GUARANTEE: if you go through the class and ultimately don’t find it useful, I will give you a free enrollment in any one of my future workshops, on any topic – no questions asked.
I always include a little one-on-one work with each student to help tailor the experience to the it individual needs.
All workshops take place in my private online forum, so you can post questions, comments, and writing excerpts without worrying who will see it. Plus, since we have deadlines of a certain day, not a set class hour, you can be anywhere in the world and still participate!
Currently teaching:
“Better Writing Through Brevity: Writing/Editing Microfiction and Flash” – read, write, critique, and edit short fiction of various lengths, including 140 characters, 1 sentence, 100 words, six sentences, under 500 words, under 1000. Previous students of this class have sold their final pieces to semi- and pro-rate SFF markets.
Previous Workshop Subjects (may come around again):
“Nuts and Bolts of Submitting” – market directories and submission trackers, finding the RIGHT market, reading submission guidelines, meeting submission guidelines, when to query, how to write bios and cover letters, how to read rejections, and figuring out when to resubmit, revise, or trunk your work.
“Plotting the Short Story” – Recognizing plot vs other elements in someone else’s story? How about in your own? Different plot structures and plotting techniques. Fitting a whole story into different lengths: flash (1000 and under), mid-length short story (about 4000 words), and longer short stories (up to 6500 words). And, what do you put in and what do you leave off the page? Plus! Fundamentals of storytelling, prepping (including outlining, character arcs, and plot twists) and basic editing (including how to recognize the different moments of your story so you can move them around) are also covered.
“Editing 101” – AKA “Editing for Writers”. Identifying parts of a story, tenses and perspectives, narrative arcs, and other elements that are potentially affected by the editing process. Definitions, editing marks, using (and creating) style sheets, important style manuals, levels of editing, and fact-checking. The basics of copyediting: concepts and skills necessary for line editing (also called copyediting), relying mainly on the Chicago Manual of Style, 16th ed; editing vs. proofreading; tips for spotting tricky errors. The basics of developmental editing: what it is and isn’t, including the specifics of developmental editing in fiction. We’ll also cover rates, and working with clients, including querying about edits, maintaining an author’s voice, and related services.
I’m often asked, “Why do you teach low-cost workshops? And, why do it online?”
I offer occasional online workshops (classes) on writing and editing because not everyone has the ability to take a class in college, at a convention, or through their local community. Some places don’t offer the sort of workshops I teach, and there are plenty of emerging writers who wouldn’t have access to traditional classes because of the cost or the distance. My workshops are available to anyone, all over the world, at a discounted fee. People who have fewer options for education as writers or editors — because of a disability, work schedule, caregiving demands, social anxiety, or limited income — can still get a quality workshop experience with their peers. As long as you have access to a computer with the internet at at least 3 times a week, and can read/write English at a high school level, you can succeed in my classes.
Class dates subject to change.