The short story is often described as one of the most satisfying literary genres, both to read and to write. This course encourages students to identify how these stories ‘work’ by considering classic examples which, in each class, illustrate a particular aspect of short story composition. An exchange of ideas and responses between students and tutor enable the student to then put into practice what they have observed in a series of writing challenges, designed to extend their writing skills in this most exciting – and challenging – of genres. Given the nature of creative writing, it is important that applicants’ use of English is sufficiently fluent to be able to understand in English nuances of meaning and have a familiarity with the structure and grammar of English.