13 Great Online Writer’s Workshops

Here are 13 writing workshops, all online, and all fabulous. Be sure to sign up if you get a chance!

  1. How to Think Sideways
    • Holly Lisle…still my favorite writing instructor. This class teaches you how to approach fiction from a career point-of-view, how to turn ideas into full-fledged novels, and how to cozy up to your Muse. Just Lesson 7 — a series of worksheets to help you plan your story — are worth the cost of this workshop. Lucky for you, you get 25 lessons.
  2. How to Revise Your Novel
    • Holly Lisle!! This is the best course I have ever taken. Your rough draft will glisten at the end, and you will know you’ve made your MS into the best it can possibly be. Don’t wait around, sign up for this class!!
  3. Deep EDITs
    • Margie Lawson teaches this great approach to editing and emotionally empowering your fiction. Her method is rooted in psychology and teaches you how to connect with your readers.
  4. Pacing: How to Create Page-turning Manuscripts

    • Mary Buckham walks you through the necessary components of pacing. Not only action writers need to worry about pace — it’s a maker or breaker for all stories.
  5. Mastering the short synopsis: for those who hate to write them
    • Mary Buckham again. This class will take you step by step through the horrible but necessary process of writing the synopsis. Seriously, don’t miss this.
  6. WordPress Workshop
    • Alice Anderson teaches this great workshop on building your own website through WordPress. It’s what got me started on the path to website design (and I’m pretty proud of what I ended up with).
  7. Query Workshop
    • C.J. Redwine runs this great course designed to get your query letter in gear. With one-on-one help, your query will come through all ready for agent’s eyes.
  8. Crash Revisions
    • Holly Lisle once more! This is a very, very condensed version of her How To Revise your Novel course. She teaches you how to revise when you next draft is due now. It was a great course, and I hope she offers it again!
  9. How to Promote When You Don’t Know How
    • Jamieson Wolf teaches this great introduction to blogging, Twitter, Facebook, etc. Since I had no clue how to utilize these social networks, I found this workshop hugely helpful. I hope he offers it again for the other promotion-impaired out there…
  10. Mastering Point of View
    • I took this workshop when I was first learning to write (or write for more than just personal pleasure). I found it clear and informative — her lesson on zooming in and zooming out in 3rd person still seems über clever to me.
  11. A Writer’s Guide to Harry Potter
    • I took this workshop in February. Not only is it really interesting stuff, but it’s really useful for your own WIP. Of course, I’m writing a young adult with paranormal twists and hidden clues…so…it might help me more than, say, a horror-writer.
  12. Steamed Up: the Anatomy of writing Steampunk
    • So, I haven’t actually taken this class yet…but I’m really excited about it! My WIP is a young adult steampunk, and I can’t wait to learn all there is to learn about brass goggles, Queen Victoria, and automatons.
  13. Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing
    • This is a free online course that I discovered (and loved) when I was in high school. It’s still a great resource, and who can say “no” to free? I definitely recommend it to beginners and younger writers.

-S.