Writing Corner: Writing Workshops
This will not just be about Writing Workshops, but also Creative Writing courses and Writers Conferences.
I feel that writers have the most experience with Creative Writing courses. This could be either in high school or college/university, or both. At least in the Creative Writing I was exposed to, we were given a variety of topics to explore. Sometimes our response was to be with poetry or as a scene in a play or whatever else the professor assigned. Other times we had free rein on how we wanted to respond. With any assignment, we were put in small groups and asked to critique each others' work. Some classmates were kind and constructive while others were pedantic and derogatory. Ultimately, while I am glad of the experience, I do not wish to repeat these types of classes.
I have attended a few of Writing Workshops in my life, which I feel are more beneficial to me. Many times, workshops are short sessions so by nature, you are limited in the amount of time you have to spend with your fellow attendees (which is a blessing in some cases). In addition, the shorter amount of time means the topics are more focused. So if you want to attend a workshop dedicated to more effectively writing action scenes or how to jazz up dialogue, it can be more worth your while. Because it's a workshop, the environment is active learning which has been shown to be most effective in a variety of teaching settings. All work is done in the workshop. You learn or expand on a technique or method, then work on it during the session, then you present your results.
The best way to participate in workshops is to be a part of a writers group that may hold workshops before or after their meetings. Another way to participate in workshops is many writing groups have conferences with workshops. However, the cost of these can be very high. Plus there are multiple workshops which you may not want to attend and the workshops from guest speakers usually have an additional fee on top of the conference fee.
Because of the cost barrier for conferences (conference cost, hotel, travel, etc), I have not attended one. There are several conferences I can attend within the next year, but I don't know if I want to. By 'can attend', I mean within an eight hour drive of my location. Have you attended a Writers Conference? Do you think it is worth the money and time? What was the determining factor for you to attend? You can reply to this post, contact me via Twitter, or submit a Contact Me form.
I feel that writers have the most experience with Creative Writing courses. This could be either in high school or college/university, or both. At least in the Creative Writing I was exposed to, we were given a variety of topics to explore. Sometimes our response was to be with poetry or as a scene in a play or whatever else the professor assigned. Other times we had free rein on how we wanted to respond. With any assignment, we were put in small groups and asked to critique each others' work. Some classmates were kind and constructive while others were pedantic and derogatory. Ultimately, while I am glad of the experience, I do not wish to repeat these types of classes.
I have attended a few of Writing Workshops in my life, which I feel are more beneficial to me. Many times, workshops are short sessions so by nature, you are limited in the amount of time you have to spend with your fellow attendees (which is a blessing in some cases). In addition, the shorter amount of time means the topics are more focused. So if you want to attend a workshop dedicated to more effectively writing action scenes or how to jazz up dialogue, it can be more worth your while. Because it's a workshop, the environment is active learning which has been shown to be most effective in a variety of teaching settings. All work is done in the workshop. You learn or expand on a technique or method, then work on it during the session, then you present your results.
The best way to participate in workshops is to be a part of a writers group that may hold workshops before or after their meetings. Another way to participate in workshops is many writing groups have conferences with workshops. However, the cost of these can be very high. Plus there are multiple workshops which you may not want to attend and the workshops from guest speakers usually have an additional fee on top of the conference fee.
Because of the cost barrier for conferences (conference cost, hotel, travel, etc), I have not attended one. There are several conferences I can attend within the next year, but I don't know if I want to. By 'can attend', I mean within an eight hour drive of my location. Have you attended a Writers Conference? Do you think it is worth the money and time? What was the determining factor for you to attend? You can reply to this post, contact me via Twitter, or submit a Contact Me form.
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