FAQ

Fiction refers to work that is entirely or partially fabricated. Many works of fiction draw heavily on true-life experiences, but they should not be entirely true-to-life. Memoir refers to work that is entirely true-to-life, with perhaps a tiny bit of storytelling license or name-changing. If you want to make some things up, or avoid offending anyone, then go for fiction. If you want to tell "real" stories derived from your own life, then go for memoir.

If you're working on a memoir, then take a Memoir course. If you're working on a nonfiction book that is not a memoir, then it's a little trickier.

Nonfiction books that are not memoir enter the market as a nonfiction book proposal—a detailed analysis of the book, along with sample material. (Memoirs are sometimes sold on the basis of a proposal, but more often than not, they are sold as a finished manuscript.) If you want to see if you have a viable book idea, or refine your book idea, then take the Nonfiction Book Proposal course. However, this is more of a "selling" course than a "writing" course.

If you want to focus on the writing, then you could take Article writing if the book is largely objective and journalistic, or you could take Essay & Opinion if the book is largely subjective and grounded in your personal views. In these courses, students work on short-form pieces rather than books, but it's good to start with shorter pieces, just as we encourage fiction writers to work on short stories before they tackle novels. The short pieces you work on might well end up in your book and you will improve your writing by working on these shorter pieces.

Absolutely. You can work on any kind of fiction in our Fiction and Novel courses. But if you're working on "genre" fiction, you may prefer to take one of our "genre" courses—Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction & Fantasy.

Only in New York City.

Our Online classes replicate, as much as possible, the experience of a "live" class. The teacher and students come together in a communal "space" and interact with each other in a stimulating manner. As with the "live" classes, the Online classes offer lectures, discussion, assignments (with feedback), and, depending on the course, critique of projects that students are developing.

But, of course, there are differences between "live" and Online classes.

The chief distinction of our Online classes is that they do not meet in "real time." In other words, students do not sit at their computers at an assigned day or hour watching an instructor present a class as they would in a "live" classroom. Instead, students may participate at any time, day or night. However, there is a schedule. Each class session lasts for 7 days, and there are things to accomplish within that time frame. There is a topic that is covered each "week," and there are things that are due within that "week." This asynchronous format allows students from all over the world to take class together without concern of time differences, and it allows for a convenient fit with just about any schedule. When a new "week" begins, the material from the previous "weeks" is still accessible, so a student will never completely miss a class.

Read more about our Online classes.

Students receive the same content and quality of education in either an NYC or an Online class. But the experience is a bit different between them.

An NYC class offers an experience similar to what we all remember from school. Specifically:

• Live interaction with fellow students and instructor
• Immediate feedback to questions and comments
• The face-to-face camaraderie of writers with whom you can bond, share, and learn

An Online class offers a more flexible experience. Specifically:

• The convenience of participating any time, day or night, and from any location (as long as you have Internet access)
• Posted material (lectures, discussion, assignments, etc.) that you can print and save.
• Archived material, so you never "miss" a class
• A global "classroom" that welcomes people from all over the world

The tuition varies depending on the class format. Here are the various prices:

10-week NYC Workshops: $465 (Returning Gotham students $435)
10-week Online or Zoom Workshops: $439 (Returning Gotham students $409)
10-week Level III (except for Fiction III): $565
Six-week NYC classes: $355
Six-week Online or Zoom classes: $339
Six-week NYC Business Writing: $365
Six-week Online or Zoom Business Writing: $345
NYC Selling Classes: $175
Online or Zoom Selling Classes: $185
Intensives: $175
Business Writing Intensive: $175
Six-week NYC Teen Classes: $355
Four-week NYC Teen Classes: $355
Six-week Online or Zoom Teen Classes: $339
NYC Write-In: $20, or $45 for a pack of three.

In addition to the above prices, there is a $25 registration fee, paid only once per term, even if a student takes multiple classes in that term. This fee does not apply to Write-Ins.

