Improve Your Writing By Taking An Online Course
First Step as a Writer
Do you dream of becoming a writer, but don’t know where to begin? The good news is if you write, you’re already a writer. If you want to be published, however; there are other things you need to do. You must develop your skills and learn about the world of publication. If you want to write articles, you need to know what a magazine’s expectations are. If you dream of writing a bestselling novel, you have to learn the elements of fiction. To write articles for the internet or create blogs, you have to learn the standards of web writing.
Online Choices
The best place to begin is by learning your craft. From grammar and punctuation to how to do research to character development, there is a great deal of information a writer needs to learn to improve his writing. You should learn as much as possible about the genre that you want to write for before pursuing publication. This will save you hours of frustration and numerous rejections.
You can find many places that offer classes or courses on various aspects of writing. Putting the term “writing course” in a search on the internet will yield hundreds of sites. Anyone can write a book or article or create a course online about writing. Research any class you are considering to find out if the teacher is an expert or the website has a well-known reputation.
There are different levels, from a single article to an in-depth course that can last a year or two. You can get a certificate and some of them even count towards college credit. The prices vary, depending on the length of the course and the reputation of the place providing it. There are courses that cost a couple of hundred dollars and others that can cost over a thousand. It depends on how much time and money you are willing and able to invest as to which course would work best for you. There are even some free classes that you can start with.
Writer’s Digest University offers classes on all elements of writing in both fiction and nonfiction. The prices vary from $200 to $800, depending on the length of the course. They are a well-known site because of the print magazine, Writer’s Digest. Writers.com offers courses in the range of $300-400. They have a good variety of courses for beginning and advanced writers.
The Institute of Children’s Literature and their sister company, Long Ridge Writers Group are correspondence courses done through the mail but you can now email lessons. They offer individual learning with an instructor who will comment on your lessons. They have a website where you can interact with other students on the message boards. They also have articles about writing archived on the site. They have a hefty price at around $800, but provide in depth instruction and other courses for continuing education after the introductory course.
There is also a list of free courses available on freelancewritinggigs.com. Some of them are ebooks and articles that can be downloaded. They would provide a handy reference even if you decide to go with a regular course.
There are many valuable resources on the internet for the beginning and advanced writer. While it doesn’t guarantee you publication, it is a valuable help in developing your career. You can also put those courses on your resume. Publishers appreciate someone who takes their career seriously enough to continue educating themselves. The internet has made learning much easier with online courses and writers can benefit from this convenient resource.
