Unleash Your Inner Tolstoy

When I started writing for my #blog, I never thought I would take a #writing course. Hmmm. I know my grammar is not perfect, but then again, Grammarly is here to help. I am not a native English speaker, which is reflected in my writing reflects, but I don't mind. You, my lovely audience, know this and (hopefully) forgive my mistakes. My reluctance to take a writing course came from fear of sounding like everyone else and losing my "style" — whatever that is. 

And yet here I am in the third week of my online creative writing course with Rachel Knightley, and I love it. Don't worry is not like I am going to start writing #novels, but you never know. This course will sharpen your #description and #dialogue, strengthen your #plot and #structure, and develop your #character and #point. It might surprise you and discover you love writing. For me the one and a half hour per week is a space where I forget the outside world. It's a beautiful space where I can let my creativity flow or not (as I discovered recently) and learn something new about myself: that I like writing. It doesn't even matter if no one will ever read it; I love the process. And as you can notice, I haven't lost my "style." 

Rachel Knightley is a freelance #writer, #editor, and #tutor. Her short stories have been commissioned by Swan River Press, Women's Weekly, Hull University, and Black Shuck Books. She now edits and teaches in a freelance capacity and runs Green Ink Writers' Gym for writers of all genres and levels of experience. She is also a featured blogger for Bloomsbury Publishing's Writers & Artists website, reviews books, film, and theatre and teaches Creative Writing, Speech, and Drama.

There are two things that Rachel encourages: show don't tell, and don't judge yourself. So slowly, I am learning how to apply these to my entire life. I love her favorite quote, from David Lynch: 

"Ideas are like fish. If you want to catch little fish, you can stay in the shallow water. But if you want to catch the big fish, you've got to go deeper. Down deep, the fish are more powerful and more pure. They're huge and abstract. And they're very beautiful." 

Whether you are at the beginning of your writing journey or want to improve your skills, this online course is just the right place. It runs over six weeks, different dates and times are available, and bookings before the 1st of August are getting a lockdown discount. For more info, click HERE.

I hope you dive into the wonderful world of writing and learn something new about yourself. 

Love, Nora