Description: "There is scarcely any other matter," claims Sigmund Freud, "upon which our thoughts and feelings have changed so little since the very earliest times, and in which discarded forms have been so completely preserved under a thin disguise, as that of our relation to death." Regardless of age, race, gender, class, or creed, we all know we will die, and none of us knows for sure what will happen next. The prospect of death stirs in us a certain loathsome recognition--deeper than fear, keener than dread, and more paralyzing than terror. The common name for this feeling is horror, and like death, horror is truly universal. In this class, students will read essays and stories from contemporary and classic writers, including Jorge Luis Borges, Octavia Butler, Shirley Jackson, Stephen King, H. P. Lovecraft, and Carmen Maria Machado. (Students familiar with this summer's abbreviated Intro to Horror class should note that readings for Writing Horror will be ALL NEW.) Class discussions will examine horror as both a human experience and a literary effect. Over the course of the class, students will complete one original horror story of their own.

Instructor: Matthew Buckley Smith

Dates: Begins Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024 and meets on the subsequent five Wednesdays

Time: 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Level: Beginner and above

8 seats max

Location: Golden Fig Books, 200 N. Greensboro St. Suite A-17, Carrboro

$615: true price

$349: base price

$374, $399, $449: donate an extra $25, $50, or $100 to our scholarship fund

(Returning students receive 10 percent off).

A note on pricing:  the “true price” reflects the true cost of the class, which includes paying a fair wage to our staff and instructors, rental fees for the Redbud headquarters and for the community spaces where we host our classes, website and administrative/commerce fees, outreach and advertising to spread the word about our offerings, and the coordination and administration for our community classes, which serve people who could not otherwise access creative writing. We’re not a university or a large corporation and that means we don’t have an operating budget we can rely on; we’re proud to be a small, local, women- and minority-run business that is passionate about bringing the transformative power of the arts to our community. Your tuition helps Redbud with the critical work of keeping the arts accessible to the public. 

We also offer students a chance to donate to our scholarship fund. At check-out, you will be given the option of choosing a donor price. If you choose one of these prices, the extra $25, $50, or $100 will go towards scholarships for students who would not be able to afford our classes otherwise.  Thank you in advance for considering making a contribution to inclusivity and access!

Read the fine print, including our refund policy, here.