Spring classes online and in-person: Writing Kid Lit, Welcome to Creative Writing, Writing Personal Stories, Intensive and Extreme Creative Writing

Writing Little Kid Lit

~ Board Books, Picture Books, Chapter Books and Middle Grade Novels

Online: Monday afternoons, 1 – 3 p.m.
April 11 – June 20 {no class May 23 or June 6}
Offered online and accessible from anywhere there's internet 

~ Still space in this class.

This course is for adults {or teens} interested in writing kid lit. It’s accessible for beginners and meaty enough for advanced writers. Through lectures, in-class assignments, homework, and feedback on your writing, we’ll give you ins and outs of writing for young readers and set you on course toward writing your own books.

We’ll have two published children’s authors as guest speakers: Erin Silver and Jennifer Mook-Sang. More details here.

Fee: $176.11 plus 13% hst = $199

To reserve your spot, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Welcome to Creative Writing

 ~ Discover your creative side

Offered online and in-person

Online: Monday evenings,7 – 9 p.m.
April 11 – June 20 {no class May 23 or June 6}
Offered online and accessible from anywhere there's internet 

In-person: Thursday evenings, 7 – 9p.m.
April 14 – June 21, 2022 {no class June 7}
St. Elizabeth’s Anglican Church, 5324 Bromley Road, Burlington, Ontario {Map here}
{Given the unpredictable nature of the pandemic, it's possible this class could be forced online.}

~ Still space in both "Welcome" classes.

This is your chance to take up writing in a warm, supportive environment. This course will open the door to writing short stories and writing dialogue, writing in first person and writing in third person, writing just for fun and writing all kinds of things. 

You’ll get a shot of inspiration every week and an assignment to keep you going till the next class. Best of all, this class will provide a zero-pressure, totally safe setting, where your words will grow and flower.

Fee:  $176.11 plus 13% hst = $199

To reserve your spot, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Writing Personal Stories 

Ten weeks of writing and sharing

Online: Tuesday afternoons, 1 – 3 p.m.
April 12 – June 21 {no class June 7}
Offered online and accessible from anywhere there's internet 

~ Short waiting list for this class.

If you've ever considered writing your personal stories, this course is for you. We’ll look at memoirs, travel writing, personal essays, family history ~ personal stories of all kinds. Plus, of course, we’ll work on creativity and writing technique and have fun doing it. 

Whether you want to write a book or just get your thoughts down on paper, this weekly course will get you going. We'll reveal the tricks and conventions of telling true stories, and we’ll show you how to use the techniques of the novel to recount actual events. Weekly writing exercises and friendly feedback from the instructor will help you move forward on this writing adventure. Whether you want to write for your family and friends or for a wider public, don't miss this course.

Sue Williams, author of the memoir, Ready to Come About, will be the guest speaker for this course. More details here. 

Fee: $176.11 plus 13% hst = $199

To reserve your spot, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Intensive Creative Writing

 ~ Grow as a writer

Online ~ 3 different sessions: 
(On Zoom and available wherever there's Internet)

Tuesday evenings, 6:30 – 9:00
April 12 – June 21, 2022 {no class June 7}

Wednesday afternoons, 12:30 – 3:00 p.m.
April 6 – June 22, 2022 

Friday mornings, 10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
April 8 – June 24 {no class June 3}

~ All 3 Intensive classes full - but still space in the "Extreme" class....

Intensive Creative Writing isn't for beginners; it's for people who have been writing for a while or who have done a course or two before and are working on their own projects. You’ll be asked to bring in five pieces of your writing for detailed feedback, including three long pieces. All your pieces may be from the same work, such as a novel in progress, or they may be stand alone pieces. You bring whatever you want to work on. Besides critiquing pieces, the instructor will give short lectures addressing the needs of the group, and in addition to learning how to critique your own work and receiving constructive suggestions about your writing, you’ll discover that the greatest benefits come from seeing how your classmates approach and critique a piece of writing and how they write and re-write. This is a challenging course, but extremely rewarding.

Fee: $229.20 + hst = $259

To reserve your spot, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Extreme Creative Writing

 ~ For experienced writers 

In-person: Thursday afternoons, 12:30 – 3:00 p.m
April 7 – June 23, 2022 {no class June 2}
St. Elizabeth’s Anglican Church, 5324 Bromley Road, Burlington, Ontario {Map here} 
Note: Given the unpredictable nature of the pandemic, it's possible this class could be forced online.

~ Still space in this class.

Extreme Creative Writing is for experienced writers who have been writing for a while or who have done a course or two before and are working on their own projects. You’ll be asked to bring in five pieces of your writing for detailed feedback, including three longish pieces. All your pieces may be from the same work, such as a novel in progress, or they may be stand alone pieces. You bring whatever you want to work on. 

Besides critiquing pieces, we’ll have discussions on topics of interest to the class. In addition to learning how to critique your own work and receiving constructive suggestions about your writing, you’ll discover that the greatest benefits come from seeing how your classmates approach and critique a piece of writing and how they write and re-write. This is a challenging course, but extremely rewarding.

Fee: $229.20 + hst = $259

To reserve your spot, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Instructor Brian Henry has been a book editor and creative writing instructor for more than 25 years. He publishes Quick Brown Fox, Canada's most popular blog for writers, teaches creative writing at Ryerson University and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to Buffalo and from Sarnia to Saint John. But his proudest boast is that he’s has helped many of his students get published.  

Read reviews of Brian's various courses and workshops here (and scroll down).

See all of Brian’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.