What Makes a Magical World Feel Real? | Stephanie Wilson Medlock | Course Preview

What if the rules you invent for your fictional world are what make readers fall completely under its spell? Novelist and writing instructor Stephanie Wilson Medlock unpacks the craft behind magical realism, fantasy, horror, and science fiction, and what separates a world that readers lose themselves in from one that falls flat. Whether you're a seasoned writer or just starting to explore speculative fiction, this conversation gets into the specific techniques that make alternate realities feel earned and alive. Stephanie shares how a single scene in the film Stranger Than Fiction sparked her debut novel, why internal consistency is the unsung rule of world-building, and how the best magical realism has always been doing double duty, carrying real-world meaning beneath its surface. She also reads live from her latest novel, An Improbable Companion, in a passage that perfectly shows what it looks like when magic is woven in with a light hand. If you've ever wanted to write speculative fiction but weren't sure how to build a world with its own internal logic, or how to bend a familiar genre trope into something entirely your own, this is a great place to start. This is a preview of The Art of Crafting Alternate Realities, a writing course at the University of Chicago. You can see all of our writing courses here: https://graham.uchicago.edu/topic/writing/ Chapters 0:00 - Welcome & intro 2:35 - What drew Stephanie to teaching this course 3:54 - The movie moment that sparked her first novel 7:41 - What actually makes an alternate reality work 9:28 - Twilight as a masterclass in consistent world-building 10:37 - Building the internal logic of An Improbable Companion 13:38 - Live reading from An Improbable Companion 19:07 - Magic as metaphor: García Márquez, Toni Morrison & Babel 21:54 - What students can expect and how the class is structured 25:02 - Writing process: do you outline, or discover as you go? 28:43 - How to give feedback that actually helps writers grow 31:48 - Writing ambitious female characters and the "ballsiest version of oneself" About Stephanie Medlock Stephanie Medlock has been writing in a variety of venues and professions since composing and illustrating her first book of fairy tales at the age of 10. She earned a journalism degree at Northwestern University, and as a professional journalist, she wrote news and human interest stories for two Connecticut newspapers and a variety of magazines. She is the author of two novels of magical realism, The Lives of Things and An Improbable Companion. In addition to her novels, she has published short stories and memoirs, and regularly performs her short pieces at storytelling venues. She lives with her husband in upstate New York and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. About the Graham School The Graham School is a one-of-a-kind intellectual community that brings the best of the University of Chicago to lifelong learners seeking discovery and discernment. Through an array of distinctive programs and courses in the Great Books, the liberal arts, and advanced leadership, we welcome learners who seek to deepen their understanding of the world and lead examined lives of purpose. Learn more: https://graham.uchicago.edu #magicalrealism #writingcourse #speculativefiction