Writing courses can be a valuable resource for writers, both new and experienced ones. Writing courses aim to help writers in many ways, from providing direction and writing strategies to improving word usage and vocabulary. They also help to improve writing quality and style, depending on the type of course you take. At the very least, writing courses force you to write regularly, even when you don’t really feel like it.
Attending classroom sessions of writing courses is not possible for many aspiring writers in today’s busy, multitasking world. This is where the flexibility and convenience of online writing courses come in. These allow writers to squeeze in a session at a suitable day and time, in between their regular writing jobs and other commitments. Here are some things to know about online writing courses to help you decide whether you might want to sign up for one.
Good quality online writing courses are available
Online classes are sometimes looked down upon and considered to be cheaper and less comprehensive options to classroom writing courses or writing workshops. But the fact is, many renowned universities and colleges are increasingly offering more and more courses online to fit into the schedules of busy students who are often juggling jobs and classes. There are many useful courses offered to help improve writing skills such as technical writing, essay writing, short story writing, improving sentence structure and different writing styles.
Free online writing course options. There are also many free online writing courses available from good universities such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), Purdue, University of Michigan and others. Just because these classes are free doesn’t imply that they are of lower quality or value. Several universities make their regular classes free occasionally or provide the pre-requisite courses for free in order to allow easy enrollment in higher level classes. So, while there may be fewer course choices for free courses, they can be of just as good quality, and if you keep a regular eye out for the course of your interest, you might grab it when it is available for free. Free courses also give writers the option to try out several different courses to find one that they like, without paying hefty fees. Check out this link to some of the free online writing classes:
https://educationportal.com/articles/10_Universities_Offering_Free_Writing_Courses_Online.html
Focused writing help
Brief online writing courses with a specific focus or form of writing, such as ‘writing effective dialogue’, ‘planning your novel’, or even ‘how to write a short story’ are often more helpful than a broad, general course on say ‘how to improve your writing’ or ‘how to write a novel‘. Many online writing courses come in this focused format, and you can browse through the available courses to find one that you feel will help with your specific problem areas in writing.
Review and feedback
One of the most valuable things writers will get out of a writing course, online or otherwise, is the detailed review and feedback of their work. Online writing courses have regular writing assignments for the students, which are looked over by the instructors who are usually experienced and published authors themselves. Many online classes offer personalized courses or one-on-one pairing with instructors. This allows students to get more quality time with an experienced writer who is willing to provide objective feedback on the quality of their writing.
In conclusion, online writing classes do have a lot to offer for new writers looking for a push into disciplined writing, those looking to improve certain areas of their writing, or writers interested in learning different writing formats. However, ultimately for any writer, what you get out of the writing course (online or classroom based) will really depend on what you put in and how committed you are to improving your writing.
Image credit: Tim Regan on flickr and reproduced under Creative Commons 2.0
CS Rajan is a freelance writer who loves to write on various topics, and is currently working on her first novel.