What’s it like to learn with AWC?

Alex was great. Very descriptive, helpful and she provided some excellent feedback and advice. I found that listening to the feedback for the other students was also extremely useful. I think having the deadlines makes it more real. Forced me to focus during the week and do the work.

I enjoyed seeing the process so easily laid out. While I've still got so much to learn, the course has made the steps to getting published look very achievable. I've made lots of notes and now have a nice collection of ideas to work on.

It's given me a framework to play with. And it's given me the confidence to just follow the steps provided. And be OK with rejections and turning 'No' into 'OK, next!"

Just do it. Sign up, do the lessons, do the homework. It's 5 weeks and you'll learn plenty.

I was keen to relearn the basics of creative writing. I remember learning about it in school and how much I enjoyed and I felt the urge to write again. I have always wanted to write a fiction novel and tried years ago but I found it difficult to write. Recently I decided I wanted to try again but do it the right way this time by learning properly.

I was worried that I would realise that writing would be too hard to stick to, but doing the course made me realise that once you know the basics it makes things less scary and a lot easier to navigate.

Stephen gave fair and constructive feedback and I really valued his expertise. He gave feedback that was encouraging but also made me reflect more on my writing and what to improve.

I loved all of the course. The audio lessons were very informative and the assignments were interesting and were useful in applying the learnings from the audio lessons and resources. The assignments were great in not being too onerous but were effective in teaching us how to focus on different aspects of creative writing. I found that the teaching material was clear and explained well. I also enjoyed receiving feedback on assignments, as it helped me improve!

This course has had quite a profound impact as I was able to rediscover my love of creative writing and just being creative, as I am realising how wonderful it is to be creative! It has also given me the momentum to write a novel and I will be keeping up the momentum by starting Novel Writing Essentials straight after this course.

I would recommend it because of the high quality of teaching where concepts are explained in a way that is easy to understand and is interesting content! I think in this course, the use of providing handouts, audio lessons, assignments and feedback is a great combination and a great way to learn and apply your newly acquired skills.

I loved the colour coding idea of scenes and the realisation that my scenes often lacked ample setting.

Excellent courses for beginner writers like myself.

I really enjoyed learning from an actual author. Her experience was of great benefit.

I enjoyed reading the recommended chapter books. As a retired teacher librarian it was interesting to see the types of books that are still so popular.

The course revitalised the approach to children’s literature I have. Thank you. I really enjoyed the program.

I loved the coursework and assignments. I loved that it was self paced during the week and I could participate through an online platform and not actually have to attend in person (difficult as I live miles away from the city).

I'm looking for a career change. I live in rural Australia and there were not many appealing jobs so I figured I might have to create a niche for myself with freelance writing work.

I just loved how practical it was and covered all the facets of freelancing. Brilliant course. Super practical and I learnt so much. Thanks!

Angela was great. Kept things real and gave honest feedback. Gave us all an extra one-on-one zoom chat which was really helpful. No complaints at all.

I enjoyed meeting like-minded people and developing relationships with them.

Thanks for everything AWC, you've awakened a beast in me.

Zanni provided amazing feedback with practical tips to improve our drafts and ideas. The video feedback was fantastic, very personable and it helped to see someone else reading out loud our words. This really highlighted clunky or awkward language and things that needed fixing.

Getting feedback on a whole picture book manuscript was very helpful, and also looking at the elevator pitch/blurb and how this may/may not appeal to a publisher/agent.

I’m much more enthused about my ideas, what to work on next, areas to improve.

Thank you for another fantastic course.

I enjoyed workshopping the manuscript of my fellow course members, and reading their feedback.

It's given me the belief that I'm on my way to becoming a capable, and hopefully engaging, writer.

I felt the course had lots of content and really expanded my understanding of the different types of writing. It amazed me to find myself interested in writing that I had never considered before.

It changed my beliefs about struggling authors. It was so inspiring to hear great stories from authors who had found confidence and success doing what they loved in such a supportive environment. I loved Valerie’s narration too.

Although I have only completed my first small course through the AWC I could feel the genuine support for the students in their writing journey. So much content and inspiration. I can’t wait to start my next course. I have found my tribe.

I though Suzanne was the perfect mix of encouragement whilst also finding something that needed improvement with each piece we submitted. It felt like her responses were thoughtful, like she cared about us getting the most we could out of the course.

I enjoyed getting feedback from such an amazing professional. I felt really lucky to have that guidance. Although I was scared about putting my work out there, I really enjoyed getting that feedback and seeing other people’s work and feedback too. Great learning experience.

After receiving Suzanne’s feedback there’s a fire lit in my belly. I believe with hard work that I can do this now. That I can write a book. It’s an incredible feeling.

After a bit of research into writing courses that could be completed online, I was excited to find the AWC website and amazed by the variety of courses on offer. As a beginner, who has recently been bitten by the writing bug, it made practical sense to start with Creative Writing Stage 1.

Stephen provided insightful and valuable feedback which had a great impact on my writing. His easygoing, yet professional manner was spot on! I would be delighted to have him as a tutor in any future courses I take with the AWC.

