What’s it like to learn with AWC?

I have had an idea for a book in my head for many years and now was the time to get it out of my head and onto paper.

I enjoyed reading other students' work and the constructive feedback from Angela. I liked the audios as Valerie read them in such a personable manner; they were easy to listen to and better than reading a handout. Mind you, the handouts were great too!

I found Angela to be fair with her feedback. She gave good advice and never put down anyone's ideas or writing skills. If anything, she was encouraging.

I enjoyed actually writing. It was good to get the ideas out and the assignments gave you artistic license to do that. I was able to explore a different POV which allowed me to express the character in a way I would not have done before. I may even use that technique when I write my book. And I thank AWC for that.

I love you! I think AWC has comprehensive courses and help guide writers to be better than they thought they could be.

I look forward to doing another course in the future. I hope to explore more later in the year once I get cracking on my first draft.

Angela provided excellent feedback throughout the course. It was comforting to have a tutor who was still well active in the industry.

I enjoyed the exercises and flexibility of schedule.

Much of what was taught has reassured me that I was already moving in the right direction. It further directed me onto the right path.

It's a great course that helps ignite a passion for creative writing within many mediums.

The module delivery was very well done and easy to listen to and follow. The online tutor was very supportive and encouraging and it gave me more confidence to write.

I enjoyed all aspects of the course.

I now believe that writing is a skill that can be developed rather than a talent that someone might possess. All writers have some self-doubt in their ability to be able to write something that others might want to read; it's not just me!

Thanks for the great course. Money well spent.

I have participated in a few courses from the Australian Writers' Centre and have really enjoyed them. I love writing and have the beginnings of short stories, novels and picture books. I would like to build on the skills and knowledge I have and to improve on the work I have started and maybe even to finish them.

Everything in this course was interesting and informative. Angela was very good. She provided feedback that was practical and positive and constructive.

I liked reading the work from the other students, I liked the way each module presented a different aspect of constructing a novel, the last assignment to include the four different colours and I liked the encouragement to just keep writing and rewriting until the novel is done.

Apart from the content of the course, I have been inspired to keep writing. I have always had doubts about my ideas and writing or if I could ever finish anything but I am going to persevere and see where it may take me. It doesn't matter so much if nothing comes of it; I just want to enjoy writing and to finish something.

I found this course really useful and it gave me strategies to use when a story isn't working or how to get it started.

The tutor was great; really useful and encouraging feedback.

It has given me new ideas and the confidence to keep going. Pushed me to think differently about a story, taking other points of view and using visualisation strategies.

Excellent for giving you the underpinning needed for great story telling or other writing styles.

I have an idea for a story and wanted some technical knowledge about how to write it. The course gave some great insights into ways to improve my writing.

I enjoyed reading other people's stories and the feedback and encouragement from other students.

Completing the course allows you to have insight into the writing process and really helps to improve your writing.

Thanks for a fun course!

I was initially hesitant, mainly anxiety about other people reviewing my writing - however that was a highlight as the feedback has been a gift.

The tutor was excellent, right amount of support and direction.

I enjoyed the whole course, from the handouts (and the extra reading recommendations) through to the assignments and the feedback. It has been a positive part of every week to sit down and complete the modules and the writing tasks.

A wonderful opportunity to unlock that creative side of yourself and learn something on the way.

I feel that everything I needed to begin my writing was addressed. The course was thorough and easy to understand. Every step was explained perfectly.

Angela has been an excellent tutor and her feedback, I feel, has been invaluable. I felt encouraged and given tips on how to improve.

I enjoyed reading my classmates' assignments and can see that I was in a course with very talented people. There was definitely an environment of support and encouragement within our group.

At 55 years old, learning usually is a bit difficult but I felt that I had plenty of time to go over my assignments and each module was broken down into easy to understand bites.

It has assisted me to feel motivated and have a roadmap to achieve what I could only dream about for many years. Even my partner would say that from day one, I was engrossed in the course. I had a "this is what I really want to do " moment.

If you have a burning ambition to write the book that is bouncing around your head you need to contact AWC. The courses are set up for any age or experience and you don't have to sell a kidney to afford them. You feel supported and encouraged all the way.

I will be continuing to do more courses with you along the way as I practice the writing craft. I have come away from the creative writing course feeling enthusiastic and motivated. Hopefully I can celebrate a published novel with you all in the not too distant future.

I cannot believe how much information I learnt in this course. Module 5 was especially useful in giving a realistic guide to the future. Angela was very supportive and encouraging all the way through.

I enjoyed the use of excerpts from other novels that made what Valerie was saying so much more realistic.

By completing the course, it has proven to me that I can actually achieve what I have set out to do. The best thing is that I now know that I can achieve my lifelong goal of 50 years and become a full-time author.

The course gave me a belief in my own skills.

I would like to thank everybody at AWC who has been involved with this course.

I enjoyed sharing my assignments, reading other students' work and workshopping with the other students.

It has given me the tools to start developing my writing in a more sophisticated way, to look more closely at story structure and how to create more interesting characters and scenes.

Great course that touches on all the important elements in creative writing and how to critique your own work and start creating your best work.

