Creative Writing Classes/Courses

Old Perry

Was thinking of starting a part time/hobby course (not a cert or diploma or anything like that) sometime in October when they all seem to start up, just wondering has anyone any experience of these, would they be teaching technique/structure/ developing characters/plot and the like or would they be more of a writing club type set up ie. bring in your ideas and get constructive criticism.

Any info appriciated

bigsmokewriting

Hi there! Different facilitators/teachers/instructors will teach in different ways - it depends on the level you're at as well, e.g. in the Beginners' classes we run, there'd be a fair bit of the technique/structure etc stuff because obviously most people are coming in looking to get started (or back into) writing, rather than having stuff to critique. Whereas with more advanced workshops or specialist classes you'd find there's a bit more emphasis on getting feedback on work, though it should be slightly more directed than a 'writing club' set-up. It's always worth getting in touch with the particular organisation you're looking to take a class or a workshop with and find out what the balance is in a certain course - many of them would be along the same lines as this, but there are also courses where there'd be a huge focus on reading already-published fiction/poetry etc (more on 'how to read as a writer' rather than 'how to write'). Also find out what forms are covered in a course (poetry/short stories/novels/drama/memoir etc), just so you've a better idea of what you're likely to get out of it!

EileenG

There are a lot of different classes/groups out there. Some seem to be just people getting together and doing a bit of free writing which they read out and everyone has to praise. All very warm and fuzzy, but you don't learn anything.

There are also classes with a definite structure and homework which gets a no-messing critique.

And there are a lot in between.

You'd need to sort out your aims and methods early on.

| might get flamed for this, but I'd also take a definite stance on poetry. Poets do not mix well with people writing novels or short stories or non-fiction, and the ones I've met tend to react very badly to any sort of criticism. I've had more than one poet tell me I was too stupid to understand what they were trying to say.

EileenG

Opps, just realised you were planning to be a student at a course, rather than teach it.

If it's not too late, and if you are into novel writing, Patricia O'Reilly is doing a Wednesday morning class in UCD which I highly recommend. This term, the course is "The Nuts and Bolts of Writing." After Christmas she's doing "The Plot Thickens" and after Easter it's "Character development".

Old Perry

bigsmokewriting wrote: »

Hi there! Different facilitators/teachers/instructors will teach in different ways - it depends on the level you're at as well, e.g. in the Beginners' classes we run, there'd be a fair bit of the technique/structure etc stuff because obviously most people are coming in looking to get started (or back into) writing, rather than having stuff to critique. Whereas with more advanced workshops or specialist classes you'd find there's a bit more emphasis on getting feedback on work, though it should be slightly more directed than a 'writing club' set-up. It's always worth getting in touch with the particular organisation you're looking to take a class or a workshop with and find out what the balance is in a certain course - many of them would be along the same lines as this, but there are also courses where there'd be a huge focus on reading already-published fiction/poetry etc (more on 'how to read as a writer' rather than 'how to write'). Also find out what forms are covered in a course (poetry/short stories/novels/drama/memoir etc), just so you've a better idea of what you're likely to get out of it!

Thanks BigSmoke, I'd be starting at the level before beginner, total noob , havin done much research on whats available in waterford apart from classes run in the VEC so will pop down to them and see what they say, my problem is so far i recognise good technique and styles in some books im reading but then when i try putting it into practice im just replecating very very badly so really what i'd like from the course is an insight into methods and steps to take etc.

Old Perry

EileenG wrote: »

If it's not too late, and if you are into novel writing, Patricia O'Reilly is doing a Wednesday morning class in UCD which I highly recommend. This term, the course is "The Nuts and Bolts of Writing." After Christmas she's doing "The Plot Thickens" and after Easter it's "Character development".

The Nuts and Bolts that sounds good, unfortunetly as far as i can see waterford it dont run any classes like this and as far as starting out with a novel , as much as id love to, id be like a four year old without stablisers on my bike. Thanks Eileen.

Anybody any experience of the VEC run classes?

bigsmokewriting

EileenG wrote: »

| might get flamed for this, but I'd also take a definite stance on poetry. Poets do not mix well with people writing novels or short stories or non-fiction, and the ones I've met tend to react very badly to any sort of criticism. I've had more than one poet tell me I was too stupid to understand what they were trying to say.

Seriously? That's appalling. And there are certainly aspiring/developing poets out there who are less obnoxious... maybe we've just been lucky with our poetically-minded students...

That being said, when you get past a 'beginner'-y stage of writing, when people are still discovering what works for them and what forms they want to write in, it suits most people to be around others working in the same form. We do separate poetry and fiction workshops - it just makes the most sense.

Old Perry wrote:

Thanks BigSmoke, I'd be starting at the level before beginner, total noob , havin done much research on whats available in waterford apart from classes run in the VEC so will pop down to them and see what they say, my problem is so far i recognise good technique and styles in some books im reading but then when i try putting it into practice im just replecating very very badly so really what i'd like from the course is an insight into methods and steps to take etc.

Ah listen - if something is advertised as a beginners' class, it should be catering to beginners. Some of them don't, admittedly, but if you find yourself in a beginners' class and everyone else seems to know everything there is about writing, something's gone very wrong!

There's a fair bit of variation in terms of the creative writing taught in VECs - check out who the tutor is and what their background is, ideally you're looking for someone who can teach as well as having experience as a writer.

Might also be worth checking out courses available online? Again quite a variation in quality but there are some good ones out there - does mean you miss out on the social side of things though.

EileenG

Old Perry wrote: »

The Nuts and Bolts that sounds good, unfortunetly as far as i can see waterford it dont run any classes like this and as far as starting out with a novel , as much as id love to, id be like a four year old without stablisers on my bike. Thanks Eileen.

Anybody any experience of the VEC run classes?

Don't knock novels. In a lot of ways, they are easier than short stories. You have more freedom to try different things, explore different ways of writing. Short stories require a fair degree of technical skill, not just an idea.

Ask in your local library if they know of any workshops that might suit you. In fact, many libraries host one.

It's been said before, but I'll say it again. Just sit down and write. Some of the technical stuff you can learn by reading or classes, but nothing beats sitting down and writing.

If you are a wattpad addict, try "The seven pillars of writing" wattcode 607439 as a good introduction to the basics.

clm

I think the Waterford College of Further education has a few creative writing courses on; I would ring and ask them if it's writing/critique based, if it's purely writing exercises to get people started or if they cover some of the basics like plot/structure etc...

I've done quite a few courses, I find it's a great way to get feedback and learn more about structuring pieces, planning, dealing with writers block etc...

I've actually done two poetry courses this year, they were so different from each other but I loved both of them! From that point of view I think it is so important to ask questions, read the blurbs and make sure the course suits your style. If anything else they are a great way to take the writing from your own private head space and test the waters.

The first Poetry Course one I did was an 'Advanced Poetry Workshop' in the Irish Writers' Centre with Alan Jude Moore; this was very much geared towards getting poetry published so there was a lot of critique. There was also reading of other poets work, looking at different styles of writing, looking at places to submit your work and we also did a class on reading your work in public!

The second poetry course I did was a 'Poetry Workshop' with Paula Meehan. This was more of a mixed group of lots of different levels, there was some critique but it was a more gentle approach than the advanced class. Many of the group had never written poetry while others had been published (one of the participants, Jane Clarke, won the iYeats Poetry Competition this year). Paulas methods are very unusual but really lovely, she started off class each day with breathing exercises and concentrated a lot on the sound of words and got us all to read out lines from poems out loud concentrating on the stresses, sounds etc... She looked at louds of different types of poems, got us to read a lot and in the end I found the poems we workshopped flowed a lot better.

Anyway now I have to decide if I am going to do another poetry course or test the waters with the short story! I have my eye on two that the Irish Writers' Centre are doing at the moment, decision...

Old Perry

Thanks guys, think ill check out the VEC courses monday, will let ya know what information they have, if ye think of any other questions i should ask
please let me know, information so far has been very helpful.

EileenG

If you see a class that looks good, go for it. Don't be put off by the thought that the standard might be high. A high standard is good, it gives you something to aim for. I've been to writing workshops where the standard was so low that no-one had any examples of how to do it better, and they never improved.

I love going to a course and finding that there are writers on it who are way better than me. It gives me a huge incentive to get my act together and work harder.