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For those who have written in requesting classes and newsletters, you've noticed that there's been very little activity lately. It's the curse of great ideas - we never have enough time to live our dreams, and setting up a great writing website is up there with some of the best ideas I've had in a while. But that doesn't quite explain my virtual disappearance from the virtual world. The mistake I made in setting up 1-2-Writing was assuming that I would have the time to set up the ideal system. I imagined free online classes provided to as many students as I could manage. It's still a great idea, but I became too wrapped up in my own expectations - rather than make some progress, I gave up when I couldn't live up to the goals of the site. Writing, for many of us, works the same way. We come up with ideas, we start to write them, but then we give up when the story doesn't work the way we want it to. And this is natural - it happens to everyone. But that doesn't make this a good thing. In writing - as in many fields - success is often measured by what you do when the job is less than fun. Currently, I'm changing my approach to the website - instead of delivering the full promise of free online classes, I'm going to start posting more information on writing - still free, of course - and begin setting up a kind of repository for writing techniques. This will be an expansion of the current blog, but it won't be posted in the linear form of a blog. My goal is a genuine web of information - you read about an area of interest, and that area will guide you to related areas. We'll take on subjects like characterization, plot, tension, tone, dialogue - the issues that affect writers at all levels. But I'd like to delve deeper into the process of learning to write, addressing the habits good writers use to become better. Watch for these changes to come over the next couple months. The main upgrades won't come until January, but I'll be developing new sections bit by bit until then. One goal is to build up our e-mail database to get the newsletter up and running, and along with that to send out regular updates. If you've submitted your e-mail in the past and never heard back, please don't worry - I'm just a very slow administrator. If you haven't yet submitted your e-mail address and would like to receive updates in the future, please click on our Newsletter Request link to the right to let me know. If you have any comments or suggestions, please let me know. I particularly welcome any specific questions about writing - my goal is to answer these questions online so that we can all share in the available ideas. In the meantime, Happy Writing! Ryan --- Ryan Edel 1-2-Writing Administrator November 30, 2009
Do you want to learn to write? Do you face Writers' Block? Is it time to start a New Chapter in Your Writing? Learn how Freewriting can help you become a stronger writer!
Would you like to Publish Your Work? Would you like to write effective characters? Craft believable protagonists? 1-2-Writing: Learn to write snappy dialogue Develop your writing voice Learn to Write Fiction in the First Person and Third Person |
1-2-Writing: See our list of previously offered Online Writing Workshops Your time is important. At 1-2-Writing, I'm developing a new online workshop. A way to master the fundamentals of creative writing while experimenting with new work. A way to share your work from the comfort of home. A chance to meet fellow writers. What makes 1-2-Writing Different? At 1-2-Writing, I treat writing as a two-step process. First, we must write. And then we must examine our writing and refine it. I follow the writing workshop methods taught by several of my own writing teachers. Where I differ from many online courses is this emphasis on the workshop process -- your Step Two. The key to success in any online writing workshop is learning what it takes to evaluate and critique creative work. There is a difference between a good critique and useless feedback. The former will motivate you to write while providing direction for growth - the latter can choke a budding writer with uncertainty. Through carefully directed questions and examination of the stories submitted for class, you will learn to see stories in a new light. You will identify and use the techniques of great fiction. Your writing -- the First Step -- will never again be the same. Why Online? Online Writing Workshops have become one of the fastest growing sources for creative training among writers. As the internet expands and free time goes down, online writing workshops are often the only access new writers have to guidance and instruction in writing creatively. You can enjoy your classes with 1-2-Writing from the comfort of home, in your spare time, whether early morning or late at night. Why Are Some Courses Free? It takes a lot of work to develop an effective class, particularly in creative writing. It's a tightrope act, teaching new skills while maintaining an environment open to new ideas. As I solidify the curricula and develop new exercises, I will need students to let me know which activities help them the most. I will need writers who can tell me how much their stories have improved. As these courses become more developed, I will charge reasonable rates for a variety of skill levels. Please, check out the list of writing workshops. Take the opportunity to discover your writing voice.
