Online course: Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers


5-week online course

Online Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers with Valerie Khoo/Pamela Wilson
5 week online course
Time: Whenever suits you
Cost $395

The next available course starts the week beginning:
Monday 02 Aug 2010




Would you like to get paid to write?

  • Do you want to write articles for magazines and newspapers?
  • Do you like the sound of being a freelance writer?
  • Would you like to interview celebrities and fascinating people?
  • If so, your journey starts right here ...



What will you learn from this online course?

Feature writing for magazines and newspapers is one of the Sydney Writers' Centre's most popular courses. Students often end up published in major publications, sometimes even before they complete the 5-week course.

If you like the idea of writing articles for magazines and newspapers, this course is for you. It suits first-time writers or anyone who wants to brush up on their writing skills. The course will teach you about:

  • which ideas work and where to get them
  • understanding the magazine/news market
  • different types of feature articles
  • 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!
Click here for a course outline.

This online course is ideal for people who want to write articles. These could include feature articles about travel, lifestyle, politics, sport, entertainment, parenting, human interest – and much more.

Students have been published in The Sydney Morning Herald, Cosmopolitan, Sunday Life!, BRW, Notebook, The Sun-Herald, Australian Associated Press, Practical Parenting, Management Today, Australian Financial Review, City Weekly, Herald Sun, Home Beautiful and countless other magazines and newspapers.

This online course in Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers is your first step into getting published. Whether you want to write articles on the side or are interested in changing careers to become a full-time feature writer, this course reveals a proven formula that will help you achieve your goals.

You'll be guided on your journey by a successful writer

Created and developed by award-winning feature writer Valerie Khoo, this online course is the same as the popular Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers course taught in the classroom at the Sydney Writers’ Centre. Valerie writes regularly for The Sydney Morning Herald and her popular Enterprise column appears in The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, Brisbane Times and WA Today.

Valerie is a prolific feature writer and author of five books. She has written on a range of topics including business, technology, fashion, homes and living, entertainment and much more.

Your online tutors
In addition to Valerie Khoo, your online tutors include acclaimed journalist and feature writer Pamela Wilson. Pamela has worked as a freelance journalist for the past seven years. Her articles regularly appear in Medical Observer, Reader’s Digest and Health Smart. She has also contributed to various publications including Men’s Health, Good Health and Medicine, Australian Parents, Travel Vacations and Ninemsn online.

In her 18 years in journalism Pamela has worked at the Gold Coast Bulletin, AAP and The Daily Telegraph in a variety of positions covering areas as diverse as medicine, politics, health and family issues, education, travel, books, lifestyle and men’s and women’s issues.

Your virtual classroom

You can attend the virtual classroom any time, any day of the week. This way, you can fit your learning into your schedule and lifestyle. You do not have to commit to a set time each week. However, you MUST complete each module during the week specified, or you won't get the most out of the course. Each week builds on the one before and you have the opportunity to ask questions and make comments about the topics we discuss each week. To sample a taste of how this will work, click here.

Online Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers is an interactive web-based class. Lessons are delivered via our password-protected classroom. You and your online classmates are encouraged to participate and ask questions online. The presenter will answer your questions online as well. You are also encouraged to submit pieces of work which the presenter will give you feedback on. You need high-speed internet access (cable or ADSL) to participate in this course.

How much time should you commit each week?

You need to commit a minimum of 2 to 3 hours a week. The audio program itself is around 2 hours a week. Beyond that, we recommend that you put into practice what you have learnt that week. While you are expected to commit to a minimum of 2 to 3 hours a week, we won't hold you back if you are super keen and want to spend much more time than that on your writing. We are happy to give you feedback on any feature writing you do during the course.

YES! Please send me a course outline so I can discover what I will learn.

You'll also receive 5 free writing tips via email.








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Course date and fees

Online Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers with Valerie Khoo/Pamela Wilson
5 week online course
Time: Whenever suits you
Cost $395

The next available course starts the week beginning:
Monday 02 Aug 2010

Sample page

Click here to view a sample page of the
virtual classroom

Online Magazine Writing

Rave reviews about our Online Feature Writing course:

"I wanted to write and tell you some exciting news since I finished the online feature writing course with you. The idea I put forward as my pitch in the course (a travel story on Griffith in NSW) has since been published in The Sydney Morning Herald Traveller section and I have another travel story coming out in the September issue of Coast and Country Magazine.

"I've also been signed on as a regular freelance contributor with the Herald Sun Home Magazine, something that has meant I am now freelancing four days a week! It has been an amazing few months since I finished the course and I have to say, none of this would have been possible without your incredible skill and advice. So, many thanks once again for such a fabulous course, it really has changed my life!"
- Penny Harrison

"I completed Valerie's online course in November 2008. By Christmas, I had secured my first freelance writing job! I was completely amazed at how quickly it all happened. Without Valerie's support and encouragement and of course the user-friendly online course, I would never have had the confidence to apply for this ongoing freelance writing position. If you follow Valerie's expert advice you really can't go wrong."
- Jo Harris

"Just a short note to say thanks! Within a month of completing your online feature writing course I’ve  had my first article accepted for publication in ‘Finally at 40 –  Life Begins’, with the promise of more work. I now have the confidence (and skills, thanks to you) to approach some bigger mags. My journey begins…"
- Steve Wilkinson


"The course equipped me with all the practical information I needed to get started in my new career as a freelance writer. I learned how to develop and pitch appropriate ideas to editors, techniques for improving my writing plus countless insider tips that have helped me behave professionally in my dealings with magazines and newspapers. I believed I was a reasonable writer before I did the course but doing it has enabled me to get published.

"I am now working as a writer and recommend 'Online Feature Writing for Magazines & Newspapers' to anyone wishing to do the same."
- Persephone Nicholas

"The most enjoyable part of the course is the ability to get the course done without hassles. The online concept is fantastic, and makes the course accessible. Also the fact that the course is delivered by a professional - who is also accessible. Valerie has earned her stripes, but speaks as though she is next to you, not a cut above."
- Tim McKeon
This online course is ideal for people who want to write articles. These could include feature articles about travel, lifestyle, politics, sport, entertainment, parenting, human interest – and much more.