Join me this summer for a writing course – Personal Stories, Kid Lit or Intensive, plus an in-person Intensive in Sept

Online “Writing Personal Stories” 

~ A weekly class dedicated to the pleasures of writing your stories & insights

Tuesday afternoons, 1 – 3 p.m.
July 8 – Aug 19, 2025
Offered on Zoom and accessible from anywhere there's internet 

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.

We’ll also have a published author as a guest speaker for this course.

Fee: $220.35 plus 13% hst = $259

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

Online “Writing Kid Lit” 

~ Picture Books to Young Adult Novels 

Wednesday evenings, 7 – 9 p.m.,
July 2 – August 13 {or to Aug 20 if it fills up}
Offered online and accessible from anywhere there's internet 

This course is for adults {or teens} interested in writing picture books, Chapter Books, Middle Grade books, or Young Adult novels. This course is 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 younger readers. If you want to write for kids, this is the course you need to make sure you’re on the right track.

We’ll also have a published children’s author as a guest speaker.

Fee: $220.35 plus 13% hst = $259

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

Online “Intensive Creative Writing”

Offered at 2 different times:

Wednesday afternoons 12:30 – 3:00
First readings emailed June 25.
July 2 – August 13 (or Aug 20 if it fills up)

Tuesday evenings 6:30 – 9:00
First readings emailed July 2.
Classes: July 8 – August 19

Intensive Creative Writing isn't for beginners; it's for people who are working on their own writing projects. You’ll be asked to bring in several pieces of your writing for detailed feedback. All your pieces may be from the same work, such as a novel in progress, or they may be stand-alone pieces, such as short stories or essays. 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: $256.64 + hst = $290

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

In-person “Intensive Creative Writing”

 ~ For more experienced writers 

Thursday afternoons, 12:30 – 3:00 p.m.
First readings emailed September 11, 2025.
Classes: Sept 18 – Nov 27 (or to Dec 4 or 11, adding one or two more classes, depending if the course fills up. No class Oct 2 or Oct 23).
Burlington Anglican Lutheran Church, 3455 Lakeshore Rd, Burlington, Ontario (Map here)

Intensive Creative Writing isn't for beginners; it's for people who are working on their own writing projects. You’ll be asked to bring in several pieces of your writing for detailed feedback. All your pieces may be from the same work, such as a novel in progress, or they may be stand-alone pieces, such as short stories or essays.

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: $292.04 + hst = $330

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, taught creative writing at Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University) and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to Buffalo and from Sarnia to Saint John. Brian is the author of a children's version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Tribute Publishing). But his proudest boast is that he has helped many of his students get published.  

Read reviews and other pieces about Brian's various courses and workshops here (and scroll down).

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