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Regardless of what genre or POV you’re writing in, allowing readers to understand what’s going on inside your character is what makes a story immediate, direct, and vivid. If readers don’t know how characters react to what happens in the story and how they process those events and interactions, your characters might as well be game pieces we simply watch progress along the board. Readers want to feel we’re part of the game.

That doesn’t mean swaths of navel-gazing self-reflection or inner dialogue that risk stalling out forward momentum and stealing focus from the story’s action. It simply means giving readers not just a front-row seat to the character’s journey, but a backstage pass.

To do that readers must understand the character’s perspective: how events strike her and what she makes of them, and how they motivate her thoughts, actions, and behavior. That’s the heart of a satisfying character journey and the propulsive engine of its momentum—how the author shows characters moving along their arc, conveys stakes, and moves the story forward.

In this 90-minute class, using plenty of published and real-world examples, we’ll explore guidelines and principles for letting readers be privy to the inner workings of your characters’ lives without bogging your story down in interiority, and bringing readers more deeply into their direct experience no matter what point of view the story is told in.

Poorly developed or conveyed inner life is a common root problem of characters who don’t feel real or fully come to life on the page, and of stories that may leave readers disengaged. Tiffany Yates Martin has spent decades as an editor in the publishing industry, working on literally thousands of manuscripts, and has developed practical, concrete ways to open the window to your characters’ inner landscape to create deep, rich characters that draw readers intimately into your story.

What you will learn:

• What is “inner life” and why does it matter? (It’s much more than just your characters’ thoughts)
• How inner life is essential to showing character arc
• How to offer readers insight into what’s going on inside your characters without swaths of internal dialogue or thought that risk overloading the reader, bogging down the story, or navel-gazing
• How to balance interiority with action so you don’t impede story momentum
• Weaving inner life naturally and seamlessly into the story
• Tools for understanding and effectively conveying your characters’ inner landscape
• Determining when/where/how much to open the window to the characters’ inner life
• How POV affects interiority
• Direct thought vs. indirect thought
• Avoiding tics and physiology reports
• Avoiding labeling reactions or emotions and instead drawing readers directly and intimately into your characters’ inner lives

Who this class is for

• Writers who want to enhance their understanding of what inner life actually is and how to effectively use it in story
• Writers who struggle with effectively conveying character interiority
• Authors who want to learn to balance effective interiority with action—moving the story forward
• Writers who want to learn to deepen characterization and bring their characters more fully and vividly to life
• Writers who want to draw readers more deeply into their stories and characters
• Writers who may feel limited in their tools and techniques for conveying inner life (reduced to a litany of physiological reactions, clunky direct thought, or clichéd descriptions like clenched fists, tight throats, a single tear trailing down a cheek)

Who this class may not be suited for

• The class may not apply to children’s work.

Is this class for memoirists and narrative nonfiction writers?

We welcome memoirists and narrative nonfiction writers to attend, as the storytelling lessons and principles in this class apply to you as well. However, this class will focus on fiction examples and the craft of fiction. It will also assume familiarity with fiction craft and technique. As long as you’re comfortable taking a class that isn’t geared primarily for memoirists, and you believe novel writing principles are often the same as memoir writing principles, we hope you’ll register! Do keep in mind this class will not address some of the unique issues facing nonfiction writers and memoirists who must craft stories from real-life events. (Fiction writers can manipulate their characters and story line to create the desired effect; memoirists cannot make things up—or at least shouldn’t!)

How do I attend the live class?

This class uses Zoom webinar technology (see system requirements). You will join through your Internet-connected computer or mobile device. When you register, you will receive information via email on how to join the class. If you don’t receive it within 1 hour of registering, please contact us.

• When: Wednesday, July 9, 2025
• Time: 1:00–2:30 p.m. Eastern / 10:00 a.m. Pacific
• Fee: $25

The webinar is broadcast via the internet with live audio delivered through your computer or mobile device speakers. The visual presentation is displayed directly from the presenter’s computer to your computer screen. The Q&A is managed through a chat-style submission system with questions read and answered by the presenter for the entire class to hear.

Closed captions are provided during the live class. We use Zoom’s automated closed caption service, which is about 80%+ accurate. We use Adobe Premiere to generate a lightly edited transcript, provided with the recording.

All students receive the following

• Access to the live class. After roughly 75 minutes, the instructor will take questions during class using in-class chat/text. The class will end after roughly 90 minutes.
• A recording of the class—audio and video. This is especially helpful if you have a conflict with the class time or something comes up and you can’t make the session. Each registration comes with access to the archived version of the program and the materials for 30 days. You do not have to attend the live event to access the recordings.
• Presentation slides. All participants receive a copy of the slide presentation in PDF form.
• Rough transcript. We use Adobe Premiere to create an automated transcript of the entire webinar, which is lightly edited for you.
• Worksheet to practice developing effective interiority

Event Attendance & Anti-Harassment Policy

We strive to provide an environment where all present—whether attendee, presenter, or staff—can feel supported. In order to ensure a welcoming event, here is what we expect from all who participate.

• That the presenter and the presenter’s work be treated with respect by attendees and that all attendees treat each other with respect and a generosity of spirit.
• That attendees will refrain from harassment of any sort including (but not limited to) comments or questions of a racist, homophobic, sexist/sexual, or threatening nature. This includes actions that disrupt or interfere with anyone’s ability to participate. Offenders will be disconnected from the live event.