In this issue:
- TIP: How to use “myriad”
- Write for magazines and newspapers
- Writing your life – New dates for Patti Miller course
- Early bird price – Online Business Booster Bootcamp. Enrol now!
- Win a copy of Lipstick Queen by Poppy King
- Melbourne Writers Festival program announced
- Make your novel a reality
- WEBPICK: Visuwords – Online Graphical Dictionary
It’s
been a busy week at the Centre. We’ve been liaising with our partners
in Paris to bring lots of goodies for those of you going on the Writing in Paris tour in October 2009. You can find out more here.We’ve also been taking lots of queries about my Online Business Booster Bootcamp – a one-day intensive Bootcamp for business owners, coaches, consultants and authors. It’s ideal for anyone who wants to use smart online marketing strategies to build your profile and boost your bottom line. We have a special offer exclusive to subscribers of this newsletter that you won’t want to miss – scroll down for more details!
TIP: How to use ‘myriad’
There is much contention over the correct use of the word myriad. People argue over whether to use the word 'of'. For example: A: There are a myriad stars in the sky.In fact, both are correct.
OR
B: The tailors had to sew a myriad of sequins on the ballgown.
In option A: 'myriad' has been used as an adjective and there is no need to use the word "of".
In option B: 'myriad' has been used as a noun and we use the word "of" in the same way as we would write, "flock of sheep."
Feature Writing Stage 1
If you think you have what it takes to write for magazines and newspapers,
and get paid for it, our Feature Writing course will show you how to do
it. Many of our past students go on to be published, some before
they’ve even finished the course! Whether you’re a first time writer or you just want to enhance your skills, this course can show you how to write the best articles and what to do to sell them.
During the course you will learn:
- which ideas work - and where to get them
- how to research, structure and write a feature
- what editors want from a writer
- how to pitch your article or idea to a magazine and sell it!
The course is taught by Judy Skatssoon, who is the features editor at Australian Associated Press (AAP). She has also been a successful freelance feature writer, contributing to a diverse range of publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, life etc, Sydney’s Child, Women’s Health, ABC Online and many more. She writes on a wide range of subjects and, most recently, has also been a lecturer and tutor in journalism at UTS. She is passionate about helping students discover the world of journalism and writing.
Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers with Judy Skatssoon
When: Every Monday starting Monday 27 July 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6.30 – 8.30pm
Cost: $395
Click here for more information or to enrol online.
Don’t live in Sydney or can’t get to an evening class? You can also do this course online. You’ll receive the same practical information and personal feedback in our virtual classroom. Best of all, you can take the classes whenever you want!
Online Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers with Valerie Khoo
When: Week beginning Monday 10 August 2009 for five weeks
Time: Whenever suits you
Cost: $395
Click here for more information or to enrol online.
Writing your life
We’re so excited to be able to announce another date for Patti Miller’s incredibly popular Life Writing course. We usually only run this once or twice a year but we’ve been able to secure Patti for one more course in 2009. This course will set you on the journey of writing your life. You’ll learn the fundamentals of writing a creative autobiography that engages and absorbs your reader. The course will help you:
- awaken memory and creativity
- create the lived reality of your experience on the page
- bring details to life
- find structure in your work.
The course is taught by Patti Miller. She has taught creative writing, with a particular focus on autobiographical writing, for 20 years. At the Sydney Writers' Centre, you learn from the best - and we believe Patti is the best life writing teacher in Australia.
Life Writing with Patti Miller
When: Every Friday starting Friday 11 September 2009 for six weeks
Time: 10am - 12noon
Cost: $450
Click here for more information or to enrol online.
Online Business Booster Bootcamp – early bird price!
Do you want to get more customers and increase your revenue?In one day, I’ll help you create a blueprint for your business that will:
This Bootcamp is being personally hosted by me – Valerie Khoo. Most of you know that I’m a journalist, author and entrepreneur. I have a passion for writing and a passion for business, particularly smart online marketing strategies.
