Close Reading
Unravel the literary techniques behind memorable works of fiction.
FOR STORYTELLERS
Online Writing Workshops
A place for stories to manifest, wherever you reside.
NINE-WEEK ONLINE FICTION WORKSHOP
The Gothic Story
Explore the darker possibilities of fiction.
What makes a story Gothic? Is it the haunted house, the troubled mind, the secrets buried beneath ordinary life? Or something more elusive—the feeling that the familiar world has become suddenly, unsettlingly strange?
In this nine-week online workshop, we'll explore the Gothic imagination through the works of Emily and Charlotte Brontë, Edgar Allan Poe, Shirley Jackson, Angela Carter, Kelly Link, Bram Stoker, Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Flannery O'Connor.
Through close reading, literary discussion and the critique of original fiction, we'll examine how writers create atmosphere, build suspense, develop psychological complexity and explore the darker dimensions of human experience.
Beginning January 7, 2027
Tuition: 4,500 SEK
Limited to eight writers.
OUR APPROACH
The Art of the Workshop
The beating heart of our program is the belief that writers learn not only by writing, but by reading closely, questioning conventions and examining the strange workings of a story.
Modeled on the traditional MFA creative writing workshop, each three-hour session combines an hour of literary discussion with two hours devoted to participants' original fiction.
In small groups, writers are encouraged to look beneath the surface of a story, challenge familiar techniques and uncover new possibilities in their own work.
Peer Critique
Share original fiction and receive thoughtful, helpful feedback.
Community
Exchange ideas and perspectives with writers from around the world.
Meet Your Instructor
Shannon Renée Miller
Shannon Renée Miller is an American writer and founder of Gothland Artist Residency on the island of Gotland, Sweden. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Emerson College in Boston and a BA in English with a concentration in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University. Her literary interests include Gothic fiction, nineteenth-century literature and the works of the Brontë sisters.
With nearly two decades of professional writing and editorial experience, Shannon has worked in publishing, literary agencies and writers' magazines, and served as a literary journal editor, manuscript reviewer and writing contest judge. She has also led creative writing workshops through a writing salon in the United States, bringing writers together for literary discussion and critique.
Her participation in international artist residencies, including Konstepidemin in Göteborg, Sweden, and Kemijärvi Artist Residency in Finland, helped inspire the founding of Gothland Artist Residency. Her online writing workshops are a natural extension of that vision, fostering curiosity, creative discovery and the exchange of ideas among writers around the world.
COMING SOON
More Stories to Tell
The Gothic Story is just the beginning.
Gothland's online writing program will continue to grow, with future workshops exploring the fundamentals of short fiction, literary craft and new approaches to storytelling.
On the horizon: intimate writing retreats on the island of Gotland, Sweden, where writers can gather, immerse themselves in their craft and find inspiration in the island's wild landscapes and quiet rhythms.
Interested in joining a future workshop? Subscribe to our newsletter for course announcements, registration dates and news from Gothland Artist Residency.