As much as I love face-to-face fiction workshops and critique groups, sometimes they’re just not feasible. Either you live too far away from other writers or a school that offers classes, or your schedule is too tight to attend. With online classes, though, you can still attend a class or workshop, and usually you can do it in a way that fits your schedule.
I teach through Writers.com, a “school” that offers classes in many genres. My short story class is beginning in a few weeks, and I would encourage you to check it out. It’s a ten-week class in which we’ll cover in depth the fundamentals of short story writing and we’ll also workshop stories by the class members. There are no “live” sessions so the learner can log on at any time and do the work when it is convenient to him or her. Check out the details: Writing the Short Story: Make Your Story Great. And if you’re interested in other genres, look into the other offerings.
It’s the competition, but I thought I would alert you to another opportunity. (In truth, there are many online writing classes one could take.) The Tinker Mountain Writers’ Workshop, which I’ve attended a few times, is now offering online classes. There are initially three classes, one each in poetry, fiction, and non-fiction, taught by Luke Johnson, C.L. Bledsoe, and Constance Adler, respectively. It sounds like a good program, although it’s considerably more expensive than the Writers.com classes are.
I actually think creative writing lends itself to online learning, so you might want to consider one of these classes.
