What’s it like to learn with AWC?

I wasn’t sure what to expect but I liked that it starts with the premise that we can already write and then explores avenues with those skills.

Zanni Louise was amazing - her feedback was always positive and affirming and gently guided us towards doing better and better work. As a teacher it made me re-evaluate my own feedback to students - immediate and targeted is most definitely the most effective and making time for that is so important.

I enjoyed seeing the work of others and feeling as though I belonged in the world of writers who were all amazing and had strengths to be admired.

I think it truly does exactly what it offers and was pitched at exactly the right level for my needs.

The videos were very clear. The technical terms were explained in a simple and easy-to-understand way. I really liked the quizzes as they allowed me to quickly check my knowledge.

There were lots of 'aha!' moments. Comma splicing was a particularly big one. I think the course allowed me to gain a greater understanding of the underlying structure of English. It made me realise just how much I didn't learn at school or at university. I studied journalism.

It's the first course I've done with AWC so far; however, I'd recommend this course to anyone wanting to brush up on their foundations.

I was surprised that I was able to (mostly) stick to the program.

I know I can sit down and do the work, whether it is good or not, and that if I want to do it I can. It is possible to get the words down, particularly if you are on a roll.

As someone wanting to explore my interest in writing, I chose the course as a way to learn more about how writing a story works and whether I could take it a step further.

The tutor was lovely. She gave lots of informative feedback and helpful constructive criticism. I learnt a lot.

I enjoyed being able to learn whilst also having freedom with what I was writing about.

Learning about character driven and plot driven aspects really helped me understand how to structure a story! My knowledge and experience have both grown.

It was easy to follow and jam-packed with great information that can be put into action straight away.

I am yet to write a story, but this insight has opened new ways of thinking about how I can be successful in writing and generating an income on my terms.

I liked the real-life examples provided and Valerie's detailed explanations of the structure. I'll be confident when approaching media outlets and how to go in with a strong media release.

I enjoyed the clear set out and resources.

I am now thinking about how to approach and execute my concept.

The AWC is a community of proven, successful, writers and people in the industry sharing their expertise.

I think the course was quite well done. It was chock full of information - very helpful for a newbie like myself. I like that there was a focus on many different aspects of writing, from how to get started all the way up to thinking about the possibility of publishing in the future.

The online tutor was great - she seemed respectful, yet honest in her critiques. I found that receiving feedback was one of the most useful aspects of the course. Every time I write something new now I have those critiques/suggestions in my head.

I enjoyed having a bit of structure and something to keep me 'on task'. I find it easy to come up with excuses of why I'm not writing, but this course gave me the motivation to stick to it. I enjoyed receiving the feedback on my work and the feedback on other's work as well.

It's both given me inspiration and motivation to continue writing, but at the same time I must admit that it's created doubt about if I'm good enough to actually pursue this as something more than a hobby. This is ok though, as part of what I wanted from this course was the opportunity to actually try writing (which I haven't really done before) and to discover and learn about myself and my writing capabilities.

There were many things that I learned, but possibly the 'show and don't tell'. I've heard this before, but it never really sunk in until the tutor was giving examples of it when critiquing people's work. I constantly use that motto now when writing to try and improve my work.

I'd definitely recommend a course here. I found it full of valuable information and tips to improve my writing. It is a very supportive and encouraging environment.

Thank you for putting together such a great course!

At first, I was extremely scared to let someone else read my work but my tutor was so lovely and made some super valid points. I was happy to take in her feedback and I really think that everything made more sense when I looked at it from her point of view.

I particularly enjoyed applying everything that was taught in this course into my current reads. It put everything into perspective and really made me understand the difference small things in a story make. I can be like "Oh! Thats why I didn't like that story" or "That's why I didn't connect with the character!" I found a surprise enjoyment in analysing such things.

I found Angela's feedback very helpful. I also contacted her privately with my doubts, given I was the only student writing memoir. She reassured me and supported me to continue with my writing. Her positive feedback has encouraged me to continue writing as I've gained a great deal of confidence.

I enjoyed listening to the online tutorials and then trying to put the advice into practice. I also enjoyed receiving Angela's and the other students’ feedback which I will now process.

I'm very motivated to continue my memoir, given Angela's positive feedback about my writing style. Whether I have it published is another issue as I have no idea how to go about this. It's now my focus to go down that path, as Abby, who has also been very supportive to me during the course, has also encouraged me to pursue the publishing aspect.

Lesley Gibbes was an extremely knowledgeable, thorough and passionate tutor.

I enjoyed understanding the elements of writing Chapter books for ages 6-9, learning something about the industry and the market.

I'm always recommending AWC! I talk about how thorough the courses are and how what value they are.

I enjoyed the fact that I could learn in my own time and the clear way the presenter was talking, which made watching the videos very pleasant. I also liked that I could download the slides so I can refer back to them later if I need to.

I am getting more organised and will plan my strategy so that I can be more consistent in posting.

I found the course very conclusive of the industry from start to finish; the handouts, videos and the extra podcasts were a great bonus.

I like the very handy templates and the way Valerie presents her content. It was clear and adaptable.

I am going to write my first blog and I feel confident that I have the skills I need.

The structure of the course was very clear, with audio, resources and writing activities. I loved listening to the audio and felt I learnt a lot from it. I also really like that there is the opportunity to submit work for feedback. As the course was self-paced it was a good place for me to start and develop an early-morning writing routine that I now love. I've just enrolled for the Creative Writing course as the next step.

It's kick-started my early-morning writing routine. It helped me give structure to this time when starting out. Rather than just feeling that I had to get up and write, I could get up, listen to some audio/ work through a module and then do the writing activity. This has helped me to establish the routine.

Writing picture story books has been something that I have wanted to do for quite some time. The timing was right to pursue this now.

Zanni's weekly feedback was much appreciated and welcomed. It was honest, critical and constructive. Thank you Zanni :)

I enjoyed the opportunity to put pen to paper and to bring to life some of the ideas for stories that I have been collecting for years.

I am inspired to continue writing and to refine some of these ideas.

I was looking to reinvent myself. I enjoy writing and words and felt I would like to see if it was doable to become a writer.

I appreciated the encouraging and motivational content. Tackling the self-doubt and imposter syndrome was really helpful. Knowing that it can be done if I apply myself. Listening to the graduates who have successfully reinvented themselves.

It has given me the confidence to know that it is possible to be a writer.

Amazing! I was so impressed with Zanni, and I am so glad that I did the course. She was extremely professional and knowledgeable.

Zanni's video feedback was great. Having access to all of the stories was excellent too, and hearing Zanni's feedback to all of the stories allowed me to learn so much more because I learned where they needed to improve and where they went well etc.

I feel that there is a lot there I did not know. I did not realise how much goes into writing a picture book. I learned a lot about what publishers look for etc.

I feel that the amount I have learned in these five weeks would have taken me years to learn on my own. I am going to immediately listen to all of the material again and write more stories. I am going to make the most of it while I have it, as I feel it is a really valuable resource. I am so glad that I did it.

Do it. It is money well spent. There is so much you don't know. You would be crazy not to do it.

My manuscript was a total mess. This course has shown me how to create some order into my chapters and scenes with a much better workflow.

I realised structure was one of my weak points and I wanted to work on it before going back and redrafting my manuscript. I have done previous courses with AWC so I knew the content would be helpful and informative.

I feel more confident going forward now in redrafting my manuscript and planning the rest of my series.