Why Will Some Courses Cost Money? Before I reached graduate school, I never felt that my own writing was worth money. I thought of myself as a complete beginner because I didn't have enough publishing or academic experience. I'm still learning a great deal about this craft - I am still a student of writing. But we are all students of writing. And we can all be teachers of writing, too, passing on our knowledge and experiences to others. Unfortunately, it does require time - more time than I would have ever imagined. So I will begin charging for courses in the near future. Mostly this is so I can reserve the time I need to teach you well. For a single online course, I may require several hours to prepare and post the assignments, and then it requires several more hours for each student to provide helpful comments. In the meantime, I do need to earn enough money to pay rent and eat. My promise to you is that I will not charge a fee for a course unless I have the time set aside to provide the attention you deserve. If extenuating circumstances arise and I cannot teach a promised course, then any fees paid will be refunded. Workshop Leaders Training Course Because of this focus on the workshop, 1-2-Writing is unlike other workshops in that workshop participants will have the chance to become workshop leaders. In the future, I will offer the Workshop Leaders class to participants who are interested in teaching fellow writers. Although publication is always a good thing, it will not be a requirement for becoming a writing workshop leader at 1-2-Writing. I am looking for students of writing who are dedicated, open-minded, and ready to help other writers excel in their work. Writing samples and strong participation in the online writing workshops will be required for admission to the Workshop Leader Training Course. As this project develops, these will become paid positions. As a writer, you will have the chance to gain valuable teaching experience in creative writing. In considering this, I would like to point out that all writing instructors have different strengths and styles - both in teaching and in writing. I do not believe in the cookie-cutter approach to creative writing. I want students to have the freedom to choose the instructors who are best able to help them. As the site becomes better developed, I will be looking for additional instructors to teach the classes of their choice - I've already been very fortunate with help from Kat and Liz for the summer freewriting courses. I will require interested instructors to take at least a few courses with me so I can see your workshop style firsthand, but I will not require anyone to take the training course before becoming an instructor. It will serve more as an advanced certification course, the kind of training you go through if you'd like to earn some money teaching courses through 1-2-Writing. - |
Take a look at: Additional Writing Resources www.hostwriter.netThrough Host Writer, you can access free online software designed to help you map out your story and develop your characters. If you find that you have a lot of great ideas but that you're simply not sure which order to put them in, this might be what you need to get your story on the page.
I'm Ryan, a second-year MFA student in fiction at Johns Hopkins. Much of what I write is science fiction, but I am currently branching out into areas closer to memoir. One of my goals is to write stories that are both realistic and fantastic. One of my main issues with the science fiction of today is an overdependence on "wow!" Good fiction - not just science fiction - must capture the reader's imagination through more than ideas. Stories are about voice and character. Stories of science fiction and fantasy are about imagination, about placing the reader in a new, uncharted world. Whether that world belongs to Arthur C. Clarke's HAL or to Oz's Dorothy, it's the writer's responsibility to make the world real enough to visit with every turn of the page. "Wow!"alone isn't enough - we need characters who can guide us to these new realms.As a writer, it's my goal to write stories that bring that realism to the stock stories that we often take for granted. There's a reason why stories of time travel or zombies or aliens are compelling - it's the human element. And I want to bring that human - and very literary - element into our vision of "wow!"Visit the Blog In the creative writing blog, I encourage writers through daily discussion to experiment, to push the limits of their writing. By learning the essentials of good writing and -- more importantly -- learning to identify these elements, you will develop your voice. Recent Articles: Inspiration for Creative Writing The Hazards of Being a Writer (featuring Dagny) - Newsletter Sign up for the Free Writing Workshop Newsletter. I'll keep you up-to-date on new workshops and developments in the creative writing community. You'll be the first to hear about new opportunties for writers on this website. Plus, each newsletter will include tips on how to improve your writing. Or, if you're daring... Submit your Fiction! Each edition of the newsletter will feature a short bit of fiction (or poetry or nonfiction) to get the creative juices flowing. If you would like your name and your story to be shared, Submit Your Story Here! |
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