Writing Courses & Workshops Online & in London
Be inspired to write, and learn how to get published at the college where Andrea Levy, Malorie Blackman, Anna Burns, and other celebrated authors studied. Read our success stories to see what's possible for you as a writer.
Learn from published authors
Whether you're just starting out or ready to publish your first book, the benefits of our writing courses include expert tuition from a published author and feedback on your work as you develop your writing skills. There will also be opportunities to participate in group discussions and activities with fellow students.
Unheard Voices Scholarship
City Lit’s Malorie Blackman Scholarships for 'Unheard Voices' provide three annual awards to fund one year’s study within the Creative Writing department at City Lit. Learn more >
See what it's like be part a City Lit online creative writing course.
- English for deaf people: Communicating confidently at work (entry 2) - part 3Course start date: Wed 22 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Do you want to develop your communication skills to participate, express and progress at work? This course will use a range of techniques to teach you how to get ahead in work situations. You will be introduced to practical language, vocabulary and skills. You will learn through realistic activities that are based on various work situations. This course has no exam.
This course is free for learners who have not achieved a GCSE grade C (4) and higher in English. For more information Click here
Full fee £0.00 - Digital video editing: stage 2
Course start date: Wed 14 May 2025 (and 1 other date)Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Lily MarkiewiczImprove, and speed up your process and learn to use vital techniques for improving your edits. Explore building a better narrative structure and find out about essentials like screen-directionality, POV constructions and rhythm building.Full fee £269.00 Senior fee £215.00 Concession £175.00 - Speak Shakespeare monologues and scenes: comediesCourse start date: Wed 22 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Vernon ThompsonDo you enjoy speaking Shakespeare or would you like to enjoy it? Whether you are preparing a Shakespearean monologue for audition or simply have an interest in their structure, rhythm and poetry, this course enables you to work on and speak monologues from the Comedies with confidence as well as rehearse duologues/ scene work from As You Like It and All's Well That Ends Well specifically. The course is held at the college, and includes a trip to the Box Office Studio in Shoreditch, site of the original Theatre where the Lord Chamberlain's Men performed.
- City Lit contemporary collage projects 3 Course start date: Thu 23 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Keeley Street
City Lit contemporary collage projects 1 initiates a year-long set of collage and mixed media projects designed to experiment with and examine the interplay between the two and three dimensions. You will work with a wide range of materials, on and off the wall, extending our pictorial practice into the realm of collage, painting, drawing, assemblage, bricolage, decoupage, photomontage, small scale constructions, printing and text within the context of mixed media.
Note* the course is designed in a way to enable students to either complete all three courses over the year or to come in at any stage in no particular order.Full fee £839.00 Senior fee £671.00 Concession £545.00 - Journal inspiration: creative approaches to writing about your life Course start date: Thu 23 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Julie GartonThis inspiring, six-week workshop, led by an experienced journaler, encourages students to explore a range of techniques and prompts in order to find an approach to life writing that suits them. - Bookbinding: 10 projects for beginners Course start date: Thu 23 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Kate RochesterAn exciting range of graded projects to introduce you to bookbinding. Come armed with enthusiasm and walk away with a stack of small books and a heap of information on materials, tools and techniques. - Layout and grid designCourse start date: Thu 23 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: John SmythLearn the skills required to create your own publication in this layout and grid design course. This course will teach you the design principles for layout design, exploring magazine layout and other publication design and empowering you to innovate and create your own publication.
Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Large-scale sketchbook Course start date: Fri 24 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Tony HullExplore the sequential and adaptive nature of large format sketchbook drawing as a site for generating personal material, inviting connections, and extracting patterns of meaning. Includes artist research, set-project as stimulus, and practical exploration of contemporary drawing techniques.
Full fee £449.00 Senior fee £359.00 Concession £292.00 - Music history bookclub: Viva Violetta and VerdiCourse start date: Fri 24 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Edward BreenThe music history book club meets towards the end of each term to discuss novels and biographies with musical themes and references relevant to the music history programme.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £19.00 Concession £19.00 - Jewellery: a buyer's guide to pearls Course start date: Sat 25 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Judith Crowe, Derek JhinnooJoin this fascinating one-day course for a valuable insight into pearls, their cultivation and trade, and use in jewellery. Learn how to recognise the many types on the market, judge the good from the bad, spot the imitations and buy your pearl jewellery with confidence. - Grammar in practice: pre-intermediate (entry 2- entry 3) Course start date: Wed 29 Apr 2026 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Do you need help with your grammar? Do you want to know more about verb tenses? Do you want to ask questions with good pronunciation and correct grammar? On this course, you will learn all the essential grammar to help you speak and write well. You will focus on when to use present simple, present continuous and past simple. You will practise when to use 'do', 'does', 'is', 'are' and 'did' in questions and how to say these words. By the end of the course you will have a strong foundation for your English learning.
You need to do a pre-course assessment. Contact universal.skills@citylit.ac.uk / 020 8078 0489 for a face-to-face assessment or click the Start Assessment button on this page. Log on with your email address (not name).
This course is FREE if you are employed and on a low wage or you are claiming benefits. For more information Click here
Full fee £179.00 Senior fee £143.00 Concession £90.00 - ACT for people who stammer Course start date: Thu 30 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Carolyn Cheasman, Rachel EverardThis is a powerful approach to therapy. You'll learn to work more effectively with negative thoughts and feelings through acceptance and mindfulness work. You'll also learn how to identify, and move towards, valued goals and directions in your life.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £90.00 Concession £26.00 - Bookbinding: simple leather bindingCourse start date: Thu 30 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ina BaumeisterDiscover how leather, combined with simple sewing and cutting techniques can create a wonderfully flexible and stylish bindings. Create books with folded and crossed structure covers, and include some decorative elements to personalise your work.Full fee £309.00 Senior fee £247.00 Concession £201.00 - London photography: bridges in the city Course start date: Thu 30 Apr 2026
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Michael HardingExplore london and capture the beauty of the capitals bridges that span the Thames. This off-site photographic course will have you down to the river with your camera, exploring the diverse architectural designs and structures of bridges on the Thames that connect London. Learn about their history whilst learning the secrets to successful architectural and location photography.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £129.00 Concession £129.00 - Creative coding with SWARM intelligenceCourse start date: Fri 8 May 2026
Location on this date: Hybrid (choose either online or in-person)
Bridge art and algorithm! Dive into swarm intelligence, using Python to translate nature's collective genius into mesmerizing generative visuals and interactive systems. Ideal for artists embracing algorithms and developers seeking creative frontiers.
Full fee £299.00 Senior fee £239.00 Concession £194.00
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