About us

Who are we?

The Sydney Writers’ Centre is Australia’s leading centre for writing training. We provide short courses to individuals and corporate groups in magazine writing, travel writing, fiction, book publishing, business writing, online writing and much more. Conveniently located 2 minutes walk from Milsons Point station, the Centre is a modern and creative training environment.

Founded in 2005 with only 2 courses, the Centre now boasts almost 30 courses presented by some of Australia’s most successful authors and journalists. Courses are available face-to-face and online with students enrolling from all over Australia and the world including, the UK, US, Afghanistan, Italy, Hong Kong, Singapore, The Netherlands, France and more.

Many students are published, get book deals or successfully change careers as a result of the Sydney Writers’ Centre's no-nonsense, practical approach to training.

What can you expect from the Sydney Writers’ Centre?

You can expect practical advice and useful lessons that you can put into practice immediately. We teach you what you need to know to achieve your writing goals. We don’t believe in enrolling you in prolonged courses if you can learn what your need in a more intensive period of time. That’s why our courses are short – but full of information.

Our mantra has always been “learn from the best” so you can also expect the best presenters in Australia. Every presenter is hand-picked by Sydney Writers’ Centre director, Valerie Khoo. While many writers/editor/journalists apply to teach here, only a few meet with our high standards. That’s because our presenters are not only successful as authors/editors/journalists/communication specialists, they are also passionate about sharing their expertise with students. Importantly, our presenters know how to teach, motivate and encourage people to achieve their dreams.

Our philosophy on helping students

We are committed to helping our students achieve their writing goals. Every course is rigorously planned to ensure that it is packed with useful information, presented in an engaging way and will inspire students to move forward in their own writing journey.

Whether you want to write your first novel, improve your business writing skills or enhance your marketing communication, the courses and presenters at the Sydney Writers’ Centre can help you.

Podcasts with best-selling authors who share their insights on writing

We believe in providing practical advice to students, not only via our courses and presenters, but also with the resources we provide for students. These include our popular podcast on iTunes featuring best-selling authors such as:

- Tim Ferriss (The Four Hour Work Week)
- Garth Nix (fantasy author)
- Nick Earls (ZigZag Street, Bachelor Kisses, World of Chickens, Perfect Skin)
- John Birmingham (Final Impact, He Died With a Falafel in His Hand)
- Dominic Knight (The Chaser, Disco Boy)
- Louise Bagshawe (International chick lit author)
- Michelle Bridges (The Biggest Loser)
- Rachael Bermingham (4 Ingredients)
- Dr Karl Kruszelnicki (science writer)
- Hannah Tinti (The Good Thief)
- and many more.

Who is behind the Sydney Writers’ Centre?

Our students and presenters are the core of the Centre. Our focus is to serve our students and to host a creative environment where our presenters can inspire and motivate them.

The Centre is run by a dedicated team of people who are led by journalist, editor and author Valerie Khoo. She is an experienced writer and trainer with a passion for helping people to achieve their dreams. Valerie began her life as an accountant at PriceWaterhouseCoopers before following her passion for writing.

She has now published five books, writes regularly for The Sydney Morning Herald and is the journalist behind the popular Enterprise column in smh.com.au, theage.com.au, brisbanetimes.com.au and watoday.com.au.

When Valerie was transitioning from her career as an accountant to becoming a writer, she attended many courses and researched countless resources for writers. The Sydney Writers’ Centre is modelled on the ideal learning environment that Valerie wished had existed when she was developing her career as a writer. Valerie and the entire team are thrilled that the Centre has now played an integral part in helping many students get published, score book deals and succeed as writers.