Reviews

Sue Whiting was superb in every way. Well organised but unobtrusively, genuinely interested in our individual objectives for taking this course and carried through with each person to ensure that we could achieve these.

Pamela was a fantastic tutor. She was approachable, responsive and her feedback was detailed and helpful. I loved this course.

Doing a course with AWC will improve your craft, provide opportunities to meet and make friends with other writers and you will receive invaluable advice and feedback from experienced industry professionals.

Pamela was an amazing tutor. Her feedback was positive, thorough and most importantly constructive. I really felt like I had direction to improve my writing after each piece of task feedback I received.

Sue Whiting was brilliant. Her feedback and comments were very helpful, clear and relevant to the task. It was great to have Sue's experience in YA fiction. She is an amazing and perceptive tutor.

It's a good environment to get the push you need to start writing. The weekly material keeps you focused and taking a course online allows you to work through it at your own pace during the week. Feedback for the weekly assignments highlights what you did well, which is a great confidence booster, and also helps you identify what you can do better and potential problem areas you could hit with your story.

It's an enjoyable, quick course that sets you on the right path to being a children's author.

Sue was fabulous, not only an author but she also has editorial experience and her comments were always positive.

The feedback from a published author is invaluable and the online courses don't really take up as much of your time as you might think.

It was lots of fun, Judith was a great teacher and it gave me the motivation and confidence I needed to write a children's book. She was an enthusiastic, interesting and knowledgeable teacher who was a pleasure to listen to and learn from.

Sue was really good and helpful. The How to Write for Children and Young Adults course was an enjoyable, quick course that sets you on the right path to being a children's author.

AWC is the best place to do a writing course. The calibre of their instructors are world-class with immense experience as published authors.

This was a thoroughly accessible, non-intimidating way to begin thinking seriously about the process of writing books for young children. Judith was excellent in all regards.

I really enjoyed receiving the feedback from Pamela and learning from that. She was very insightful, respectful and encouraging. The Australian Writers' Centre is a great way for a full-time worker to improve their writing in their own time.

I feel as though I learnt so much. I went from knowing nothing about writing for kids, to knowing so much and I found this thrilling. Allison is an excellent tutor and I enjoyed receiving feedback and learning from that feedback. Eveline

Judith was excellent, very experienced and could offer a broad knowledge of the industry from different perspectives (academic, publishing, writing, teaching). She was so helpful and had lots of stories to illustrate what she taught.

Pamela was great! The course is flexible to your own schedule, which I loved as I work and it can easily be done from home. The online classroom was so easy to navigate. Loved it and will be back for another course soon!

I've had this story idea for 13 years. I've never known what to do with it, or where or how to start. I'd be able to write one or two scenes at most and then flounder. The structure lesson in How to Write for Children and Young Adults has changed that completely. I now feel confident to take the Novel Writing Essentials course.

I learnt so much from Judith, who was a massive inspiration and encyclopaedia of all things literary. I really enjoyed the dynamics of the group ‚ learnt a lot from each other too.

The How to Write for Children and Young Adults course seemed to be staffed by people with industry experience rather than just teaching composition. The Australian Writers' Centre has real industry professionals and has the information you need to get yourself published.

If you are considering an AWC course, stop thinking and sign up now! The course material was thorough and useful and the tutor feedback, particularly Pamela Freeman's, was supportive and constructive. You will improve your writing skills without a doubt!

Judith Ridge really opened my eyes to the unique art of children's writing. She made me think about how to approach and write for children and to think about the differences between writing for children and writing for adults. She improved my manuscript for children enormously.

I would recommend her courses to anyone at any level who has an interest in children's literature and writing.

Sue was a successful author who understands the genre. She was helpful, positive and prompt. I came away from the course with really good ideas about what to read to increase your knowledge of the field.

