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Excellent creative writing courses online:do they exist?

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Foolonthehill

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I have always dreamed of taking part in a creative writing course, but I live in Italy (always have, Rome, to be precise) and everything here would, naturally, be in Italian. I am not interested in anything basic that would just waste my money, but something really good. I wonder if such a thing exists, though, and if anybody here would be able to reccomend it.
Thanks for any info you can give me
 

Tazlima

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I don't know about online courses, but Rome actually does have a couple of American universities where all the classes are in English (The American University of Rome and John Cabot University. I think there's a third, but the name eludes me at the moment).

Fifteen years ago John Cabot had an excellent English department. I don't know the current situation for either school, but I expect they'd have something appropriate.
 
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fnu_lnu

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I've heard many people say good things about the variety of courses that Holly Lisle offers. She has some basic free courses and some you have to pay for. Her method didn't work for me, but I know many people who enjoy and benefit from her process.
 

BethS

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Google Donald Maass. He is a literary agent who is also an excellent teacher of fiction writing. He does live and online workshops. I've taken a number of his workshop sessions at a writers' conference.

AW's own Barbara Rogan teaches online workshops. I know folks who have taken them and found them extremely helpful.

Margie Lawson, another good writing teacher (I went to one of her sessions at a conference), does online courses and also makes available her lecture packets. This is not basic stuff, but advanced techniques.
 

Alli B.

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I'm in a course online right now, and it seems like the majority of the writers taking it are the type of people who love the idea of becoming the next JK Rowling but don't read a book a year. I'm learning from the teacher/text, but overall I've learned more from the SYW area than the class.

Criticsm is how you become better, and there's plenty of it if you're brave enough to put your pride aside and listen.
 

Gringa

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^^ ditto

QLH is a great online learning tool whether in the hot seat, or not.
 

gettingby

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Check out Gotham Writers Workshop. I was super impressed with the course I took and have recommended these courses to other writers. Everyone I know who has done a Gotham course, loved it. My writing improved tremendously over the few short weeks. It was worth every penny.
 

PandaMan

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Google Donald Maass. He is a literary agent who is also an excellent teacher of fiction writing. He does live and online workshops. I've taken a number of his workshop sessions at a writers' conference.

I'm curious as to how his workshops differ from his books. Were they more advanced? I know I learn much better in an interactive environment compared to reading a book.
 

BethS

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I'm curious as to how his workshops differ from his books. Were they more advanced? I know I learn much better in an interactive environment compared to reading a book.

Don Maass is a gifted speaker and teacher. I never got much from the books; I found them dry. But he's amazing in person.
 

PandaMan

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Don Maass is a gifted speaker and teacher. I never got much from the books; I found them dry. But he's amazing in person.


Thanks. I didn't get much from them either. That's why I asked. I find most "how to" books rather dry. They come across as rather formulaic and non-inspirational.

Stimulating creativity in students requires enthusiasm. It helps too if the teacher has a dynamic and charismatic type personality. "How to books" don't convey that very well.
 

beckethm

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You could also check out the Loft Literary Center. www.loft.org. They offer a number of online classes for writers at varying experience levels.
 

TheCuriousOne

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Thanks Foolonthehill for starting this thread, and everyone who's been commenting. I live in Rome too (celebrated 1 year a couple of days ago :) ) and was wondering the same.

Funny, my work's just emailed us about online courses and have given us a list to check out. If I decide to go for one (or several - I'm a binge learner!) I'll come back with some feedback.
 

CrastersBabies

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I find great writing workshops all the time online. Some, not so great, but I can usually scrape up a swell contact or writing bud at the very least. :)
 
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