Like most things in life there are good and bad classes and good and bad teachers. However working on the principle that I will pick up some useful information that I can apply to my writing and that nothing is ever a waste of time or money I have taken classes from a variety of on-line sources with variable degrees of satisfaction.
Every once in a while I manage to hit the jackpot and find a class that brings fresh insight to old topics and provides me with a boost to my writing. Just such a class is "Introduction to Creative Writing" offered here at the Suite 101 University.
Most introductory courses cover topics such as Genre, Plot, Dialogue, Character Building etc., and this course is no different. What is different is that the course author and tutor, Sally Odgers, brings a fresh eye and a sparkling personality to the topics. She is a published writer and throughout the course she refers to her book "Translations in Celadon" to show how the techniques under discussion can be applied and how they can make a difference.
After a brief overview, which includes clearly setting out the aims of the course for the student, we move on to why you want to write and what you might want to write about. I found this helpful in refocusing my own interests and it makes one consider which genre you might want to follow.
Subsequent topics, such as point of view, plot, character building, etc., are covered in Sally Odgers' refreshing style. As well as the lessons the course utilises a comprehensive bibliography to illustrate various points and to show how published authors handle these techniques and what impact they have on how stories are told.
The final lessons in the course cover topics such as style and some rudimentary points on grammar. In this section more than any other I found Sally's style easy to follow and her light touch made difficult, though important, subjects both entertaining and informative.
For those just starting out this course is a great introduction to the various aspects of writing you will have heard about such as plot, genre, point of view, character etc.. It is also a very good introduction to online classes and those taking the "full" course will be able to take part in the discussion boards where you can discuss the course with other students. Although I took the "quick" course I have had experience of such discussion boards and have always found them to be a great place to learn and exchange ideas.
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