Upgrading Your Writing Skills

November 14, 2019

The need to upgrade your writing skills will happen eventually no matter how long you've been writing. This is a good thing. Of course, it depends on where you are in your writing career. Once you are successful, you can pretty much write in any style you wish, as long as its legible.

Writers like the late Tom Wolfe - known for his electric style and acid pen as one journalist puts it - wrote The Bonfire of the Vanities. He was noted for his wit and unique way of modifying words and everyone loved it! However, if you're not at his level - like myself - there's much more work to do!

Still, whether you are a naturally talented writer or simply testing-the-waters, a bit of tweaking every now-and-then will be required. Let's face it, even well-known authors use editors!

Whether you currently have a book deal, self-published, or writing articles for a list of global clients, you should edify your writing skills from time-to-time.

The idea is to be recognized not only for your good work...but your unique style as well. Once you get to a certain level, it's easier to bend grammatical rules.

Below is a list of five institutions offering free writing courses. Some may ask for a small fee in order for you to receive a certificate to verify that you've completed the course.

Free Writing Courses

Tricky English Grammar

via University of California, Irvine

Learning English can be tricky, and in this class you’ll focus on some of those tricky issues. You’ll get clear explanations about the difficult grammar points and practice in using them correctly.

Creative Writing:The Craft of Plot

via Wesleyan University In this course aspiring writers will be introduced to perhaps the most elemental and often the most challenging element of story: plot. We will learn what keeps it moving, how it manipulates our feelings, expectations, and desires.

Adventures in Writing

Stanford University via Stanford OpenEdx Welcome to Adventures in Writing, a series of graphic-novel style learning modules designed to help you learn more about and practice a range of effective written communication skills. You’ll immerse yourself in the adventures of Maya and Chris, using each module’s interactive exercises to apply what you’ve learned.

The above information was taken from the site Class Central. Click on the link to find additional opportunities.

English Writing and Composition

Arizona State University

This college-level introductory writing course will help you gain a solid foundation of English grammar and writing skills. Learn critical language and communication skills while completing challenging writing projects in a supportive environment. This is an excellent course for high school students interested in getting a head start on college English composition.

English for Journalists: Free Speech and Media Trends

UC BerkeleyX

Part two of English for Journalists focuses on writing styles and techniques for different news categories like sports, science & technology and humor. Learn about free speech, and media trends and gain an understanding of the issues facing journalists globally.

The above information was taken from the site Edx.org. Click on the link to find additional opportunities.

**Check again at a later date if any of the above classes advertised are not currently available.**