Folktales: a course with Comma Press

Folk tales: fairytales, wonder tales, Märchen, memorates, contemporary legends, fables, myths. There are many different types of traditional narrative – or folk tale – and they evolve and adapt to remain captivating through the ages.

Folk tales are compelling source material for creative writers, too. How can prose so deceptively simple continue to enthral us as children, as adults, as warnings, as entertainment? How do they tell us what it is to be human?

In this short course, you will work on your own short fiction while learning about the different forms of folk tale. We will discuss what makes folk tales so effective, and how we might use them in our own works of fiction. We will think about cultural heritage and how to treat works of anonymity. We will read, write, and share ideas.

Over the duration of the course, you will work on two or three short…