“We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master.”
– Ernest Hemingway
Whether you’re a beginner, pro, or somewhere in between, we have the class for you.
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Write from Real Life: Personal Essays & MemoirsIn this remote class you will plunge into the personal themes that make your real life stories uniquely yours. In the first half of this class, instructor Alison Luterman will give you writing exercises carefully designed to elicit the undertones and overtones that elevate events and anecdotes into the realm of art...more
Instructor: Alison Luterman
July 05 - August 309 Mondays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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Intro to Screenwriting: Lights, Camera, Action!“Are you sitting on a fantastic story idea for the screen?” asks instructor Kerry Muir. “In Intro to Screenwriting, you’ll acquire a veritable toolbox of strategies and exercises, as well as creative inspiration to help set your idea into motion...more
Instructor: Kerry Muir
July 06 - August 035 Tuesdays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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Blogging 101: Publish Your PassionWhether you wish to concoct savory cuisine, debate politics, or relate the ins and outs of your daily life, this five-week online class will take you from the concept of a blog to its realization...more
Instructor: Allison Landa
July 07 - August 045 Wednesdays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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Rooting Your Voice in Community: A Poetry ClassIn this online class, we will tap into the wider world we are rooted in–and the communities we are shaped by–as sources of inspiration for our poems. Each session will provide generative writing exercises, prompts, group dialogues, and select reading materials...more
Instructor: Alan Chazaro
July 07 - August 045 Wednesdays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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She Said WHAT?: Character Voices and DialogueInstructor Jessica Litwak says, “I started out my working life as an actor, so I write and teach writing from the inside, embodying story and character with passion, specificity and joy. I work to inspire and guide my students towards strong and clear written expression, particularly through character and dialogue...more
Instructor: Jessica Litwak
July 08 - August 055 Thursdays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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You Can Be a Winning Writer: How to Get Published, Grow Confidence and Build CommunityFor writers poised to publish poems, articles and stories as well as those with completed manuscripts or book proposals, this online class will provide a strategy for success...more
Instructor: Joan Gelfand
July 101 Saturday10:00am - 1:00pm
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Creative Writing Workshop: The Process Is EverythingThis online creative writing workshop will enable class members to deepen reflection on their own work, receive focused feedback from classmates and instructor, and inspire development toward class members’ finest hopes for their writing projects...more
Instructor: Kathy Garlick
July 11 - August 226 WeeksAll Day
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Daily Write Round RobinJane Underwood had a unique vision when she developed the Round Robin class. By combining several elements—partnering, repetition, practice, feedback, and dedication—she created not just a writing course, but an actual community, one that has continued and grown for over a decade...more
Instructor: Allison Landa, Kathy Garlick
July 11 - August 226 WeeksAll Day
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We Real Cool: A Poetry Class on the Voice & Craft of BIPOC Poets“Too often the voice and craft of BIPOC authors are overlooked when studying poetry,” says instructor Thea Matthews. “Enough! In order to be a more effective writer, a poet, one must be aware of the diverse voice and craft of non-white authors...more
Instructor: Thea Matthews
July 11 - August 085 Sundays, (PST)10:30am - 1:00pm
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Body Narratives“Some of our most defining stories are about the things that have happened to our bodies,” says instructor Jennifer Lewis. “Whether adolescence, childbirth, aging or gender transitioning, each of us has experienced transformations that have shaped our character...more
Instructor: Jennifer Lewis
July 11 - August 085 Sundays, (PST)2:00pm - 4:30pm
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Creative Nonfiction Master ClassThis master class provides a “literary laboratory” for experienced nonfiction writers to workshop their writing, advance their craft, delve deeply into their themes, take risks, and tackle the all-important revision process...more
Instructor: Kerry Muir
July 11 - September 129 Sundays, (PST)2:00pm - 4:30pm
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Script Writing MentorshipMany writers of stage and screen reach a point where they can benefit hugely from a one-on-one relationship with a writing mentor in which they receive focused and rigorous attention on their project(s)...more
Instructor: Jessica Litwak
July 12 - September 139 Weeks, (PST)All Day
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Intro to Fiction: To Begin at the Beginning“Big Secret Number One to writing fiction is that you have to make a mess. Many messes,” says instructor Steve Mitchel. “You have to throw truckloads of words down onto the page knowing full well that most of them will end up in the compost...more
Instructor: Steve Mitchel
