What’s it like to learn with AWC?

I had no hesitation in enrolling for this course. I loved the idea of a self-paced course with AWC. No set time, 12 months to do the course. AWC sending the course outline before I decided to go ahead was very useful. I suggest to anyone wondering about doing a course at AWC: Give it a go and delve into the writing world. You will be amazed at how much you learn, giving you the motivation and skills to finish that story that needs to be told.

I am in the early stage of writing my book and have been using Word for writing and Evernote for storing my research. The process is starting to become cumbersome and I started to investigate Scrivener hoping it's a better tool for me. All the other videos I looked at on YouTube have been confusing and unclear so I bit the bullet with this course, hoping that it would be different.

It's a fabulous course and I would highly recommend it. Thank you Natasha and AWC for helping Scrivener beginners like me to feel excited about a writing programme. I can't wait to get stuck in and transfer all of my current work from Word and Evernote to Scrivener - nerding has never been so appealing!

Natasha explains things in a very clear and understandable way.

I now feel that I can move forward with my project knowing all my research and writing is in one easily accessible place. This course is a procrastination-killer!

I'll no longer be one hot-writing-mess...yippee!

The tutor was kind and diplomatic with an amazing amount of knowledge and experience. I enjoyed receiving the tutor feedback and the chance to become part of a writing community.

Listening to another students feedback, I realised how important it is to be clear on what is happening in a scene and I have rewritten scenes because of this.

I enjoyed it so much and can't wait to do another course.

Thank you to the tutor and the students in the course.

I was looking for inspiration and a new mindset to move forward with my ideas. The course was very well thought out and interestingly presented, including artists and poetry all geared to stimulate imagination and inspire.

I enjoyed the feeling that everyone was engaged and inspired, which energised the group. Loved the content and approach.

I felt really inspired, and after thinking about my idea and dabbling with snippets of writing around my idea for about a year, I actually made a start in the knowledge that it is a first draft and that it CAN be absolute crap.

Just thank you for offering this course. I would do a Dare to Dream follow up if it was ever offered again by Kate.

I really enjoyed all of the lessons and exercises, and found that I learned an enormous amount. Angela is very knowledgeable and supportive. The extra tips she provided were really valuable.

I enjoyed reading most of the other participants' work. As you predicted, I learned a lot in forming my comments on their work, because it also helped me to reflect on what that might teach me about my own. The comments from others on my own work was really useful because other eyes picked up all sorts of things that I hadn't seen. Angela's comments were also very valuable given her experience and expertise.

I made significant progress with the plot of my novel, and learned a huge amount about characters and plotting.

A great blend of incentive, inspiration and fabulous course materials.

More than anything it has reiterated many of the things I have been taught on past writing retreats but because I was working two fulltime jobs and raising my three girls, I have been unable to put a lot of those practices in place. Best of all, it has reignited my self-belief and opened me up to options of further polishing my work, knowing that I can come and go with different courses as I continue to upskill.

It reminded me to be brave. I had forgotten that submitting/pitching feature writing was once something that did not scare me.

The Australian Writers' Centre is a must and I cannot believe that I have to come to it so late. The website is easy to navigate, clear, concise, affordable and the overall general feeling I experienced was that it is relatable and inclusive. This last part I would emphasise as I have struggled in the past to find a Writing Centre that has felt as 'down to earth' as a private writing retreat.

Michelle's course was well presented, clearly organised and super useful. She was clear, interesting and well-informed.

The most interesting aspect of the course was its immediate applicability to my work, and the ease of the online format.

The course makes me reflect on the value of training, which can help consolidate the knowledge you already have, while highlighting the knowledge you don't. I gained clarity around the various use and forms of dashes!

This course is valuable for everyone, from novices to experienced editors. There is always something new to learn and tricky questions to consider.

The course engaged my thinking and creative mind with this wonderful craft of words. I love the pattern aspect of the structure of the storytelling.

Just do it! Start with the basic knowledge courses and build on them with the Master courses to achieve the skills of the craft.

I was surprised and delighted with how much I learnt. It helped me get "structure" straight in my head and I had been having trouble with that after my first draft. I was floundering and it set me back on track by giving steps to follow to "sort things out" and put them in order.

You can read books, but the Australian Writers' Centre courses help you with organising and motivation.

I love Kate's presentations. She's always well prepared, has superb slides to illustrate and is happy to answer questions.

I finally understand point of view and I'm inspired by Kate's thoughts on the role of storytelling.

I really enjoyed the presentation style and sharing of tips and the 'systems' (not tech) that has proven to work for Kate. The other ideas and experiences of the group were also valuable.