- make your marketing easier
- generate you more revenue
- increase your customers
- build your brand and profile
When I founded the Sydney Writers’ Centre, I had only 6 students in our first class. And I was the only teacher in the whole centre! Now, hundreds of students pass through our doors every week and we have a team of 17 of the country’s best writing/editing/communications presenters. Our courses have also expanded way beyond our first little training room into our harbourside training room.
This has been done with NO advertising (except for Google Adwords) and with a smart online marketing system that I’ll share at the Bootcamp. You’ll leave the Bootcamp with a clear blueprint on what YOU need to do to take your business to the next level. You can find out more here.
We have only just launched the Bootcamp and I wanted to give you the first opportunity at securing a place. I’m also giving you a special early bird price which is available until Friday 31 July 2009. After that, the retail price will apply.
What: Online Business Booster Bootcamp
When: Friday 28 August 2009
Time: 9.30am – 5.30pm
Retail price: $695
Early bird price: $495 (if you enrol before Friday 31 July 2009)
When you book online, use the PROMO CODE: OBBB310709 to take advantage of this early bird offer. The offer will expire at midnight on 31 July 2009. If you would like to book over the phone, call us – but remember you need to be a subscriber of this newsletter to be eligible for the early bird price.
Win a copy of Lessons of a Lipstick Queen
Recently I interviewed Poppy King
for our author podcast series. Poppy started her own business at the
age of 18, prompted by her fruitless search for the perfect lipstick.
Poppy Industries went on to become one the success stories of the
1990s. After a stint working for another cosmetics giant, Poppy is back
with a new range of lipsticks and a new company – Lipstick Queen. She can now also add ‘author’ to her resume. She’s just released a book about her entrepreneurial journey and how you too can turn your passion into a business. Part self-help, part biography, part business manual – it’s a motivational book that could help you build your first company.
If you’d like to win a copy of Lessons of a Lipstick Queen simply watch the video below, and answer the question. Email your answers to courses@spindriftmedia.com.au by Friday 30 July 2009, and don’t forget to include your postal address.
Melbourne Writers Festival
The program for the 2009 Melbourne Writers Festival has been announced!
From 21 to 30 August, Australian and International authors will
converge on Federation Square in Melbourne’s CBD for a series of
panels, workshops and masterclasses, films, walks and a music concert featuring Paul Kelly, The Cat Empire and Archie Roach to raise money for the Indigenous Literacy Program. Authors appearing include Danny Katz, Robert Dessaix, Nikki Gemmell, Kate Grenville and Bernard Schlink. Tom Rob Smith and Lisa Lutz, who will both feature in our podcast series soon, will also be appearing. The list is long and impressive – you could easily spend the whole week at the festival. (Just don’t forget to take some time out for shopping!)
Click here for more information and to book tickets.
Make your novel a reality
Writing
a novel is a daunting project. You may have completed creative writing
courses or been writing for many years, but it’s still important to keep honing your writing to make it the best it can be. That’s why we’ve developed the Novel Writing Workshop. For anyone who has a project they’ve been working on or would like to begin, this course will help you identify the problems in your writing and teach you to effectively critique your own and others work.
The class meets approximately every six weeks and each participant is given the opportunity to workshop their writing at least twice. You’ll also receive individual feedback from the presenter. Now you can take your writing to the next level.
This is an intensive workshopping opportunity so we only take 10 enrolments. You need to be quick if you want to take part in this course!
This workshop is presented by Dr Pamela Freeman - author of 18 books, the most recent of which, Deep Water (Book 2 of the Castings trilogy) is being published in the US, UK and Germany as well as Australia. She also has a new children’s book, Victor’s Challenge, coming out in the UK and Australia. Pamela also teaches our hugely successful Creative Writing stage 1.
Novel Writing Workshop with Pamela Freeman
When: 5 evening classes held approximately every six weeks beginning Tuesday 11 August 2009
Participants should be able to attend on the following dates:
Session 1: Tuesday 11 August 2009Time: 6.30 - 8.30pm
Session 2: Tuesday 13 October2009
Session 3: Tuesday 1 December 2009
Session 4: Tuesday 9 February 2010
Cost: $450
Click here for more information or to enrol online.
WEBPICK: VisuwordsThis week’s webpick is so much fun! It’s my new favourite way to waste time – while working on my vocabulary.
