Happy New Year. What are you planning for 2025?
Where ever you look on social media their are ads offing you courses to study on-line or in person at workshops and retreats. Its as if the universe is making a concerted effort to ensure we become fully educated before we spin off this mortal coil. Courses are offered in meditation, dieting, chair yoga, drawing, painting, photography, writing, publishing, selling, and the list goes on. We are their target audience and obviously many of us sign up.
Writing is one of my passion, so I’m committed to improving my skills as a writer.
I do this in many ways. I read, not just for enjoyment, but to study how other writers have crafted their novels. Below are a few that inspired me. I could show hundreds of books here, as so many have contributed to my writing skills and styles.



I also read books about the craft of writing ,garnering skills on writing. Three of my favourites are shown below.



Now back to those ads on social media and the ones that arrive in my inbox.
I subscribe to the Australian Writers’ Centre and they send out regular newsletters advertising their courses and the successes of writers who have done these courses. Their courses aren’t cheap, but they are great. I’ve done two on-line courses on travel writing and two more on creative writing.
I subscribe to Kill Your Darlings literary magazine of arts and culture. They also offer an extensive range of on-line writing courses. I recently signed up to do a memoir writing course with Liam Pieper. I am well into this course and I’m loving it. He included writing activities that I complete and as I write, I’m conscious of the memoir I’m currently writing and so my drafts reflect this. I’m sure they will eventually become chapters in my memoir.
I’m also a member of the Queensland Writers Centre and they offer a range of on-line courses as well. I haven’t done any of their courses yet, but I knew I’ll try at least one this year. They also offer writing competitions that I have previously entered and will again in 2025.
I subscribe to about a dozen writing blogs and all of these offer courses as well. Some of the courses are free.
Below are three of my favourite blogs.
Sarah Sentilles was recommended to me in October last year and I immediately enrolled in her generative writing prompts. This cost a couple of hundred dollars for the annual subscription to Prompts and Circumstance. Each week I receive three writing prompts that usually relate to poems she shares. Each prompt encourages me to write in a different style and I’ve found them to be invaluable. Sarah offers free zoom meetings as well and I’ve already done one of these. I will do them, every time they are offered.
Reedsy.com is another blog I subscribe to. Their focus is writing and publishing. They offer a range of reasonably priced courses and also a great selection of free courses. I recently completed a free, ten-day course in Short Story Writing. It was excellent. Next I will do one of their free courses on self publishing and another on marketing.
Edwina Shaw is a writer, editor and mentor as well as offering heaps of retreats and also free courses and workshops via zoom. She send out a monthly newsletter and it is full of information about free and paid courses, retreats she offers, writing competitions and also much more. I love reading these newsletter, dreaming of attending one of her retreats in Vietnam and taking up the offer of free workshops. I highly recommend signing up to her blog if you have any interest in writing.
Great thanks Steve- it’s my plan this year to write more about adventures in my life before I forget what I got up to!!
I look forward to chatting about this when you are here. You need to know your audience, the theme of your memoir and lots more. A Life of highs, lows and everything in between could be a collection of short stories about your life, but they still need a theme. Let’s talk.
I love a good course on writing, I am currently reading Bird by Bird and Lessons in Chemistry. I have my eye on two courses with the Australian Writers Centre, and I am just saving up for these beauties.
Hi Anita, I’m tempted to do the write a book in a year or six month courses, as people who do these courses end up getting published with traditional publishers. But they are expensive and I am already a prolific writer, so I am still deciding. Their courses are great value, just the same. Steve.
The life-long learner! I’m amazed at your dedication to your craft. It also baffles me how you find time to write with all the workshops and educational opportunities you pursue. Not to mention your appetite for voracious reading! And now you’re going to start painting again – add that to the energetic mix. You are exceptional!
Hi Sherry, I’ve had a slow New Year since I had my tonsils out on the 2nd. Hopefully, I’ll be fully recovered soon, so I can get my rhythm back. Steve
Greetings Steve . Glad your tonsils are no longer giving you curry. Hope you return to ultimate health soon . All your activities will distract you from ill health . Glad you are enjoying your creative pursuits and loving the Balinese life style . We are both forever busy and enjoying our creative adventures also. Cheers Marilyn and Mike