Instructor: Julie Zigoris
Most journalists — and many writers — dream of seeing their work in the publication at the top of the food chain: the New York Times. You, too, can submit your words for an opportunity to appear in that famed font, thanks to the accessible entry point of a Tiny Love Story. A pint-sized version of the Times’ famous Modern Love column, these 100-word tales capture a small moment with big meaning in any kind of relationship. They pack it all in a petite container: drama, dialogue, narrative arc, and imagery. But tiny doesn’t mean easy. Over two sessions on Zoom, we will work together to unpack the formula of the TLS and brainstorm, craft, and revise our own Tiny Love Stories. By the end of the two weeks, you will have a draft ready for submission.
For our first session, I will share the story behind my own TLS and show the edits I made to bring it to publication. We will then look at models of the genre and begin to define the formula. We will have time to brainstorm and share our own ideas, as well as to freewrite and generate a narrative. After composing a longer-than-needed draft for session two, we'll work together on revision, structure, and beginnings and endings. We will discuss how to select an image to include with your submission — a required element. We’ll have time to revise and learn the final steps for getting our Tiny Love Story into the Big Wide World! You will emerge from this class with a revised TLS ready for submission as well as skills for writing with precision and emotional impact.
Julie Zigoris is a reporter and writer in San Francisco whose Tiny Love Story "Animal Instinct" brought the tale of her roommate-romance-turned-marriage into the public eye in 2025. In 2024, she won the Society of Professional Journalists award for general excellence in arts and culture reporting, and in 2023, the New York Times named her work “local journalism worth reading.” The author of Belomor: Criminality and Creativity in Stalin’s Gulag, Julie holds a Ph.D. in Slavic Studies and has taught at the University of Pittsburgh, Stanford University, the Jewish Community High School, and in the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center.