• real talk:

    i love teaching

    "Dear Naseem,

    This has been more than a workshop—it has been a transformation. You've shown us how to turn blank pages into possibilities. You've helped us discover wisdom in the waiting, courage in community. You've taught us to inhabit questions, to light difficult paths, to stand steady in shifting grounds. In the space you created, our voices found their wings."

    From Roots. Wounds. Words. 3d Space Fellowship

  • here are some of the workshops i teach

    my expertise is inclusive speculative fiction for marginalized writers, but i also run workshops on different writing & publishing processes

  • building inclusive worlds

    While all genres must build out the worlds of their stories, “worldbuilding” is often considered in the wheelhouse of speculative fiction. Because speculative fiction gives us opportunities to build worlds from scratch, writers have the chance to create something more than a carbon-copy of our world—which means we can challenge the values and assumptions that govern our world by creating not only a different one, but a better one. Inclusive worldbuilding thinks through the history and role of power structures within that world to challenge the assumptions we may be importing from our world.

    This workshop can be geared toward adults or teens. Time: 1 or 2 hours. Can be extended.

    cultural storytelling: unlocking sffh's Potential for revolution

    Cultural storytelling—the storytelling traditions and structures that arise from one’s cultural background—is a strength of writers of the global majority (BIPOC) writers, yet many feel constrained by traditional “Western” (read: white) storytelling features. While many find validation in rewriting “normative” structures with characters of color, BIPOC storytellers have the opportunity to break into the storytelling conventions of our non-dominant backgrounds. This course considers how to combine speculative storytelling with our cultural backgrounds to create stories authentically our own that do not rely on a cishet, white, colonial mode of storytelling—and for those of us at the intersections, further incorporating our added cultures of neurodiversity, queerness, disability, class, size, etc.

    This workshop is geared toward writers of color/writers of the global majority/racialized writers and can be given in multiple forms. Workshop times: 1 hour, 2 hours, 4-6 hours.

  • Passion

    "Naseem intentionally and thoughtfully subverted the traditional workshop model while SIMULTANEOUSLY revealing to us the inner workings and being extremely clear about how and why they were making these moves. Naseem invited us as workshop participants into a process of co-creation while providing us with support to inform our decisions and movements. This was an incredible and unique experience. We did a lot of talking ABOUT speculative fiction for liberation and reading mind-blowing essays about craft. This enabled me to think conceptually about my intentions without sacrificing my creativity."

    —Roots. Wounds. Words. Words of Restoration and Resistance Fellowship feedback

  • prewriting: How to tell longform stories & achieve your writing goals

    I used to be a pantser—and then I began to study craft. And once I did, I realized that to save myself in the long run, I had to start planning my projects to some degree. Now, I'm a plantser, but boy, does planning make a HUGE difference! But pantsers, don't fret—this type of planning is deeply friendly to creativity by creating a writing roadmap! And the best part of all is how easily you can create specific, achievable, realistic goals for finishing your project.

    Time: 1.5-2 hours

    revision: turning writing into art using craft analyses & the reverse outline

    All writing is in the revision, but many writers have no idea where to start. This workshop on revision rounds and techniques shows concrete examples of how I myself approach revising my work, how it's leveled up my craft, and how you can—and should—plan revisions too.

    Time: 1.5-2 hours

  • Understanding

    "Naseem is great. They care SO dang much about your success and are more than willing to help if you just ask. Naseem absolutely notices the ones who go above and beyond in discussion. Sincerely one of the most caring and accessible people you will ever have to teach you."

    —RateMyProfessor.Com

  • The Long Road: How traditional publishing works (& doesn't)

    Many people have written books they would like to one day get published and see on the shelves of a bookstore. But what are the steps to doing so? What is a literary agent, or the difference between self, independent, and Big 5 publishing? What happens before and after the book deal? What are trade reviews, ARCs, and other industry terms? How does money work? This talk focuses on traditional publishing, particularly in speculative fiction and kidlit, and my own publishing journey.

    Time: 1 hour

    querying workshop

    If you're interested in traditional publishing, then a literary agent is a must—which means the dreaded query letter. This workshop breaks down the query letter in detail, including walking through the query letter that netted me FIVE agent offers, along with the do's and don't's of querying.

    Time: 1-2 hours

  • what my students have said

    (i love teaching & it shows)

    “naseem, you are a passionate and caring writing instructor with a true gift for teaching—a rare combination!”

    “it is clear you care about the power of stories and our right [as writers of color] to tell them.”

    “in your sessions, our words were not just heard; they were celebrated, nurtured, transformed."

    What would you ask Naseem to improve?

    ZERO. Naseem is THE BEST. Naseem is a genius at self-reflection and therefore is constantly requesting feedback and making course corrections themselF!

  • book a workshop now

    I often use "workshop" and "class" interchangeably, although there is a subtle distinction. A "class" involves an information-heavy presentation with take-home activities so that attendees can digest what they've learned and do those exercises on (and in) their own time. A "workshop," however, integrates those activities and resultant discussions so that they're completed during our session. Classes tend to be shorter than workshops by 30-60 minutes. Please let me know which you're looking for when you reach out.

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