General

Writing Salon classes are for writers 18 years old and up.

Yes! We welcome writers at all levels of experience. We’ll help you unlock your creativity and get started. All you’ll need is a desire to write and learn. Many beginning writers have gone on to take a number of classes at The Writing Salon and have built up confidence in their writing and overall communication skills.

We have no hard and fast rules regarding which classes to take or in which order to take them. We suggest picking the class that makes the most sense to you, based on your own writing goals and experience. If you can’t decide, narrow your options down to three or four. Then send us an email or give us a call.

Most of our classes are for writers of all levels of experience. Only a very few are designed solely for introductory, intermediate, and advanced writers. We like providing an opportunity for writers of all backgrounds and skill levels to learn in a single setting. We also want to help you grow, so if you want to challenge yourself more, we recommend looking into the classes that are intermediate or advanced. Likewise, if you’d like to be in a community in which your class members are all getting started as writers, sign up for our introductory offerings.

If we must cancel a class for any reason (e.g., due to low enrollment or extreme weather), we will notify you at least 24 hours prior to the start date of the class. You can choose to transfer your registration to another class, receive a full credit, or take a full refund, whichever option you’d prefer.

Of course! We love to hear all success stories from our students. Whether you have published a story, gotten into an MFA program, landed an agent for your novel, or sealed a spot in an upcoming reading series, let us know at hello@writingsalons.com. We’d like to share your success at our website and on social media.

Online Classes

Classes are hosted via Zoom, a video-conferencing service that is straightforward, easy to use, and well designed for online classes. To attend class meetings, you’ll need a phone, tablet or computer and access to the internet. You can participate in the class from wherever you’d like, whether on your living room couch or in your office.

If you don’t have Zoom on your computer, you’ll need to download the software prior to your class. If you’ll be using a mobile device, please download the Zoom application. To participate, you will not have to create a Zoom account.

Before the start of your class, you will receive a course Zoom link. Click on the link to access your online classroom.

If you need more support, Zoom has great online tutorials. We recommend the following to get you started:

How to Use Zoom

Zoom Video Tutorials

Your instructor might elect to incorporate Google Drive to share course documents and as a way for you to share your work with your classmates. If you have a Google account, then you already have access to Google Drive. If you do not have a Google account, you can sign up easily by creating a new account from the accounts.google web page.

Once you have a Google account, you can use your Google Drive to share files with others. Sharing your work gives your classmates access to the same file that lives on your Google Drive. When you share a document, you can choose whether you want people to be able to edit your work directly, or have read-only access.

Click here for a basic tutorial on how to share your files with others.

The Writing Salon’s online workshops were created for writers who are looking for extensive feedback on their own work and close engagement with their classmates and the instructor. Wet Ink is the ideal online platform for these workshops. It was designed specifically for writers and writing workshops. Its simple-to-use interface makes it easy to give and receive feedback. Because our workshops on Wet Ink don’t meet at a specific time, you can access the class whenever best fits your schedule.

Daily writing and partner exchanges are crucial to the foundation of the course. Each Sunday, participants receive writing prompts for the upcoming week. The prompts are triggers to get you writing. A sample prompt might be “apple” or “I haven’t forgotten.” Participants are expected to commit to the class for 20-30 minutes each day. Participants should write for 10-12 of those minutes. The other 10-20 minutes should go toward partner responses. New partners are assigned on a weekly basis.

Registration & Payment

We encourage students to register early to give our teachers time to prepare for the class and to ensure that the class does not get cancelled due to low enrollment. Some classes fill up several weeks before the start date, so it is in your best interest to register at least two weeks before a class begins.

Yes. Registration closes 24 hours before the start date for a class.

No. However, you are welcome to call or email if you have questions that aren’t answered in the course description. We will answer your questions or put you in direct touch with the teacher.

You can pay by credit card or PayPal. We do not accept checks or cash. However, if you are absolutely unable to pay by credit card or Paypal, we may be able to make a special consideration. Please inquire by email at hello@writingsalons.com.

Sorry. We don’t. Our teachers are happy, however, to give you any handouts or assignments from the class you missed.

We offer reduced class rates through our Access Program. Reduced-rate spots are available on a rolling basis, and a limited amount of funds are available each season.

No, you must pay in full.

To withdraw from a class, please email hello@writingsalons.com. Include the following information in your email: your full name, email address, and the name of the class and teacher. We don’t manage withdrawals over the phone.

Two days prior to a class’s start date is a busy time at The Writing Salon. The teacher makes final preparations for her class and receives the course roster. Enrolled students receive welcome emails with information about the class and location. During this time period, withdrawals and late sign-ups can (and often do) have a substantial impact on the school’s operations. Late withdrawals can lead to the cancellation of a class that would have otherwise run. While we understand emergencies do come up for our students, The Writing Salon’s refund and enrollment policies are designed to ensure that the school’s operations are manageable and sustainable.

You’ll have to create a user account by clicking on the following link: https://www.writingsalons.com/my-account/. You can also create your account right at the checkout page by checking the “Create an account” box under the “Email address” field and typing in a password under the “Create account password” field.

After you create the account, your email address will be recognized. By creating an account, you’ll have access to your class purchase records, membership info (if applicable), and more.

Account, Membership & Donation

Go to www.writingsalons.com/my-account/. To log in, enter your username and password. If you’ve forgotten your password, click on “lost password,” and you’ll be directed to this page: www.writingsalons.com/my-account/lost-password/. Once logged in, you’ll have access at the “Dashboard” to your order history, saved payment methods, membership, credit, and/or gift card information (located under “Coupons”), and more.

You’ll need to purchase a membership at our Get Involved page either as a new member or as a renewing member. Once the membership is in your shopping cart, you’ll receive the member price on all eligible items. After you purchase your membership, you can log into your account to access member prices for all classes, the Writer’s Welcome Kit, and Jane Underwood Poetry Prize submissions. As a member, you can also sign up for Writing Salon meetups for free. You no longer need a discount code in order to receive your membership discount. Memberships expire after one year.

If you have an account with us at The Writing Salon, log into your account at www.writingsalons.com/my-account/. The membership information will be available at the “Dashboard” under “My Membership”. If you still can’t find your membership information, send an email to hello@writingsalons.com. We will reply to your request within 1-2 business days.

In order to receive your membership discount, you must make your purchase while logged into our website. Please do not sign up for a class or make a purchase without logging into your account and then ask us for a refund at the membership discount rate. After you have already made a purchase, we cannot issue a membership discount refund.

Yes. And thank you for thinking of us! We’d greatly appreciate a donation to The Writing Salon Scholarship, a program dedicated to giving writers with financial need an opportunity to learn here at our school. You’re welcome to make a donation at our Scholarship page or at our Get Involved page. The Writing Salon is not a 501(c)(3) organization.

Still Got Questions? Contact Us

Still Got Questions?
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