July 12 - August 165 Mondays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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Your Story, Your Life: Memoir & Personal Essays“By writing memoir and personal essays, we give form to our histories and make something of meaning and beauty that is uniquely ours,” says instructor Katharine Harer. “I love this genre because you can be yourself, complete with your idiosyncrasies, strong opinions, flashes of wisdom and crazy moments...more
Instructor: Katharine Harer
July 13 - September 079 Tuesdays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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Writing about Illness: Creating Art and Wisdom from the Night-Side of LifeIn this online class, we’ll read and discuss some of the most evocative illness and healing writing of our time. Guided by readings, discussions, and in-class exercises, we’ll write our own journeys through “the night-side of life,” as Susan Sontag describes illness...more
Instructor: Gila Lyons
July 17 - July 313 Saturdays, (PST)2:00pm - 4:30pm
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Creative Writing 101“Have you wanted to test the waters of creative writing but don’t know where to begin, or how?” asks instructor Kathy Garlick. “Have you waded into those waters before, but it’s been a while?” In this online class, you will be guided surely and safely into the writing experience...more
Instructor: Kathy Garlick
July 18 - August 013 Sundays, (PST)10:30am - 1:00pm
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Poems Sing, Lyrics Talk: A Class on Lyrical FormsIn this 3-week class, we’ll look at the similarities and differences between poetry and lyrics. We’ll read examples of both genres, try our hands at creating lyrics out of poems, and vice versa...more
Instructor: Alison Luterman
July 22 - August 053 Thursdays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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A Play in a Day: Writing a Ten-Minute PlayIn this short intensive workshop, students will receive a basket filled with playwriting tools, specifically with the ten-minute play form in mind. Tools will include character development, dialogue, story arc, and other essentials for dramatic writing...more
Instructor: Jessica Litwak
July 241 Saturday, (PST)10:00am - 1:00pm
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The Transformative Trip: Travel Writing Meets MemoirAt its best, travel transports and transforms us. It makes us pay attention, and leaving home—and our comfort zone—carves out space for new insight. Think of a memorable trip that you’ve taken. What longing or ambition or heartbreak set you in motion? Did you stumble on a new understanding of the world or your place in it...more
Instructor: Erin Van Rheenen
July 241 Saturday, (PST)2:00pm - 5:00pm
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Poetry MentorshipThis remote poetry “class” offers a unique opportunity for personal and intimate poetry instruction. Students will work with Brian Tierney one-on-one, via written correspondence over two months, during which students will compile and send three “packets”...more
Instructor: Brian Tierney
July 26 - September 279 WeeksAll Day
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Short and Sweet: Prose Poems, Flash Fiction and Mini-MemoirsIn this online class we’ll look at examples of short pieces from practitioners such as Lydia Davis and Russell Edson, and we’ll explore how to incorporate techniques like free association and juxtaposition into our work. Then we’ll write, share, and write some more...more
Instructor: Alison Luterman
July 28 - August 113 Wednesdays, (PST)2:00pm - 4:30pm
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Tiny Kingdoms: Writing the VERY Short StoryHow short can a story be? Consider Ernest Hemingway’s six-word classic: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” A tale told quickly can offer untold riches, which swell inside a reader long after the telling...more
Instructor: Andy Touhy
July 311 Saturday, (PST)10:00am - 1:00pm
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Fertile Ground: Writing about Parenting in This Strange TimeInstructor Katharine Harer says, “Creative writing is the perfect repository for the sometimes confusing and always human experience of being a parent”...more
Instructor: Katharine Harer
July 311 Saturday, (PST)2:00pm - 5:00pm
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The Writing GymTo tone and strengthen your writing, you need the occasional workout for your writing muscles. Enter our Writing Gym for a fun and energetic exercise-themed series of writing prompts designed to get your creative juices flowing...more
Instructor: David Jacobson
August 051 Thursday, 3 Thursdays, (PST)2:00pm - 3:00pm
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Comedy Writing 101“Comedy is fragile,” says instructor Kate Montgomery. “One extra word can ruin a laugh. But the truth is, just about anyone can be funny, once they know how it’s done...more
Instructor: Kate Montgomery
August 071 Saturday, (PST)10:00am - 1:00pm
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Writing for Power & Resiliency“The power of language, of the voice, is not to be underestimated,” says instructor Thea Matthews. In this 5-week class, participants will generate new work, or continue preexisting literary projects, that reflect personal and collective power and resiliency...more
Instructor: Thea Matthews
August 07 - September 115 Saturdays, (PST)10:30am - 1:00pm
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Reading for Writers: Improving Craft Through Close Reading“Reading the works we love, we’ve all had the experience of picking up the writer’s voice in our heads until that ‘other voice’ somehow becomes our own voice. We are changed by it,” says instructor Kathy Garlick. “In this class, we’ll read like writers. By looking at things from the ‘inside out,’ by tapping into that ‘other voice,’ we’ll discover how writers pull off amazing feats...more
