What’s it like to learn with AWC?

Very well organised by topic/segment and things were explained well. I loved the level of detail.

Thinking about my website is only the top of the iceberg, and 'I' and how I want 'I' to come across is the below.

This particular course is very high on content quantity and quality.

I thrived on Cathie Tasker's encouragement, support, advice, and nudging in the direction of my dreams. Cathie provided the right mix of all of the above to challenge me to take feedback on board and to take big risks with my writing. When I started this course, I had no concept of the book I would end up writing. Where I tiptoed, Cathie urged me to charge; where I was timid, Cathie said, 'Be bold', and where I held back, Cathie said, 'Let go'. The growth and change in how I approach my writing now fuels me with energy, enthusiasm, courage and the self-belief that I will eventually become a published author. It's been such a wonderful journey, and Cathie has been a fabulous influence, tutor and guide.

Our group became very close over the twelve months as we read and provided feedback on each other's writing. We are vested in each other's stories, and we know each other's protagonists and antagonists and care about what happens in the plot. It was great to catch up with each other in ZOOM meetings with Cathie, where we could ask questions about the craft of writing. AWC hosted a Discord chat room, which was an open conversation and a great sounding board. We got to know each other on this informal channel and could drop in and let our peers know if we were having a moment of self-doubt or if our protagonist was being difficult to wrangle into a scene. The learning videos and support materials are next level - professional and such great resources for our writing now and into the future.

I tiptoed into the course with concerns about being a fish out of the water, and twelve months later, I emerged with a first draft of a novel I could not have written before the course. I am now confident I will be a published author at some stage in the future, and I confidently refer to myself as an emerging writer.

Enrol today! The 12-month WYN and any of the short courses will propel you toward your desire to become an author. In WYN, you become part of a writing community; you have access to writing peers and many resources, including live ZOOMs with past students of AWC who are now published authors.

The entire AWC team was amazing, supportive, accessible, and helpful throughout the WYN Course, and I give a particular shout-out to Valerie Khoo, CEO, and Nicole Beaton, Customer Support & Systems Manager.

I wrote 4 stories in the 5 weeks of the course and have ideas for more. Definitely gave me the idea I can do this - I can be an author!

Do it - it is straight forward but yet so informative and motivating.

I write copy for work and am self taught, so it was nice to learn the ins and outs of the profession.

The feedback from Bernadette was great, and the modules were a great length for adult learning when you have work to juggle. I wasn't sure if I would have time. But the length of the course and the assignment lengths were brilliant.

My copywriting has improved and with that my company's uptake in the events we promote have gained more registrations. Thank you Bernadette and the Australian Writers' Centre!

I had been planning to do this course after Creative Writing Stage 1 mid 2023 but wanted to be sure that I had enough content underway to keep up. So I completed Writing Workout first, which was excellent preparation, especially the last module on preparing the synopsis. So I felt really ready for Novel Writing Essentials when it started.

My tutor, Petronella, was excellent. My impression is that she is a very talented writer and a talented tutor. Her feedback was extremely detailed, both conceptual and technical and very kindly pitched. She also was very warm, welcoming and positive. A really warm, encouraging presence. Near the end of the course, another student and I had the chance to attend the launch of Petronella's fourth book and it was fantastic to see our end goal embodied in this wonderful way. Petronella was a huge highlight of the course for me.

I found most enjoyable the momentum that the course structure and assignments helped me to build towards my first full draft. I especially appreciated how the last assignment of Writing Workout fitted so perfectly into the first assignment of this course. The (shorter version) work I did there and the feedback I received was really helpful as I improved my synopsis for the submission in this course. I found the content in the modules extremely enjoyable, especially around the technical aspects of a novel and writing. I enjoyed Petronella's feedback and some of the feedback from fellow students very much. It was very insightful and led to big improvements in my work.

The course definitely increased my confidence and taking myself more seriously as a writer. By the end of the course, I felt confident enough to submit my first 3 chapters, synopsis and chapter breakdown to the Richelle Prize. My chances might be very slim but as Valerie always says, 'you can't publish, if you haven't written it'. Equally, 'I can't win the prize, if I haven't submitted'.

