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.
- Ways into playwriting: getting started
Course start date: Sat 26 Jul 2025Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sharmila ChauhanExplore the fundamental techniques of writing for the stage in this introductory short course. Get to grips with dialogue, character, story and structure, and start work on your own play.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £40.00 - Writing and rewriting fairytales Course start date: Sun 27 Jul 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Eleanor PennyOnce upon a time there was a City Lit workshop all about writing fairytales. The quest: to inspire writers to pen stories of love, fear, forests, revenge, dragons, witches, kings, queens, frogs and magic.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £40.00 - Poetry and nature workshop at Keats House, Hampstead Course start date: Sat 2 Aug 2025
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Eleanor PennyA two-day writing workshop on poetry and nature, set in the former residence of the Romantic poet, John Keats, as well as nearby Hampstead Heath. - Writing about food: getting started Course start date: Sat 2 Aug 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Laura SilvermanWhether you’re keen to review dishes, interview chefs or write about sustainable eating, now is your chance. This introductory course will cover the basics of writing about food.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £40.00 - Writing flash fiction: getting started Course start date: Sun 3 Aug 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Lucy PopescuA sideways glance: succinct, powerful. This short workshop on the essential components of flash fiction will teach you to tell a complete story in very few words.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £40.00 - Poetry and the moving image Course start date: Sun 3 Aug 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Julie IrigarayBoth film and poetry explore imagery and have the capacity to capture and expand a single moment in time. On this fun short course you will learn how write poems inspired by the world of film and cinema.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £40.00 - Writing for podcasts Course start date: Sat 9 Aug 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Eleanor PennyPodcasts are growing rapidly in popularity, and more and more people are making their own. Find out more about all the different kinds of writing involved in producing a podcast, hone your skills and, with support from your tutor, develop your own ideas for audio.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £40.00 - Jump start your play Course start date: Sat 16 Aug 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Brian MullinHave you got a script idea but not yet put pen to paper, or a script you started but never finished? This intensive short course will help you inject new energy into your idea – and get started writing. Only suitable for those with playwriting experience. - Writing comedy for TV in the online age Course start date: Sat 16 Aug 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Alan NixonDo you want to find out more about writing comedy? Explore some fundamental aspects of humorous scriptwriting for television, beginning with sketches, and looking at sitcoms from initial idea through to finished script.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £40.00 - Picture book writing: getting started Course start date: Sat 16 Aug 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Andrew WealeWould you like to write a picture book text for young children? This taster course is designed for children's writers and for illustrators wishing to write their own stories; a starter course to develop both your ideas and your technique.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £40.00 - Screenwriting: a taster Course start date: Mon 8 Sep 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Give screenwriting a try in this fun and supportive one-off taster session. Ideal if you want to unlock your imagination and express yourself, but need a bit of encouragement to get started.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £19.00 Concession £10.00 - Poetry: a taster Course start date: Sat 13 Sep 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Julie IrigarayThis short, fun workshop is the perfect starting point for students who are writing for the first time or new to poetry. Join us for thought-provoking writing exercises and poetry theory for beginners.Full fee £19.00 Senior fee £19.00 Concession £19.00 - Ways into poetryCourse start date: Mon 15 Sep 2025 (and 7 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Cecilia KnappRelatively new to writing poetry? This inspiring course offers an opportunity to experiment with language and a variety of poetic devices alongside fellow emerging poets. Discover the key elements of a poem in a friendly and interactive class.Full fee £249.00 Senior fee £249.00 Concession £125.00 - Reading for writers: the short story (a fortnightly course) Course start date: Thu 1 May 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Annabel BanksThe best way to write good short stories is to read a lot of good ones first. Dive into the best of short fiction, explore point-of-view, character and pacing, and begin to apply the lessons learnt to your own writing in this fortnightly course.Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £149.00 Concession £75.00 - Autobiography into poetry Course start date: Sun 5 Oct 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sarah WardleLearn how to translate real-life experiences into powerful poems in this stimulating course for those interested in the meeting place between autobiography and poetry.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £40.00
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