I was stuck in a creative writing rut for a long time, and I felt like I needed something to unhook my mental blockages, and I thought a course would be helpful because I would have assignments and deadlines to motivate me. The assignments were fun and made me feel excited to write again. I found myself looking forward to the assignments each week.

Angela is very engaging and very positive in her feedback, which helps improve my motivation. I really liked the tracked changes editing of the last assignment; it was very beneficial. I also found Angela very inspiring as a published author.

It was a good introductory course, because the learning and assignments weren't too demanding; you can easily fit it in around a busy week.

I had been feeling for a while that I would like to be a professional writer, but I had lost my confidence and had a lot of mental blockages. The course gave me a boost. I realised that I can write pretty well, and that maybe I could pursue it professionally.

The course and tutors are really positive and inspiring, and the assignments are fun, and the workload isn't too heavy if you have a busy week. It is all set up in a way to help elevate your creativity and confidence.

Just a huge thank you! I would probably like to do another course through here in a couple of months as a treat to myself.

I was concerned about the computer side of things as this is the first online course I have ever done. I was also very concerned that I wasn't good enough to complete the course - but I have learnt so much in such a supportive environment that it has given me the belief I really can do this.

Angela was wonderful in her feedback and really helped convince me that my writing was good enough. She was also so prompt in her delivery of the feedback even when not well.

I loved the learning. It was made so interesting in the presentation and the use of so many authors works as examples. I also loved the feedback of other students.

It has given me the confidence to follow a 50-year dream of being a published author.

A highly professional and supportive organisation. Thank you to everybody who put this course together.

I loved everything about this course. Angela was warm and encouraging. The audios were very informative and I liked how the course was structured to push us forward in the writing process.

It's hard for me to find the time to write and this course gave me a structure to build a writing practice and exercise some skills.

I would say this course is a great way to test if writing is really something that you want to do and also to help assess which basic skills need working on before moving onto the next course.

Just a big thank you to Angela and everyone who worked on the course.

Angela was great. Insightful and polite. Fostered a good environment.

The course is well structured and gives you a good introduction/grounding in some fundamentals. Course material was very good also. Really enjoyed the course. It has given me more confidence and knowledge and inspiration.

This course was easy to follow, logically presented and broken down into modules that could reasonably be tackled each week around a busy life. I enjoyed the assignments each week (both writing my own and seeing the great things my fellow classmates created from the same prompts) and found the feedback valuable and insightful. I worked through the bonus exercises and felt that I really learned some tips to improve my craft.

Angela was positive, fun and friendly. All feedback was extremely detailed and constructive and empowered you to continue trying and working through the modules.

I enjoyed being challenged by the story prompts each week and realising I did have the ability to come up with something. Proving to myself that I actually have the capacity to start something and see it through.

The course was straightforward, insightful and really beneficial to anyone who wants to start writing or improve their craft. With helpful feedback and other classmates cheering you along, it is a welcoming space to engage with other like-minded creatives and pick up so many tips and tricks to help make your stories better.

The tutor was very knowledgeable in the field of writing.

I enjoyed sharing my assignments, reading other students' work and workshopping with the other students.

It has given me the tools to start developing my writing in a more sophisticated way, to look more closely at story structure and how to create more interesting characters and scenes.

Great course that touches on all the important elements in creative writing and how to critique your own work and start creating your best work.

Angela sounded very knowledgeable yet friendly in the audio recording. I appreciated her feedback; it was clearly stated and made sense.

I liked that we could all see each other's work and could comment on it. The feedback was interesting and really helpful.

I knew there were different writing genres (crime, romance, thriller, etc) but the concept that creative writing had styles, points of view, even a few rules was very enlightening. I'm an avid reader of fiction but never noticed these things before, just simply got swept up in the story. Now, as I'm reading, I'm noticing not just what is written but also how it has been written.

I learned a lot and think it is well worth the time and money.

I needed some general hints on creative writing as I've done very little of it but find it such fun. It's something I used to do when young. I was worried about putting myself out there in front of other students - but I found this course very non-threatening and welcoming.

Angela was lovely and encouraging.

It has shown me how much I enjoy writing, whether or not I have any talent. It has opened me up to the possibilities.

The course is a good introduction to creative writing in a non-threatening and accepting forum.

I enjoyed it. Angela was really encouraging and gave personalised feedback.

The assignment was my favourite. A clear task and feedback. I didn't realise how little attention I paid to tense before.

It was great. We get all the technical info but are left to explore our imagination.

Angela's feedback was useful in that it provided a different perspective on my writing. She saw things which I hadn't considered (or even tried for) which was very interesting for me.

I enjoyed having assignments with deadlines - this pushed me to get some writing done and block out time. Given that I've not been sure how I'm going to be able to find enough time to write, this was a valuable lesson in what you can get done even in a short period of time.

The course provided a really useful foundation for understanding the technical language and frameworks for creative writing. Without that, even experienced writers might look at the creative writing process as confusing and opaque.

I'm also reading "The Novel Project" by Graham Simsion. The chapter I was up to happened to perfectly coincide with one of the course modules, and I realised that I actually understood the book's contents, thanks to the course.