The Australian Writers' Centre helped improve my writing skills and played a part in me becoming an author. The courses kept me motivated, brought other opportunities and connected me with other writers (who are now close friends). Self-publishing my first novel was a huge achievement in my writing career and would not have been possible had I not worked on the craft of writing through the Australian Writers Centre.

The How to Write for Children and Young Adults course answered lots of my questions and Sue's guidance was invaluable. The Australian Writers' Centre provides a wealth of knowledge and tons of support for your writing journey.

The presenter Judith was such a source of information and I enjoyed her approach and humour! It was most enjoyable. It has definitely given me the direction I needed to get started and progress with my writing.

I am writing more, and within a week of finishing the course, I was able to have a fresh look at one of my manuscripts, re-edit the work, and finally take the plunge and submit it to publishers.

Judith was wonderful. Remarkably patient, a good sense of humour and knew what she was on about.

I could have listened to Judith for hours ‚ she has seemingly endless passion and information to share! I didn't know much about writing beyond high school English so the course has given me valuable insight and the confidence and contacts to start writing.

I received some good tips in regards to publishers and what they want. There was a great deal of very useful information and Judith presented all of it very well.

Judith was delightful. I could listen to her for hours. I'm very glad I took the course, my writing is all the better for it.

I have a much clearer understanding of my own writing style preferences now thanks to the course and Judith's invaluable sharing of information.

Each night I left having learnt something new and of value to my writing.

It has encouraged me to find my writers voice and that it is ok to write and not be published straight away but to just enjoy the journey of writing.

Judith knew her stuff and it showed in her enthusiasm when she taught the class. Judith provided information I didn't even know I would need when writing for children. I took on everything from themes to focus on language and what children like compared to what adults think children would like.

This is the first course I have ever done on writing so it was all worthwhile. I now understand some of the pitfalls of writing and some aspects of writing that were previously intuitive. Judith Ridge is not just a very capable and knowledgeable presenter but a very approachable person willing to spend time helping people. This goes beyond the classroom.

Judith is a fantastic teacher. She covered all the aspects that I expected out of the course and more. She made extra effort in reviewing work and suggesting and providing additional reading material to my particular area of interest. She openly shared her expertise and encouraged us all. Judith and the Centre created a nurturing and open environment for us to discuss our work. The course was intimate in size but felt very professional in content.

I feel more confident about my ability to write children's stories that are engaging and also how to proceed to the next stage of getting them published.

Overall, the course was excellent. Judith covered a lot of ground in the short time available and gave a lot of examples of existing publications. The course was structured in such a way that complete beginners could get as much out of it as more experienced participants.

It was amazing to be surrounded by so many creative and talented writers. It was truly inspiring. I have made a network of aspiring writers who have offered support and encouragement for me to succeed. I have re-awoken my passion for writing.

I have come to understand the big picture and how the industry works. I have of course learnt what makes good writing and all the different concepts that you need to consider when writing a children's book.

I found Judith to be enthusiastic and inspiring, and she demonstrated an amazing knowledge of all aspects of writing for children. The work produced by people in the group ranged from picture books, through historicals to young adult fiction, but in all cases Judith was able to provide valuable guidance.

She also created a wonderful group dynamic, in which the members critiqued each others' work in a constructive and supportive manner.

Being Danish it was essential for me to learn about Australian writers and Judy was spot on and I now have a long list of writers to read up on. It was fabulous to spend two hours in Judy's company every Thursday night, she has got a fantastic energy. I am even more dedicated to building up stories around my characters. I am inspired to make my writing happen.

She has such a colourful personality which kept me interested in learning more.

I gained so much insight into the big wide world of writing. Judith is a keeper ‚ friendly, encouraging and just an overall lovely lady.

Judith's comments on my work have helped me very much. The information she presented us with was also very useful.

With the direction and advice given at the course I feel motivated to at least give writing a go, where as before I had doubts whether or not I should even start.

I can approach my own story writing with a better sense of structure, and I'm becoming a lot more aware of the realities of publishing.