Once you take any kind of Gotham class (or Write-In), you are given a lifetime $30 Returning Student discount on any 10-week class you take. (This does not apply to Write-Ins, one-session classes, Deal du Jour, Just Write, and premium classes—Zoetrope Fiction, Business Writing, Level III.)

We also offer various ways to save on tuition.

There is a $25 registration fee per student, per term. It applies whether or not a student has taken a previous class with Gotham. But it's paid only one per term, even is a student takes multiple classes in that term.

The fee helps to cover administrative costs and to keep our tuitions affordable.

To register for a 10-Week course, you need to pay in full to guarantee your place in class. Or you can pay a $95 deposit plus a $25 registration fee (total $120) to temporarily hold your place, but tuition must be paid in full 10 business days before your class starts or you risk losing your spot.

To register for a Zoetrope course or any course shorter than 10 weeks, you must pay in full when you register.

You can pay for class using Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, cash, money order, or check (drawn on a U.S. bank) payable to Gotham Writers Workshop.

In one of the following ways:

From Website

Just follow the steps on our checkout page.

By Phone

Were happy to take your registration over the phone with a credit card. Give us a call at 212-974-8377 from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM Eastern Time. If you call us after business hours, just leave a message with your name, the specific class you'd like to take, and how we can reach you.

In Person

You can register at the Gotham office by appointment (Monday-Friday, 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM), or enroll at the class site (first day of class only) if there is room available. We need full payment for on-site walk-in registrations. And if you're paying cash, please bring exact change.

We do our best to keep our classes affordable, as we believe expert writing instruction should be widely available. We seldom raise prices, and our prices are highly competitive with comparable programs.

Yes. We love visitors, for questions or registrations, but please remember to give a call first and let us know when to expect you.

If you need to withdraw from class, here are your options:

All Classes (except 1-days and Write-Ins)

For a refund or credit, contact us two business days or more before your class starts. You can either choose to hold a full credit with us good for one year on other Gotham classes OR you can opt for a refund less a $25 administrative fee and your $25 registration fee ($50 total).

If you need to withdraw after your class has started (or one business day before it starts), you won’t receive a refund, but you’re welcome to a Gotham credit less the price of Week 1 and your $25 registration fee, but we need to hear from you two business days or more before Week 2 meets for that to happen. After that point, no credits are available.

1-day Intensives

You may reschedule a 1-day Intensive one time, if you notify us before the class begins.

If you notify us two business days or more before your class begins, rescheduling is free. If you notify us less than two business days before your class begins, there is a $25 rescheduling fee. If you don’t notify us until after your class begins, we cannot reschedule you.

You may get a refund (minus a $50 fee) if you notify us two business days or more before your class begins.

You may notify us at 212-974-8377.

Write-Ins

If you withdraw two hours or more before it begins, you’re welcome to a full credit good for one year toward another Write-In. No refunds are available. If you simply don’t show up and don’t notify us in advance, you forfeit your money.

One-on-One Services

Private Classes
For a refund or credit, contact us two business days or more before your class starts. You can either choose to hold a full credit with us good for one year on other Gotham classes OR you can opt for a refund less a $25 administrative fee and your $25 registration fee ($50 total).

If you need to withdraw after your class has started (or one business day before it starts), you won’t receive a refund, but you’re welcome to a Gotham credit less the price of Week 1 and your $25 registration fee, but we need to hear from you two business days or more before Week 2 meets for that to happen. After that point, no credits are available.

Mentorships
For a refund, contact us before any hours are used. The refund will be for the total cost of the mentorship, less a $200 penalty, which covers administrative costs plus money paid to the mentor. Once you've used any time with your mentor, no refunds available.

For a credit, contact us within one week of the start of your mentorship. The start is marked by using a half-hour of time with your mentor . Once that first half-hour occurs, the clock starts and you have one week to drop the mentorship for a credit. The credit will be less the number of hours you have used and Gotham keeps a $150 penalty, which covers administrative costs plus money paid to the mentor.

