Foundation Courses and Special Workshops

Foundation Courses

Highly recommended for all students, these essential courses provide the foundation for any writing path. Taught by professional writers and published authors, these intense workshops will heighten your skills regardless of your chosen genre.

The Secrets of Writing Well: The Ultimate Guide
Words are the essential tools for every creative writer; understanding how they work differentiates great writers. Discover the emotional and sensual impact correct usage can have. Every thing you learn in writing begins here. Start with a solid foundation, and learn from the expert who literally "wrote the book" on writing. No prerequisites.

Improve Your Grammar!
Focusing on the careful review of English grammar so necessary to personal, professional, and creative writing, this course emphasizes contemporary usage, sentence structure, and punctuation. No prerequisites.

Creative Writing Introduction
Explore your inner poet, screenwriter, travel author, short story writer in this course that teaches the basics of the craft. No prerequisites, but "Writing Well" and "Improve Your Grammar!" are highly recommended.

Ignite Your Creativity: The Artist's Way

Recommended for all writers, regardless of genre. Explore a more creative lifestyle, learn a variety of highly effective skills designed to ignite passion and capture new ideas. Learn to release the inner artist, dare to leap, and to recognize even the smallest possibilities. Then, explore your inspirations and the self-respect that naturally comes from this catharsis! No prerequisites.

Workshops

Heighten your “writing time” with a variety of workshops emphasizing different genres and aspects of the craft, taught by guest authors and staff.

Screenwriting

Pursue the dream of your words on the golden screen with Billy Wilder protégé, Rex McGee who is currently adapting his film Pure Country into a Broadway musical. In this four-week workshop on the art and craft of writing for motion pictures and television, learn structure, dialogue and how to develop your own story ideas into feature film scripts.

Genre Workshop: Research For Fact and Fiction Writers

Develop interview techniques, learn how to find the year a song hit the charts and cast authenticity on your story through research. Storytellers of true and fictitious events learn how to gather supporting evidence from a broad array of sources; bring your specific interests and needs for individual help! No prerequisites.

Finding Your Voice

All writers have a voice. It lives in our souls. Sometimes we just need a little help searching, so we can translate it to the written word. In this new seminar connect with writers of both fiction and creative nonfiction, taking part in a series of thought-provoking exercises designed to help illuminate your natural writing style and provide you with direction as you pursue your writer's dream. Bring paper and pen-or, laptop, if you prefer, and pack a snack that inspires you. No prerequisites. Small class with individualized attention. No prerequisites.

Blogs, Blurbs and Columns-Expressing Yourself As A Foodie!

Sample the world of food writer and restaurant critic, and acquire a taste for what it takes to get your opinions and stories published. From megahit Web site to revered restaurant review, the components of solid commentary require craft, freshness and finesse. You’ll apply these elements to your own story idea about a food trend, favorite eatery or culinary hot button, prepping it for submission. Plus, experience what it is like to be “on assignment” during the lunch break as you explore one of the city’s trendiest neighborhoods for the latest scoop. No prerequisites.

Description That Works

“It was a dark and stormy night. …” Do your sentences sometimes feel bloated with adjectives and adverbs? Learn essential techniques for writing dynamic description that will not only help you establish setting, but mood, perspective, characters and plot – effectively and eloquently! No prerequisites.

Genre Workshop: Mystery

Whodunit. Thriller. Crime noir. Suspense. Learn the elements of mystery writing and how they apply in this increasingly complex and rapidly expanding fiction category. Class will discuss these elements specific to the genre: scene of the crime; two-ink method of murder writing; how to arc a character through a series.

Genre Workshop: Conflict and Dialogue

What we love about romance – conflict! Learn how to create vibrant and powerful character relationships through themes and plot. While this workshop will look specifically at the male/ female dynamic, these tools are essential for any story with conflict, that is, all stories.

Travel Writing: Bring Your Adventure to Life!

From Herodotus to Condé Nast, travel writing has gripped our imagination. The story of a trip isn’t only an external journey, but it is also about personal transformation – on any scale. Bring your tale of experience and learn to apply vivacity, subtext, texture, and depth, thus discovering the great adventure within. Whether for publication or personal pleasure, by the end of this course you’ll have the road map to write your odyssey. No prerequisites.

How to Get an Agent for Your Novel: A Writer's Perspective

Writing the book is just part of the battle. In this course you will acquire the skills necessary to secure representation by a legitimate literary agent for your completed novel. Using proven techniques presented in a logical, step-by-step manner, you will learn ways to avoid scam agents, how to write a query letter, proven methods for developing people to contact as well as tips and tricks in dealing with agents including what to do when asked for an exclusive and how to respond to an offer. No prerequisites.

Click below to view current course offerings. Not all courses are offered every term.

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*Formula For Success:

The SMU Writer’s Seminar in New York serves as a culmination of the SMU Continuing Education Creative Writing Program, and as such, carries several prerequisites. These prerequisites help our students move from course to course within the program along pre-determined “paths” that contribute to their success and help to ensure that students gain certain skills before moving on to the next level. In addition, following these prerequisites helps to ensure the highest level of quality for the SMU Writer’s Seminar in New York applicants.

For complete program information, including program “paths,” course dates and times, and New York Seminar prerequisites, please visit www.smu.edu/creativewriting.