Instructor: Kathy Garlick
August 07 - September 115 Saturdays, (PST)2:00pm - 4:00pm
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Writing Your Personal SymbolsIn this 5-week remote class, students will use class time to develop a series of creative nonfiction pieces connected to classic Jungian archetypes such as the Hero, Lover, Outlaw, Trickster, Orphan and more...more
Instructor: Kerry Muir
August 07 - September 115 Saturdays, (PST)2:00pm - 4:30pm
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Secondary Characters: Adding Depth, Conflict & Surprise to ScenesIn this class, we will talk about ways to build more interesting secondary characters, study common relationship types, and do exercises aimed at creating more dynamic interactions between characters by thinking from the perspective of the secondary character...more
Instructor: Lori Ostlund
August 08 - September 125 Sundays, (PST)10:30am - 1:00pm
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Creative Practice: Cultivating a Writing Routine That Works for You“Writing is a way to engage deeply and meaningfully with the world so that life does not just simply pass us by,” says Shelby Hinte. “Writing is a way to linger and dissect the moments that might otherwise evade us. But as busy adults, how do we find time to write...more
Instructor: Shelby Hinte
August 10 - September 075 Tuesdays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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Making a Scene: Real-Time Action in Fiction and Nonfiction“The writerly advice to ‘show, don’t tell’ is easier said than done,” says instructor Erin Van Rheenen. “‘Showing’ means crafting compelling scenes where characters say and do things in the real time of the story. The truth is, it can be hard to write a scene...more
Instructor: Erin Van Rheenen
August 11 - September 085 Wednesdays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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The Art and Craft of Food Writing“Food writing offers a unique lens into so much of the world,” says instructor Georgia Freedman. Food is a big part of how we show love, how we share and celebrate our cultures, how we connect with our community...more
Instructor: Georgia Freedman
August 11 - September 155 Wednesdays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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Fiction Workshop: The Craft of Artful Storytelling“What makes a story compelling?” asks instructor Andy Touhy. “More importantly, what are the ways to make it compelling? In this online workshop, we’ll begin to really think about how fictional narrative (short story or novel) is constructed, and made better...more
Instructor: Andy Touhy
August 12 - September 095 Thursdays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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Intro to Creative Nonfiction: Let Your Story Unfold“Have you always wanted to write but are stumped by the way to tell your own story?” asks instructor Jennifer Lewis. “In this remote class, by exploring different types of creative nonfiction, you will find the unique way to bring your story to life”...more
Instructor: Jennifer Lewis
August 12 - September 095 Thursdays, (PST)6:30pm - 9:00pm
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Let the Body Sing: A Poetry Class“Poets have been focusing their work on the body for ages — on pleasure, on identity, on beauty, on illness, and on the body as a living target,” says instructor Preeti Vangani. This 3-week online class will be a generative space to explore pleasure, trauma, survival and healing through writing poetry about the body...more
Instructor: Preeti Vangani
August 14 - August 283 Saturdays, (PST)10:30am - 1:00pm
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Screenwriting Boot Camp“The best way to learn anything is to DO it,” says instructor Kate Montgomery. “In this fun and informative 3-session boot camp, you’ll throw yourself in right away, learning and then immediately applying the basics of professional screenwriting...more
Instructor: Kate Montgomery
August 15 - August 293 Sundays, (PST)10:30am - 1:00pm
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On Point: Crafting a Short-Form Point of View Piece“Many people are driven to write by the simple human need to express ourselves,” says instructor David Jacobson. “There may be no better way to meet that need than through the short, pointed burst of intellectual and emotional energy that goes into a newspaper column, op-ed or blog post...more
Instructor: David Jacobson
August 15 - August 293 Sundays, (PST)2:00pm - 4:30pm
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The Writing GymTo tone and strengthen your writing, you need the occasional workout for your writing muscles. Enter our Writing Gym for a fun and energetic exercise-themed series of writing prompts designed to get your creative juices flowing...more
Instructor: David Jacobson
August 191 Thursday, (PST)2:00pm - 3:00pm
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Poetry MentorshipIn this 9-week mentorship experience, Erin Rodoni will engage with you as a unique poet. In addition to providing detailed critical feedback on your creative work, she will also take into account the arc and scope of your poems, examining the ways in which they are speaking to and building on each other...more
Instructor: Erin Rodoni
August 23 - October 259 WeeksAll Day
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The Writing GymTo tone and strengthen your writing, you need the occasional workout for your writing muscles. Enter our Writing Gym for a fun and energetic exercise-themed series of writing prompts designed to get your creative juices flowing...more
Instructor: David Jacobson
September 021 Thursday, (PST)2:00pm - 3:00pm
Online