Writing Courses
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| © Tali Khivrich |
Online and In Person Courses That Will Make You a Better Writer
Mar 21, 12:30-1:30pm ET. Actions Speak Louder: Crafting Character Interiority in MG & YA. How do we create space for introspection in middle grade and YA while keeping readers engaged? In this talk, Maria Marianayagam, author of the acclaimed No Purchase Necessary, will delve into the art of showcasing interiority through action. Discover how to weave your character’s thoughts, emotions, and growth seamlessly into their external activities to keep up your pacing and make your storytelling vivid and relatable for young readers. Featuring examples from Maria's own work and other celebrated MG and YA titles, this session is perfect for aspiring and seasoned authors looking to deepen their craft. $20 (or free to Inked Voices members). Replay available to rewatch through Apr 21.
March 29, 9:30-11am PDT. Making Emotions Concrete. a free workshop from KidLit Craft. To make emotions real to readers, writers need to go beyond the stereotypical eye roll or shrug. Often the tools for making more effective choices already exist in a rough draft. Manuscripts are peppered with objects and character interests that can be used strategically to communicate a character’s emotions to the reader–and make the reader feel them too. Through examples from mentor texts and exercises based on your current work-in-progress, you’ll learn how to use metaphors and objects as concrete expressions of emotion and develop a range of options to incorporate into your work. Taught by KidLit Craft founder Anne-Marie Strohman, MFA. For all writers for children, from picture books to young adult. Free. Recording available for 30 days after the event.
April 7 and 9, 7 p.m. Intro to Writing Short Fiction- A Two Night Mini for MG & YA Authors. Join author and anthologist Katherine Locke and author and agent Eric Smith to learn about the form, opportunity, and style of writing short fiction for kids and teens. This program is a great fit if you’re looking for a short course of two, 75-minute sessions offering limited interaction with the community, but loads of information. ($59)
April 26, 10-11:30am PDT. Building a Novel with Touchstone Moments. A KidLit Craft Workshop taught by award-winning middle grade author Lindsay Lackey. Touchstone moments are meaningful story moments for the character, but equally important, they are meaningful story moments for you, the author. To build an effective emotional arc in your story, you must weave in moments that authentically give you “all the feels” while writing. In this workshop, middle grade author Lindsay will introduce you to the idea of touchstone moments and guide you through a series of exercises to discover how touchstones can be found in everything from character to setting to prose. $35. Recording available for 30 days after the event. Can be paired with our April 22 Ask the Author Book Club event, where Lindsay will discuss writing her most recent middle grade novel, Farther Than the Moon.
Lyrical Language Lab Peek & Critique- The Lyrical Language Lab Peek & Critique: YouTube video series by Renée LaTulippe providing free critiques of your kidlit writing as well as free lessons and mentor text discussions.
Laura Purdy Salas courses online courses on writing poetry and nonfiction for children and submissions
ONLINE WRITING CENTERS
PICTURE BOOKS
Just Write For Kids- Emma Walton Hamilton provides an 8 week online course dedicated to developing your picture book idea and learning how to break into the industry. She also features many classes and resources on her website.
Writing Picture Books for Children - fiction and nonfiction author Patrice Sherman's course of writing books for children
Art of Arc: How to Analyze Your Picture Book Manuscript A master class in picture book writing by author Alayne Kay Christian, focusing on a deep study of the traditional story arc as well as other story structures.
Children's Book Insider's Picture Book Blueprint walks you through the process of writing a picture book step-by-step, including creating your characters, designing a plot, building excitement, and writing your draft.
Karla Valenti's Master Course in Picture Books A step-by-step, hands-on version of James Gardner's "The Art of Fiction," but specifically for PB writers. A great tool, especially for those starting out, since everything is laid out in bite-size pieces. It also encourages writers to engage with the current PB market, and to apply each principle learned to their own work-in-progress.
Writing Barn Online Courses - Intensive six-week online courses on picture book writing and other writing courses.
The Heart of Picture Books (course by Julie Hedlund) In this webinar, find out top 10 layers of great picture books; what the HEART layer is and why it is so important; pitfalls to avoid; more
CHAPTER BOOKS, MIDDLE GRADE & YA
Just Write for Middle Grade! Emma Walton Hamilton's 14 week course on writing chapter books and middle grade
Just Write for Young Adults! Emma Walton Hamilton's 14 week course on writing YA
Children's Book Insider's Chapter Book Blueprint walks you through the process of writing a chapter book, with author Alice Kuipers.
GENERAL WRITING COURSES
List of Online Writing Courses
Editor in a Box
Gotham Writer's Workshop
Art of Storytelling (free course from Pixar/Khan Academy)
OTHER
Julie Hedlund's- How To Make Money As a Writer- What if you could spend all day, every day, thinking about writing, using your skills to make money, and have MORE time to write?
Now you can. This course is designed to benefit ALL writers, from newbie to multi-published. For ANYONE who wants to make more money from writing and writing-related activities.
Emma Walton Hamilton and Julie Hedlund's comprehensive course on Picture Book Submissions
If you are ready to commit to graduate-level education in creative writing for children and teens, here are some programs:
Southampton Graduate Arts Program - Children's Lit Fellow -- a year long low-residency certificate program for PB, MG, or YA authors. Two semesters of mentorship and two conferences, one focused on writing craft and another on the publication process.
Children's Lit Fellows The Children's Lit Fellows is a year-long certificate program that provides up to 12 serious children's or YA writers a year-long course of advanced instruction primarily in distance-learning format that is customized, affordable, comprehensive, and professionally useful. Fellows work from home, mentored on-on-one by award-winning, best-selling children's and young adult authors and editors. Twice a year, they come together as a cohort - once in July during the Southampton Children's Lit Conference and a second time in January for a special Publishing and Editing Conference.
Hamlin MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults - earn a Master of Fine Arts degree in two years. Work from home and travel to Hamlin twice a year for five 11-day writing residencies. Learn all about the craft of writing for children and teens, as well as the history of children's literature and the industry.
The MFA Cheat Sheet - a review of 5 low-residency MFA programs, including Hollins University, Vermont College of Fine Arts, Hamlin University, Simmons College, and Spaulding University.