My Favorite (and Affordable) Online Writing Courses
I pride myself on being a perpetual learner. I love taking time each week to learn something. That could be a new skill or practicing my writing craft. Right now I’m taking some courses on opening an Etsy shop and continuing to hone my writing skills.
Even before Covid forced everything to go online, the internet was becoming an incredible place to learn. Websites like Skillshare, Domestika, and others like it rose up and offered a ton of valuable classes on a variety of topics. Elsewhere, publishing insiders created online courses or free webinars on specific topics for people to join.
Today, I wanted to share with you some of my favorite online courses I’ve taken, specifically in the writing field. Each of them is affordable and since you have access to them for life (or as long as you have an account) you can reference them over and over again.
Here are the online writing courses I’ve taken in the past year
Courses on Domestika
Domestika is an international website where creators in a variety of fields offer classes. From writing to woodworking. Even social media management.
Course length varies but they often fall between 1 to 2 hours and are broken up into units (usually no more than five). Each unit includes resources the creator might mention and “homework” for you to do. They also encourage you to share in the public forum where you can converse with other students and hear directly from the creator themselves.
Each course also includes a “Final Project,” which is usually a culmination of everything you learned. Completing the Final Project isn’t required, nor is doing any of the homework, but they’re fun to do.
While the courses may run a little expensive, Domestika is constantly running sales and offers discounts when you bundle three or more courses together. I paid $15 or less for every course I bought.
Here are some of the writing courses I took on Domestika:
Book Proposal Writing: How to Get Published by Courtney Maum. In this course, Maum (author of Before and After the Book Deal) teaches you how to write a successful book proposal for your nonfiction book or memoir. She infuses humor into her teaching and I loved how simple she made the process. She even has a whole section dedicated to that dreaded platform we all loathe. She doesn’t shy away from the harsh truth, but she makes it clear that if you have a strong story and a compelling proposal, you will get published. In fact, the book proposal I wrote while taking this course landed me my agent so Maum knows what she’s talking about.
Memoir Writing: Write a Personal Story For a Universal Audience by Courtney Maum. This was Maum’s first course with Domestika and I signed up shortly after completing her book proposal one. During this course, Maum walks you through how to plan and outline a memoir, personal essay, or op-ed. She explains why personal writing is compelling to readers and how you can choose yours. Throughout the course, she illustrates her own outlining process using her most recent book release, The Year of the Horses, as an example. Maum also has a wonderful newsletter and other courses you can buy through her website. I highly recommend taking at least one of her courses.
Creative Writing Foundations: Create Compelling Characters by Mark Boutros. I never heard of Boutros until this course. I watched the trailer (something Domestika provides to give you an understanding of what the course will entail) and decided to buy it. I’m so glad I did. Boutros walks you through his method for creating characters that jump off the page. As a screenwriter and novelist, he says that once he started focusing on character more than plot, his writing changed for the better. Throughout the course, he shows his process by creating a fantasy character and ultimately outlining an entire novel; one I really want to read.
Writing a Psychological Thriller by Emily Barr. While it might be some time before I start writing the psychological thriller I have in mind, taking Barr’s course was a great starting point. Barr writes thrillers for adults and young adults under a pen name. Throughout the course, she explains what makes a psychological thriller compelling, walks you through her process, and even includes some creative methods to overcome writer's block.
What I love most about these courses is that no matter what genre you write in (fiction, nonfiction, young adult, etc), you can apply all of what they teach to it. I plan on using Boutros’s character profile for myself before I start drafting my memoir.
So head on over and check out the courses on Domestika. Chances are you’ll find a few you’ll love.
Courses on Skillshare
Skillshare is a subscription service that, like Domestika, offers a ton of different courses on a lot of different subjects. The difference is you can submit a course for review. If you’re knowledgeable enough on a certain topic, you can send a proposal to Skillshare and if they approve, you could appear on the site.
Skillshare is $99/year, but you can get the first month free, which gives you ample time to try out some classes and see if you like it. During my free trial, I took three courses, which I’m going to talk about in a second.
Courses run from 30 minutes to 2 hours and don’t have as much “homework” as Domestika, but still offer a forum for you to converse with others and the teacher. And once you’re a subscriber, you have access to every single course.
Here are the courses I’ve taken so far with Skillshare:
Crafting Memoir: How to Outline Your Hero’s Journey by Tammy Letherer. Once I knew I was going to write my memoir, I sought out classes on the subject. The hero’s journey is a common method in the fiction writing circle and I never thought to use it for writing memoirs. But it works. While taking Letherer’s course, I answered each question and was stunned to find my own hero’s journey forming before my eyes. This course was short, to the point, and super effective.
Writing for Inner Calm: A Mindset, Methods, and Daily Exercises for All by Dani Shapiro. A well-known novelist and memoirist, this course by Shapiro was a no-brainer for me. Throughout the class, Shapiro shares her methods to ensure she has a strong mindset when it comes time to write. She also gives you some exercises that, when done daily, will give you a lot of information to use in your writing. Finally, she guides you through a meditation that she swears by.
Writing the Truth: How to Start Writing Your Memoir by Mary Karr. On my quest to find memoir courses, I immediately jumped into this one by Karr. Karr’s best-selling book, The Art of Memoir, is a must-read for people choosing to write in that genre and this course is a great teaser to her lessons. In it, she walks you through her process of capturing information and shares examples from other memoirs that highlight her points. Though the course is an hour, it’s full of information that will help any budding memoirist begin their story.
Other online course options
Jane Friedman is a well-known industry insider. She’s not afraid to tell it like it is, but she primarily encourages writers to learn all they can so they can be better prepared.
Because of Friedman’s knowledge, she offers a ton of webinars on her website. I recently took “Master the Flashback” and “Memoir Beginnings.” Her courses range from $25 to $100+ depending on the topic and when you register you get access to the PDF slides, a transcript of the webinar, a recording, and more.
Definitely check out Friedman’s available courses. They’re worth every penny.
Finally, Carly Watters, an agent at P.S. Literary Agency gives a few webinars a year. Her most popular ones are “Querying 101” and “How to Write a Nonfiction Proposal That Sells.” Her webinars often sell for $49 and participants will receive a recording. I find her webinars so informative that I even gave a testimonial on her site. So head on over and check them out.
When it comes to writing, it doesn’t matter if you’re a seasoned writer or an aspiring one, taking time to improve your craft is something you’ll never regret.
If you have any questions about any of these courses, don’t hesitate to comment below or message me privately. I’d be happy to share what I can. As an avid learner, I’m always eager to share what courses have helped me.
Have you ever taken an online writing course before? If so, which one and how has it improved your craft? If not, are you interested in any that I mentioned above?