The course as a whole was extremely enjoyable. Getting critical feedback on my writing and being able to learn through watching the feedback given to the other students in the course is probably what I found most enjoyable. The recorded lessons were great to listen to each week and the handouts are right beside me on my desk where I write. I'm finding them a useful tool!

It changed the way I approach writing scenes and characters entirely. I feel like when I sit down to write a scene from the story I am working on, I am able to begin more easily and be critical with myself. For example, what purpose does this scene serve?

I have also learnt about myself, and what my approach to writing is. I know now that I am somewhere between a plotter and a pantser (mostly pantser) and I like to write scenes, then fill in the gaps.

I would say that if you were struggling to find your feet creatively, or had a desire to improve your creative writing or unpack how a story is structured and what goes into creating a good story, then this is the course for you!

I have always relied on instinct when it comes to grammar, and as I am about to start editing my novel, wanted the confidence of knowing the theory and grammar of punctuation.

This course was very thorough and highlighted the areas of grammar and punctuation I need to work on. It was broken down into easy-to-follow pieces and the information was easy to understand.

I now have greater confidence when it comes to grammar and punctuation. AWC has given me the tools that I can turn to whenever I am in doubt about any grammatical aspect of my writing.

The Grammar and Punctuation course with the Australian Writers' Centre will give you the tools you need to polish your work to a professional standard. The lessons are easy to follow and the exercises will help you to achieve a high standard of grammar and punctuation.

Bernadette is very easy to listen to - a great communicator and gives very good feedback.

I loved the creative aspect of developing copy for the assignments each week… And it wasn't too arduous or stressful!

I feel so much more confident in sitting in front of a 'blank page' now.

The lesson on SEO copywriting was fantastic - I feel so much more knowledgeable about this previously murky area.

Do it!!

I really wanted to learn a new skill and this course seemed like a good opportunity to do so. I'm thankful I did it, though. It's been awesome. I was worried initially that it would just be some bland and superficial course where I would just be inundated with jargon. It was great. Every week we did something new and interesting.

Bernadette was a great teacher. It was a pleasant surprise that she was able to explain everything in layman's terms, rather than try and incorporate as many adjectives or nouns as she could. She seemed to have a real handle on everything she was talking about.

I really enjoyed learning the seven steps to selling and also about search engine optimisation. It was all a really great insight. I honestly don't think that there is anything more that Bernadette could do to improve this course. It's perfect.

I guess this course just showed in very simple terms how copywriting is done. It really helped me conceptualise everything I had learnt previously about marketing and apply it in a meaningful way.

It is a great insight and entry point into digital marketing. I'll be certain to refer this to my friends if they are interested.

Thanks a lot Bernadette. It was an awesome experience from start to finish.

The tutor was top notch! I found Bernadette easy to listen to, and appreciated hearing about her experience as part of the lessons.

I enjoyed the tips and tools! They take the pain out of the process so writing can be enjoyed!

The course work is thorough without being overwhelming. And the assignments make it easy for you to put what you've learnt into practice and get feedback.

I was looking for a new career and had always wanted to do something with writing. This course seemed to offer a tangible pathway to employment.

I very much enjoyed the live feedback because it was engaging and you felt like your work mattered. Some self-paced courses with no feedback leave you feeling quite cold!

The SEO topic was very enlightening although quite dense at the same time. Bernadette has done a good job of making it accessible for us to learn more.

These courses are really engaging! Thank you. You run a great program with this course and all the others encouraging people to write.

Bernadette knew her stuff. She's friendly, down-to-earth. She created a course for beginners that even my 80yr mother could have a go.

If you wanna know how to write copy for Google, at least complete the AWC Copywriting Essentials.

I've been doing AWC courses since 2016 and there is still much more fun learning to be had.

Bernadette was awesome! I enjoyed the course. Bernadette made learning fun and easy.

I enjoyed the easy-to-understand delivery and the reassurance and support that was delivered throughout the recordings.

My entire outlook on my writing career and its potential has changed. Like the course has lifted the illusion that it required great skill and technique to be successful. This course has shifted my mindset from "can't" to "why the hell not?"

You won't regret it! The work is simple to understand and fun to do.

Bernadette's feedback was valuable and much appreciated. I enjoyed her commentary throughout the modules and they were easy listening.

I like that the modules are not outdated and are relevant to the industry currently. I also enjoyed being able to see the rest of the class’s response to the homework.

Just like to thank Bernadette for such a great course outline.

Bernadette was amazing. She was very thorough and constructive in her feedback. She also provided lots of information on how to continue to receive support once we completed the course.

I enjoyed the opportunity to actually think through and practice copywriting.

It has given me more confidence. It has opened up the whole area of writing for me. I discovered how much I already knew and that I did have some writing skills that can be valuable and useful to others.

The courses are elementary to follow, extremely comprehensive and fun to participate in; the tutors are supportive, and feedback is constructive and effective when taken on board.

I am very excited to get started.