AWC courses have a perfect blend of tutor led or self-guided and, being online, are fantastic for people who are building a writing practice around busy everyday lives. The courses are taught by published authors and other experts and provide excellent step-by-step content on the practicalities of developing a novel and writing it.

My next goal is to join the Write Your Novel program when I have 1/2 my manuscript completed (I have about 1/4) and I'm accepted. I love everything I am learning via the AWC.

The tutor was knowledgeable and interested in each of our stories even though very different genres, which I'm sure everyone appreciated. She was encouraging.

Workshopping and theory all in one! It really kept me accountable and now I have almost half my first draft written and I know where I'm headed.

I will keep going!! I will write this book! I needed this course to keep me accountable so I'll enrol in the next one.

I liked the teacher / writer and how she gave us many examples from real books to expand upon this knowledge. I enjoyed the exercises. I liked the PDF handouts.

I liked how some of the initial exercises asked us to remember things from our own childhood that were important to us (DER!) but this actually had me come up with a COMPLETELY NEW IDEA for a book!

The courses are very good value for money and VERY SPECIFIC to the genre / type of book in which you are looking to write. I have actually done other courses before through other writing centres and have been disappointed at the quality of the courses. This course packed a punch above its weight!

THANKS SO MUCH!!!!

I was very happy with the constructive feedback given by Vivienne, in particular the way in which it was provided step by step, line by line. It was very thorough and practical and I am confident I can apply her advice to my writing and pitching.

It has made me more committed to learning more and trying my hand at freelance writing.

If you're thinking about learning the art of writing, whether it's for personal or professional reasons, don't hesitate to enrol with the Australian Writers' Centre. AWC covers every aspect of the writing process, the homework is designed to actually get you writing and the feedback provided is constructive and practical.

I've already been recommending the course to my friends. I really learnt a lot. I think the best parts were the in-depth details that were covered in the content. For example, I'd had a lot of trouble with point of view and that was covered. I didn't know you weren't supposed to mention things that your POV character wouldn't know and it has just made my writing so much better.

I think the feedback was good and after getting constructive feedback in the first assignment I was able to make changes and then get positive feedback for the next assignment to say I was on track.

After the course, I have a sense of achievement. I know I learnt a lot. I know I have material I can use in my current project. I know what areas I need to focus on moving forward.

I'd like to have a crack at writing a novel, and whilst I have a wealth of experience reading them, I have zero idea of how to write them! I thought it would be a good starting point to boost my confidence.

The feedback was excellent - I felt like ample time was allocated to each student and no-one was rushed over, or wasn't given enough to work with.

I really liked the assignments, and getting feedback on my efforts has been great, especially when other course students commented on my work.

It's made me think more widely about my writing - to step back and read it as a reader, and realise what's missing. The handouts, particularly Module 1's character development one, are thorough and cover all the important points from the lecture.

It's a great starting point to learn the basics and boost confidence that doesn't require an enormous allocation of precious time. It is long enough to help decide if writing's for you, and short enough that it's not going over the same material.

Margaret was fabulous! Her feedback was invaluable and she gave so much food for thought. I went away wanting to do and become better. I found myself really engaging in the course because she was so enthusiastic and genuinely wanted to interact with all the students. Her critique was firm but kind and she would offer so many helpful suggestions on how our stories could be more than what we first imagined. After each assignment I found myself eagerly anticipating her feedback on my stories and how they (and I!) could reach their full potential!

I loved the challenge of writing a new story each assignment, although we didn't have to. I loved researching my themes and creating my characters. Our imaginations, especially in the world of children's picture books, really is limitless!

I have always loved writing since I was a little girl. This course has sparked an even greater love of writing than I thought possible and I find myself wanting to write every single day. My ideas journal is practically spilling over!

DO IT! Don't hesitate! If you love writing, take a course from the AWC - there is something here for any writer or budding writer. You will come away with a newfound passion for putting words on paper and more so, giving those words a whole new meaning!