The best thing was the fun and relaxed atmosphere. Judith is an excellent teacher and I have learnt a lot from her. The course was very informative, covered many areas of writing.

I liked being able to chat to people in the same boat as me ‚ hearing everyone's ideas and being forced to confront my writing fears. Jude was fantastic ‚ she supportive of everyone and extremely knowledgeable. I feel much more confident and inspired, and was able to pinpoint areas that had been giving me difficulty.

The content was fantastic. I have learnt so much about writing for children and how to take my work forward.

Very professional and well organised. Judith's knowledge of the topics really consolidated the material and handouts that were discussed on the course.

I liked the group interaction. Jude was very enthusiastic about her subject. I now know that I can do it, I just need to apply myself and do some writing every day.

I have got lots of ideas about getting started. I have gained so much knowledge and insight now. Judith and Pamela were very knowledgeable and warm presenters.

I loved the course and truly Judith is a brilliant and enthusiastic teacher ... she is passionate about children's books and such a huge knowledge of all the different age groups so that she could be speaking of four year old book of verse and switch to fifteen year old teenage writing with ease as she knew her subject matter ... so thank you for your help and advice and thank you to Judith too.

I enjoyed sharing ideas with others. Jude was fabulous. She really created a safe space for all and encouraged everyone wholeheartedly. The way Jude had us think about voice really opened up ideas for me.

I learned a lot about how to write. I can now get writing! It was great to have inside knowledge from an experienced editor.

It was a great experience all round and extremely helpful. The class has given me an excellent sense of direction, it's fantastic.

I really enjoyed Judith, she was knowledgeable, passionate and fun. The time just whizzed past. The Australian Writers' Centre tutors are fabulous. Save up and go. I'm very glad I went!

I have used what we discussed in my own writing and now have a better understanding of the writing process.

I enjoyed the interaction between participants, Judith's enthusiasm for the subject matter. I learnt new things, got brought up to speed with contemporary children's literature, and was able to have a lot of things confirmed that I knew intrinsically but didn't know I knew until Judith brought it up!

I did take a lot away from the course. There were various ideas and tips which were lightbulb moments which were quite powerful. The written material was excellent. Listening to the audio while reading the handouts is really useful and provides a 'double dipping' way of reinforcing the useful information.

I enjoyed Judith's wonderful enthusiasm for, and knowledge of, the topic. I now have much more detailed knowledge of the children's publishing market. The course inspired me to sign up for the Creative Writing course.

The sharing of work with the group was a real highlight, hearing what other people had written and receiving constructive criticism and encouragement. This course was also very well structured, and the homework activities were scaled well, as you progress from writing a memory (week 1) to commencing a story (week 5). I feel that I have grown confidence in my writing, and the course has allowed me to look at new ways of approaching my writing, so much so that I am going to rewrite the story I wrote just prior to this course from a completely different perspective.

Judith was great. She provided a broad spectrum of knowledge regarding industry plus amazing passion for the industry.

Judith was fantastic! So well-balanced in her comments about assignments and always leaving her students with a sense of hope! The course was great, you will come away with a much stronger knowledge base of what you need to do to find success in your chosen field of writing.

I loved submitting the assignments for all participants to read and feedback on. It was terrifying and satisfying all at the same time! Judith's feedback was invaluable, thought-provoking and pointed me in the direction I need to go. It was relevant content, delivered in a professional and passionate way. The course provided me with practical tools that I can start using immediately in my writing and the online classroom, peers, and tutor inspired me to keep going.

Judith is a fantastic presenter, enthusiastic and passionate about children's literature and you can't help but get caught up in her enthusiasm.

The feedback from Judith Ridge was useful and interesting, especially being able to read her feedback on other participants' work. The examples from published books that were used in the course notes to illustrate a point in the audio were excellent.

I enjoyed being able to do the course in my own time. I got a lot out of sharing my work and reading the work of my classmates. Judith Ridge was excellent! Very informative.