I must confess that I’ve come late to the realm of online classes, which have soared during the pandemic.
So help me out: What are some of your favorite online classes? What did you like about them?
They don’t have to be writing and publishing related! I’m curious which classes you’ve loved in any stripe and why they struck your fancy.
Need help with your book? I’m available for manuscript edits, query critiques, and coaching!
For my best advice, check out my online classes, my guide to writing a novel and my guide to publishing a book.
And if you like this post: subscribe to my newsletter!
Art: The school exam by Albert Anker
I took an Intro to Marketing class online through my local community college. My love for that class led me to apply for copywriting jobs, and I eventually landed my dream job as a copywriter for a health and wellness e-commerce company. Now is a great time to take online classes and explore your passions and hobbies!
I joined MasterClass.com – so far I have taken classes from Lewis Hamilton (A Winning Mindset), Amy Tan (writing – Fiction, Memory, and Imagination), and Margaret Atwood (Creative Writing).
I found Jane Friedman through you, Nathan (thanks!) and have taken 2 of her classes. Highly recommended. Wish I could afford more.
Oops. Forgot to add why I like Jane Friedman. Like you, she’s very knowledgeable and clearly explains what she’s teaching. I’ve used her for publishing hints and query formulation.
Aloha, I took an online class with Natalie Goldberg- 8 weeks of 3 hours each Saturday and it was quite amazing. Even though there were over 1600 participants from around the globe, Nat was so present and it felt like she was in my house! I highly recommend her for her meditation, her writing advice, her writing practice and her presence! And for 24 hours of a class, the price (about $200, if I remember correctly) is quite nice.
I also love Masterclasses! David Sedaris, Judy Blume, James Patterson, and Neil Gaiman are my favs so far, but there are many more and then there are other types of experts- sports, sleep, psychology, cooking….A friend gifted me a year membership when they had a buy one get one free deal. Amazing!
Oh gosh, I love Natalie Goldberg!
Mark Dawson’s Self-Publishing Formula. It’s a huge amount of publishing and marketing information, constantly updated, for a tiny price. And it’s all good, proven information on how enough of the right work can make a career.
I found Maggie Stiefvater’s writing seminar pretty excellent. It’s a series of short videos. You can buy it through her etsy shop.
I am learning Italian and extending my French – via my phone whenever I do a manual task – it fills the ‘travelling gap’.
I am taking a weaving class through the Maker’s app. (Lots of crafts…think handwork.) This weaving is done on a 7-inch square child’s loom (remember making pot holders?), but the yarn and designs are very zen. Maybe because the instructor is Buddhist. The class is an hour and a half meditation and I love it.
Ooh–I’ve been wanting to take the Lewis Hamilton class on Having A Winning Mindset. I love him. I will add the Story Path class from Pages & Platforms. Two of the three instructors were part of the StoryGrid Roundtable Podcast and they’ve kind of taken the StoryGrid concepts and made them less esoteric and added very accessible, helpful exercises. The other instructor focuses on mindset and marketing and she is great.