Thank you. Thank you to Margaret Whiskin for her expertise and encouragement. And thank you AWC for such a fantastic course. I look forward to studying with the AWC again very, very soon!

My writing was stuck, I was in major story writing doldrums, and I had some sense it had to do with not having a good understanding of foundational elements of structure, such as 3-act structure.

Voila! my writing is no longer stuck, and I'm out of the writing doldrums. I've made so many new discoveries in my story over the past week (as I went through this course) that are not only exciting to me, but which I know will excite my eventual readers.

I've had the plot for a long time, the characters, etc. And I'm a damn good writer. But even my long history of reading, writing, and even an MFA in Creative Writing (in poetry, however) did not teach me the fundamentals of story structure. Now, all of a sudden, things are falling into place. Now I know what to write next, and where it goes in the overall story.

Every course I've taken from AWC has exceeded expectations. And believe me, I have recommended your courses, and will continue to do so. A German friend of mine is taking your Romance writing course right now. Let me add that I'm an American, and was put on to AWC by a Brisbane friend a couple of years ago. Maybe there's something as good as AWC in the U.S., but I haven't seen it yet.

The course material was interesting and useful and pushed me to learn and think. The online tutor for the course assignments provided useful and relevant feedback. Overall the course was interesting, relevant and well paced.

Thank you to the AWC team.

I was attracted to this course because I needed help with my writing - I was getting bogged down.

It exceeded my expectations. It made me think in wider terms about what I'm writing. The fifth module on Settings has really made me think of the scenes I'm writing in a different way.

Great courses. Professionally presented and always relevant to what you are working on.

The course was brilliant. Easy to access on a range of devices. It covered everything I needed to know and some things I didn't realise I needed to know. It was so practical, focusing on the end goal and giving me the knowledge I need to get there. It was so helpful with the insider tips and examples of article types, pitches, checklists and write-ups.

It fuelled my passion for travel.

I know so much more about travel writing now, and have the tools to begin making it professional.

I enjoyed Pamela's friendly manner and the content which has helped me with my writing.

I'm now on the lookout for filter words when I am editing my work. I didn't realise I'd used so many!

Don't hesitate - do this course.

This course covered a wide range of topics; all were useful. I enjoyed the easy to follow, bite sized sessions which allowed me to stop and start with ease.

If you want to be fully informed about publishing your book, you must do this course.

Petronella was fabulous. She was supportive of everybody. Her feedback was constructive and insightful. She highlighted things I hadn't considered especially about family dynamics. It was inspiring to be tutored by someone who has written four books.

I enjoyed the interaction with Petronella and the quality of the content in the modules. I particularly liked the frameworks you provided that I could apply to my writing. The overall structure worked well and gave me the impetus I needed to get my word count up. One of the best pieces of advice I took out was the comment 'don't be too writerly' - just get the story on the page.

I thought it was great and worked well for me. I went from about 15k before I started to over 60k. That was way beyond my expectations when I started. Of course, the million-dollar question is - is it any good!! but I feel motivated to get it down on the page and trust the process.

The course gives you an easily accessible structured approach designed to help you take your idea and turn it into a story people will want to read.

I was worried that I might not keep up with all the videos and assignments. I was relieved that the course was do-able in bite-sized chunks!

I enjoyed being part of an online group for the first time. Bernadette always seemed cheerful and provided feedback in a constructive way.

I loved the explanation of the seven steps from the beginning. There's so much "smoke and mirrors" about what marketing is and how to write punchy copy. I appreciated the word-count suggestions for each section.

Give it a go! It's not hard and you don't have to be an academic to succeed. Why wait? Just give it a go!

I needed to know more about plotting. I'm someone who finds my story writing, and I can write great scenes and invent great characters. Sometimes, I write 100,000 words, but nothing happens.

The course had a profound impact on my writing. I love the formula; it's just what I needed, so finally, a lot is happening in my story. Thanks, Kate.