Doctoring
No credits or refunds available.

Contact Info

Email: [email protected]
Phone: 212-974-8377

Classes purchased through CourseHorse

If you purchased through CourseHorse, then our Refund/Cancellation policy applies to your purchase, but CourseHorse will issue the refund. Please contact CourseHorse here to request your refund.

If we cancel a class that you purchased through CourseHorse, you will receive a full refund or credit. If you prefer a refund, we will notify CourseHorse that you are due a refund, but you can also contact CourseHorse here with any questions.

A few more things

• Simply not attending class or notifying the instructor does not mean you've officially withdrawn.
• Credits are valid for one year and cannot be changed into refunds down the road.
• Some exceptions are made on a case-by-case basis for medical emergencies with a doctor's note.
• Refunds take up to six weeks to process.

Please understand, we can't issue a refund after classes have started, even if you miss your first class. Similarly, we can't offer you a credit one day before your second class or after that. We understand that other obligations get in the way of attending class, but these policies allow us to get other interested writers into class early enough to have a good experience, and this allows us to offer our classes at a reasonable price.

Yes, we offer a few different ways to save:

Once you take a class with us (10-week, 6-week, Intensive, Selling Class, even a Write-In), we consider you family and are happy to give you a $30 Returning Student discount on any 10-week class you take. Forever. But there are other ways to save on what we offer.

Deal du Jour

Classes designated as Deal du Jour, mostly daytime classes on Zoom or in NYC, are offered at a special low price. The courses offered vary from term to term. You may call us to see what is being offered.

Double-Class Discount

Register for any two 10-Week classes and receive a $100 discount off the full tuition rate. You must register for both at the same time, but you don't have to take them both at the same time.

10-week Plus Discount

Register for a 10-week class and any other class at the same time and you will receive the Returning Student rate (a $30 savings) on your 10-week class.

Reading Fiction/Scripts in Focus Discount

Take any 10-Week class and register for a Reading Fiction or Scripts in Focus class with a $75 discount. You must register for both at the same time, but you don't have to take them both at the same time.

Corporate Discount

When your company joins our corporate discount program, employees can receive a 10% discount on tuition. Call 212-974-8377 for details.

Inside Track

Gotham occasionally announces special offers through our email communication, Facebook, and Twitter. To get the inside track, sign up, like, and follow us in these places.

A Few More Things:

• Discounts don’t apply to Write-Ins, one-session classes, Deal du Jour, Just Write, and premium classes (Zoetrope Fiction, Business Writing, Level III).
• Discounts can't be combined with each other or any promotions.
• The Returning Student discount only applies to 10-week courses.

Unfortunately, no. Because we are not an accredited college or university, Gotham is ineligible to receive any federal education funding.

We offer Program Certificates for completing a program of study in Fiction, Memoir, or Screenwriting. And we offer individual certificates, if needed, for completing an individual course. These certificates may be used to show proof of completion or to bolster a resume, but they are not likely to advance your chance of publication or production.

No, our classes are only taught in English, and we require fluency in English to take our classes.

None of our courses are English-as-second-language courses. If you are not fairly fluent in English, a Gotham class is not the best fit. However, if you are fairly fluent in English, even though it's not your first language, you may well benefit from a Gotham class. If you're not sure if your English is good enough, or which course is right for you, we are happy to help you figure it out.

Gotham welcomes English-speaking students from outside the U.S. in our New York City classes. However, we are not an accredited college or university and therefore do not have the forms necessary to obtain a student visa. Our recommendation is that interested students from abroad obtain a travel or tourist visa and count us among the cultural activities available to do while in New York City, like attending museums, readings, and seminars. Unfortunately, Gotham does not provide housing or help students from abroad find housing. Please check our hotel suggestions for New York City.