My 2024 calendar of online writing classes is live!
From query letter-writing to pitching magazines and doing platform in a way that is empowering, we'll cover a lot of ground together this year.
Last fall, I began putting together a year-long curriculum of online classes under the umbrella of my writing retreat, Turning Points. I’m delighted to share that the 2024 schedule of classes is now live!
Each masterclass will be three hours long with a break from 7pm-10pm EST on Wednesday evenings. Classes will be live and select courses will integrate participant material as I do sometimes here on Substack. I personally love Zoom because it allows people from different time zones and locations to gather together, so I hope to have as many live participants as possible. For those who can’t join live, or can’t stay for the whole session (it’s late, I know!) a video link will be available for two weeks after class upon request.
I’ve organized the classes topically with each course building upon what we learned in the previous one—but you can certainly pick and choose the topics that most interest you, as each masterclass functions as a standalone course as well.
Our first class starts in only two weeks! Here’s the 2024 calendar:
Time Management for People with No Time: Improving accountability, productivity and smashing goals in 2024 (Feb 28th)
In this class, we’ll build a list of strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes, and short and long-term wishes to help you create the literary version of a business plan to bring more ease and pleasure into your writing life. We’ll look at different kinds of working schedules to suit the creative that you are. A great way to jumpstart those New Year Resolutions!
Getting Platform Right: Social media, networking and newsletters, your way (March 27th)
This class will be about the dreaded “P” word—Platform! Regardless of your age or familiarity with social media, we’ll take a compassionate look at what is necessary, what is fruitless, and what is possible given the place in life you’re in and where you want to get to with your writing and writer network. We’ll spend a significant amount of time on the topic of newsletters in this course.
Query Writing 2.0: How to get an agent in a competitive market (April 17th)
This is the holy grail of query classes: we’ll tackle everything you could possibly want to know about querying different genres in a competitive marketplace, and we’ll use real examples to illustrate how to improve the way you think about your work, your resumé, and bylines.
Hook them from Page One: Why your opening pages are important and how to get them right (May 8th)
If you’ve been querying and something just isn’t working, or you’re getting ready to submit to agents or prize juries, this is the class for you. Using examples from published authors and participant material, we’ll concentrate on the first five pages of your fiction or nonfiction project (including short story collections) to make sure you’re grabbing readers from page one.
What’s wrong with my book: A revision masterclass (June 5th)
Whether you have cold feet about submission, are getting tepid feedback from beta readers, or you’ve been querying for months without any success, this class will take a compassionate but realistic look at what you’re doing wrong. This is also a great session for people who have fallen out of love with their current project, or are having a hard time reaching the finishing line with their book-length manuscript.
Making Memoir Work: How to break through in a tough market (September 18th)
If your memoir is reading more like a chronicle of memories than a narrative with a plot and subplots, you’ll enjoy this class. We’ll discuss market considerations—especially for tricky categories like trauma, illness and recovery—and explore ways to help your book breakout. We’ll also look at nontraditional paths to getting your work out there.
All about Pitching: Supporting your writing with op-eds and essays (November 13th)
Did you know that publishing nonfiction is one of the best ways to support any fiction you might write? In this class, we’ll learn how to identify which topics we can write about and what a pitch should look like. This is a great course for people who need to gain more bylines, and a savvy pick for writers with an upcoming pub date.
Scroll down beneath “ongoing courses” to “Turning Points Masterclasses”
QUICK FACTS:
Courses will be conducted live over Zoom and video will be available upon request for two weeks after the respective class.
When you register, you’ll receive a confirmation email guaranteeing your spot. You’ll receive the Zoom link for the class you enrolled in two days before the course.
There will be a Q&A built into every course as well as a halftime break to get snacks, put on PJs, kiss your kids and pets goodnight.
Some classes will involve a call for participant material (like I do here on Substack.) If your material should be chosen, you will attend the class for free. I’ll post relevant calls for material here on Substack.
Stay tuned after the jump for a special discount code for my paid Substack subscribers!
Questions? Post them in the comments. Unpaid subscribers can send questions to turningpoints.retreats@gmail.com (Only questions about the masterclasses, please.)
I’m super excited to connect face-to-face with some of you and to expand on the great work that we’ve been doing here. Hope to see you in class!
SPECIAL DISCOUNT CODE FOR PAID SUBSTACK SUBSCRIBERS: