MasterClass, the streaming platform where anyone can learn from the world’s best across a wide range of subjects, today announced that acclaimed novelist Walter Mosley will teach a class on fiction and storytelling. Mosley, a recent recipient of the National Book Award’s 2020 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, will help members improve their craft and share how writing can create a whole new understanding of the world. Mosley’s class is now available exclusively on MasterClass, where subscribers get unlimited access to all 90+ instructors with an annual membership.
“Throughout his impressive career, Walter has used writing to illuminate important racial issues and as a means of personal discovery,” said David Rogier, founder and CEO of MasterClass. “In his MasterClass, he not only sheds light on the importance of race and representation in fiction but helps members eliminate barriers to writing their own stories.”
In his MasterClass, Mosley will share insights on how to use writing as a device to shed light on identity, challenge our notions of who are heroes and protagonists worthy of narrative and use fiction as a means of personal discovery. Designed for writers and nonwriters alike, his class will dive into the fundamentals of how to structure a story, develop strong characters and create a compelling plot to drive the reader forward. Sharing his own writing techniques step by step, Mosley will challenge members to rethink genres and emphasize the importance of representation in fiction, using one of his best-known characters, L.A. detective Easy Rawlins, as an example. Mosley teaches members how to say things that live in their heart, underscoring the importance of creating just for themselves. He also emphasizes the value in writing every day to develop a nuanced understanding of the narrative voice.
Having started his own writing career in his mid-30s, Mosley reinforces the idea that it’s never too late for members to follow their dreams, and that fear of failure should never impede the pursuit of their passions. Members will come away with a new way of looking at literature, feeling inspired to tell their own stories.
“Fiction is one of the few things in the modern world in which you can make something from nothing,” Mosley said. “In my MasterClass, I will show you how writing can create a whole new understanding of the world and hopefully leave you with the confidence to write your own stories.”
Walter Mosley is an award-winning author whose career spans more than three decades and more than 60 books. He is best known for his mystery series featuring Easy Rawlins, a Black private detective living in Los Angeles, whose adventures have played out across 14 novels since his introduction in Devil in a Blue Dress in 1990. Mosley’s works have earned him some of the literary industry’s highest honors, including being inducted into the New York State Writers Hall of Fame in 2013 and named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America in 2016.
Beyond mystery, Mosley’s works span a range of genres including literary fiction, science fiction, young adult, nonfiction, plays, erotica and more. Mosley’s wide-ranging narrative powers allow him to explore the fundamental issues that underpin all of human life. In November 2020, he became the first Black man to receive the National Book Award’s Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters for lifetime achievement in writing.
