeat of every good story, whether a genre mystery or a literary novel, but it is often defined too narrowly by writers. And when writers can’t discern the sources of conflict in their own stories, they struggle with that most crucial ingredient, the story’s plot.

In this lively workshop, 2019 National Book Award–winning and 2025 Booker Prize–shortlisted author Susan Choi (Flashlight, Trust Exercise) will help budding and seasoned writers tune in to how conflict powers literary writing and memoir no less than genre fiction, and how it can give us the key to structuring the plots of our stories, whatever their genre.
Through discussion of short in-class readings and generative exercises participants will explore the sources of conflict in story situations and how to start turning those formless situations into compelling and meaningful plots. Open to writers of all genres and experience levels.