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.
- Great works: Beethoven's Symphony No 9 "Choral"
Course start date: Tue 5 Aug 2025Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Katy Hamilton, Trish ShawBeethoven’s monumental ninth symphony, first performed in 1824, has had an enormous impact on western classical music and on wider European culture. How did Beethoven come to write this work, and what does this symphony still mean to us two centuries after its first performance?Full fee £39.00 Senior fee £39.00 Concession £39.00 - Drawing in colour: summer school intensive Course start date: Tue 5 Aug 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Kim ScoullerExplore a variety of techniques and approaches to making a still-life in pastels. Learn how to mix pastels on paper, choose suitable materials and supports to allow you to create a finished pastel drawing.Full fee £279.00 Senior fee £223.00 Concession £181.00 - Great composers: Gilbert and SullivanCourse start date: Tue 5 Aug 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Katy HomdenCreators of arguably the most popular and enduring opera in the English language from the 19th century, this course will introduce you to Gilbert & Sullivan’s musical legacy via biographical study and operatic highlights. tutor: Katy HomdenFull fee £59.00 Senior fee £59.00 Concession £59.00 - How to write a memoir Course start date: Wed 6 Aug 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Julie GartonDo you have a personal story to tell that will move, delight, stir and inform readers? This short course guides students in planning and crafting a memoir. - Micropoetry: small poems, big ideas Course start date: Fri 8 Aug 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Suzannah V. EvansExplore the emerging art form of micropoetry in this fun but informative day workshop. Compose your own poetry and learn how to make every word on the page count. - Try it out: bookbinding Course start date: Sat 9 Aug 2025 (and 3 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Kate RochesterDip your fingers into bookbinding. Learn a little about the materials and craft of bookbinding while making an attractive book to take home. A chance to discuss further study in bookbinding at City Lit.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £129.00 Concession £129.00 - Writing haiku poetry Course start date: Sat 9 Aug 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Pearl MayLearn how to write haikus that resonate, move and entertain on this fun day workshop.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £40.00 - Contemporary dance intensiveCourse start date: Sat 16 Aug 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Francis AngolThis is a three-evening intensive in contemporary dance fusion. Learn how to express your physicality in a dynamic fashion and gain basic knowledge of the main principles of contemporary dance, with influences from other techniques. General level - suitable for both beginners and improvers. - Basketry: weaving in willow Course start date: Mon 8 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Christiane GunziExplore basic willow basketry structures and weaves. This course will guide beginners through a simple project to make a small, round, functional basket. - In the footsteps of London's rebelsCourse start date: Tue 9 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: David RosenbergExplore London's places of protest and discover the stories of radicals, agitators and campaigners who fought for social justice, equal rights and better lives for all from the 1830s to the 1930s.
The first session will be in the classroom at Keeley Street followed by 11 guided walks.Full fee £319.00 Senior fee £255.00 Concession £207.00 - London at war - guided walks Course start date: Tue 9 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Eleanor JacksonLondon has been shaped by war, conflict and unrest. It's buildings, monuments and even street names reflect our embattled past. These walks examine London's wartime legacy from mediaeval fortifications to the War on Terror.
First lecture delivered via zoom followed by 8 guided walks; no class/break week 7/10/25.Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £155.00 - Walking Westminster's Political HistoryCourse start date: Tue 9 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Richard WatkinsA course of walking tours in areas of Westminster to show aspects of the nation’s political development since the late 1600s Restoration era. Bringing out the drama of the epic events and charismatic characters which have influenced that development and how London has evolved in those areas we focus on.
First meeting place: Outside Westminster tube, Bridge Street.Full fee £159.00 Senior fee £127.00 Concession £103.00 - Reflexology: taster workshop Course start date: Tue 9 Sep 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Kean Street Wellbeing Centre
Experience the relaxing benefits of hand and foot reflexology and learn how to relieve stress using basic reflexology techniques.Full fee £59.00 Senior fee £59.00 Concession £59.00 - City of words: London's literary landscapeCourse start date: Thu 11 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Blended (learn both online and in-person)
Tutors: Eleanor JacksonLondon has been muse, magnet and mecca to writers for 400 years, home to Shakespeare's successes, Dickens' dramas and Wilde's witticisms. After an introductory lecture (via zoom) we walk a different London neighbourhood each week exploring its literary connections.Break week/No class: 09/10/25. Initial lecture is on zoom . This is followed by 7 guided walks.Full fee £219.00 Senior fee £175.00 Concession £142.00 - The men who built LondonCourse start date: Thu 11 Sep 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Eleanor JacksonLondon was shaped by its architects, engineers, bricklayers, navies etc. Our lecture and walks examine London’s buildings and the men (and women) who worked throughout history to create this eclectic and wonderful city.
First lecture will be delivered via zoom followed by 8 guided walks. Break week/no class 09/10/25.Full fee £219.00 Senior fee £175.00 Concession £142.00
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