Visuwords is an online graphical dictionary. Type in a word as you would for any dictionary. You’ll still see the word’s meaning as well as noun, verb, adjective and adverb variations. You can also look at words that are similar in meaning, the verb group a word belongs to and other attributes of a word. It sounds just like a dictionary, but I promise you this is much more fun!
Visit http://www.visuwords.com/search.php, type in a word, and you’ll see what I mean.
Other upcoming courses
Course: Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers Stage 1 with Judy Skatssoon
When: Every Monday starting Monday 27 July 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6.30 – 8.30pm
Cost: $395
Course: Online Creative Writing Stage 1 with Pamela Freeman / Cathie Tasker - FULL
When: Week beginning Monday 27 July 2009 for five weeks
Time: Whenever suits you
Cost: $395
Seminar: Professional Business Writing with Mel Wilkinson
When: Thursday 30 July 2009 (one-day seminar)
Time: 9.00am – 5.00pm
Cost: $395
Seminar: Travel Writing with Geoff Bartlett - FULL
When: Tuesday 4 August 2009 (one-evening seminar)
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $75
Course: Online Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers with Valerie Khoo
When: Week beginning Monday 10 August for five weeks
Time: Whenever you want
Cost: $395
Course: Novel Writing Workshop with Pamela Freeman
When: 5 evening classes held approximately every six weeks beginning Tuesday 11 August 2009
Time: 6.30 - 8.30pm
Cost: $450
Seminar: Self-publishing - How to do it with Geoff Bartlett
When: Wednesday 12 August 2009 (one-evening seminar)
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $75
Seminar: Editing Essentials with Katrina Lobley
When: Thursday 13 August 2009 (one-day seminar)
Time: 9.30am - 4.30pm
Cost: $345
Course: Writing for Children and Young Adults with Judith Ridge
When: Every Tuesday starting Tuesday 18 August 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $395
Seminar: Writing for the Web with Grant Doyle - NEW DATE
When: Wednesday 19 August (one-day seminar)
Time: 9.30am - 4.00pm
Cost: $365
Seminar: How to Get Your Book Published with Geoff Bartlett
When: Wednesday 19 August (one-evening seminar)
Time: 6.30 - 8.30pm
Cost: $75
Seminar: Grammar and Punctuation Essentials with Deb Doyle
When: Thursday 20 August 2009 (one-day seminar)
Time: 9.00am - 5.00pm
Cost: $395
Course: Creative Writing Stage 1 with Kate Forsyth - FULL
When: Every Thursday starting Thursday 20 August 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $395
Course: Creative Writing Stage 2 with Judith Ridge
When: Every Wednesday starting Wednesday 26 August 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $395
Course: Creative Writing Stage 1 with Pamela Freeman
When: Every Tuesday starting Tuesday 1 September 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $395
Course: Script Writing for the Short Films with Geoff Bartlett
When: Thursday 3 September and Thursday 10 September 2009 (two evening seminars)
Time: 6.30 - 8.30pm
Cost: $165
Seminar: Travel Writing with Geoff Bartlett -
When: Friday 4 September 2009 (one-morning seminar)
Time: 10am to 12noon
Cost: $75
Course: Life Writing with Patti Miller - NEW DATE
When: Every Friday starting Friday 11 September 2009 for six weeks
Time: 10am – 12noon
Cost: $450
Course: Marketing Your Book with Amanda Falconer - NEW DATE
When: Every Monday starting Monday 14 September 2009 for three weeks
Time: 6.30 – 8.30pm
Cost: $265
Seminar: Successful Freelancing with Gayle Bryant and Valerie Khoo
When: Thursday 24 September 2009 (one-evening seminar)
Time: 6.30 - 8.30pm
Cost: $75
Seminar: Travel Writing with Geoff Bartlett - FULL
When: Wednesday 30 September 2009 (one-evening seminar)
Time: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Cost: $75
Course: Feature Writing Stage 2 with Judy Skatssoon
When: Every Wednesday starting Wednesday 21 October 2009 for five weeks
Time: 6.30 – 8.30pm
Cost: $395
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