I feel I have 'permission' to set up an environment and 'system' that works for me, taking some of Kate's tips and blending with what I know works for and motivates me.

The AWC is a welcoming place to explore what writing means to you, without right/wrong judgement. I'm enjoying my involvement with the AWC community and appreciate the weekly newsletters too.

I will not hesitate to recommend the Writing Picture Books course to anyone interested in writing for children. Or, in fact, writing in any format or genre. For any writers enrolling in the course in future, I would recommend listening to the bonus material for illustrators, even if they are not author-illustrators. Given that picture books are greater than the sum of their parts - a "third art form" when assembled - I found learning about the illustration process extremely valuable (even though I can barely draw a smiley-face). Thank you AWC. You are amazing.

Zanni was very positive and constructive. Loved the way she read the work aloud. Feedback was extremely valuable. Helped me refine every aspect of my writing. Her enthusiasm and passion was very infectious.

I read all literature differently now. I analyse story and themes at a deeper level. I write more succinctly. I think more about my young audience. I consider how an illustrator and editor might interpret or approach my writing. Moreover, I feel a little more confident. It has challenged me emotionally and intellectually. It has opened up a world of endless possibilities. Thank you, AWC!

The Australian Writers' Centre courses are astonishing. Don't delay. START TODAY!

The detail in each module and how it was spelt out exceeded my expectations. The tutor was knowledgeable. I got something out of each week's feedback.

I enjoyed being able to learn in a safe environment that suits my personality and lifestyle. The weekly exercises were bite sized.

I am draft 3 into a short story and have plans to begin a novel in the next 12 months.

I thought Dean presented in such an energetic way that it made doing this course so much fun. I learnt so much.

I have had my first real estate copy writing gig.

My online tutor was very good and helped me understand more about how to improve my writing and become more engaged in my work.

I improved my writing and learnt many new things.

I was happy with my tutor. Her audios were always engaging and on point, and her feedback was honest and helpful.

I enjoyed the assignments, doing the exercises, and listening to audios.

It helped me look at my writing in another way, connect with my characters and learn more about them. It showed me ways to expand my plot and make my writing more engaging and structured.

I would say if you are REALLY into writing and want to get into the nuts and bolts of it, it's perfect for that. They treat you like writing really matters, and is perfect for the way you want to write.

This course was amazing and helped my writing significantly.

I wanted to get back into creative writing and found the AWC website while searching for writing competitions. After looking through the courses, I found Creative Writing Stage 1 and thought it would be the perfect step into creative writing and a great opportunity to learn from the best and get feedback along the way. The more I thought about writing my own fictional book, the more daunting it became, so this course was perfect to give me structure and guidance.

I wasn't sure if I could balance it with full-time work but after enrolling I found that it was very manageable.

The course showed me a different way to approach writing and gave me structure and guidance. I enjoyed the weekly assignments to keep me on track and keep me accountable, and I really enjoyed reading my cohort's assignments, too.

It has given me the tools and confidence I need to go forth and write my first novel.

The perfect course to give you all the tools, guidance, and structure you need to be the writer you want to (and can) be.

I wanted to convert a lifelong interest in reading historical fiction to actually writing it.

I'm pleasantly amazed by how thorough and rigorous this course is, combined with being creative and inspirational.

After getting feedback from our tutor, I realised that I already knew how to write but needed guidance to work out how to turn it into a career.

I have been given some really practical steps and guidelines for the process of setting up as a freelance writer and approaching specific publications with ideas for articles.

I have a background in writing and editing and wanted to extend my skills and, having recently taken over some content work at my job, I felt it would be useful to understand copywriting at a deeper level.

Coming into this course I was hopeful of two things: learning a little more about how to write copy and feeling more confident in myself as a writer. This course not only achieved both of these goals but did so to a level I wasn't expecting. I feel wholly prepared to be a professional copywriter, which is incredible from a 5-week course. Thank you to everyone involved!

Mark was fantastic and is clearly a font of wisdom when it comes to copywriting. He gave thoughtful and insightful feedback throughout the program. I really appreciated that he didn't just share his thoughts on areas we participants might improve, but also shared what he liked about what we wrote, which I know for me really helped me grow my confidence as a writer.

It was all great! I think the assignments were the most fun. They were well designed and allowed for a bit of creativity. It's also really useful to immediately apply what we've learned in a module to a small assignment to put learning into practice straight away.

It has not only helped me develop my writing skillset but significantly improved my confidence in myself as a writer, not just of copy but also more generally.

I would highly recommend AWC to a friend or colleague. The courses are practically focused, hands-on, expert-led and shockingly affordable for the level of knowledge on offer.

Thanks again to Bernadette and Mark, and everyone else at AWC for this course!