What’s it like to learn with AWC?

I was attracted to the practical business side of getting articles ready and how to pitch to editors etc. that the course offered.

Val's audio recordings are easy to listen to and all information is presented clearly and concisely. I enjoy her no-nonsense approach coupled with her belief that her students will succeed if they put the teaching into practice.

Cindy gave useful, targeted feedback on the work we submitted. It was helpful to hear her feedback on other participants' work as well as my own and to learn from that also. I appreciate knowing that tutor and presenters are working writers who have 'walked' the path they are teaching about.

Interviewing a participant and writing a mini profile was great fun and really helpful homework. Overall, I enjoyed the module content and have come away with a clear idea of how to proceed. I also enjoyed the connection with other participants provided via the chat. The handouts were useful and I particularly valued having Valerie highlight excellent writing and also poorly executed writing from various examples of published articles. This made the learning very tangible and confirmed my own ability to assess what I am reading.

The course provided the information I need to get on with the work of researching, writing and pitching. I am confident that the course has set me up for success.

I was really nervous because I had no idea what standard of writing I was at, or what I was good at or not good at. I really had so many doubts, but the need to write was greater and I hit the submit button. Straight away I felt really supported and understood, and my confidence began to grow. I would highly recommend Petronella McGovern as a teacher - she was so great! It was the most wonderful course I have ever done!! I loved everything about it. Thank you AWC.

I felt really excited to be able to receive feedback from Petronella because she has so much experience. She is such an inspiration! She is so kind, and friendly. I loved all her feedback; it was really encouraging and also practical. I loved that it was recorded as well so that I could take time to absorb what went well and what I could improve on.

Every single part of the course was so great. It was great because I could fit it all around my family life. I liked that I could listen to the audio anywhere anytime, and pause it and go back over certain points. I loved having a deadline, as I find this is the only way I would have completed something. I loved the recorded feedback. I also really enjoyed gaining experience for the first time on giving others feedback; it's such a wonderful way to learn more about what works and doesn't work in writing. I loved receiving feedback as well. Which I had no idea I would love all of these things at the beginning.

I feel like it's allowing me to find my voice. I am able to get so many ideas out of my head. I have gained confidence. Sometimes I can be shy in new environments, but I started feeling like I could chat more when I was out in the real world. I felt happy to be a part of and connect with others who also love writing. I feel like I have found my tribe.

If you enjoy writing and want to explore it further, or just want to develop confidence with self-expression, then this the course for you!

Thank you, Cindy and AWC. I really enjoyed the course. The collaborative nature was so much fun and I feel like I learned so much.

Cindy was knowledgeable. Her feedback was specific and she always had positive and constructive feedback. I liked that she would mention how to improve upon the work but also point out the positives.

I feel excited to keep gaining confidence and pitch some ideas to publications. It feels like a possibility to continue. I would like to revise some of the material but, once I have, then it feels like something that was a "pipe dream" could be a reality.

Cathie's feedback was invaluable, clear and constructive and provided concrete suggestions to try.

It was a complete eye-opener into the world of picture books. 'Deceptively simple' - it was a challenge.

I feel it has helped my writing by learning how to refine my use of words, use sparkling language using the 'show don't tell' way of writing and becoming aware of the use of other senses apart from sight.

The courses I have done have been comprehensive, informative and given me the opportunity to read other participants' writing and connect online. The feedback from tutors has been invaluable.

Thank you for another great course.

I was looking for a way of starting my writing journey without being overwhelmed by having to write a novel.

I enjoyed the handouts and the fact I could complete it in my own time. I feel that I have deeper insight into the elements that make up a good story and therefore I'll be more aware of them in my own writing. I realised 'being a writer' is not as easy as it sounds!

The AWC has a great range of courses and resources (i.e.. podcasts) available for all levels and interests. I have found the Centre to be supportive and they have always responded quickly to any questions I had.

I got exactly what I was looking for from this course: confidence. I really needed a tour guide to show me the lay of the land in this new industry, introduce me to the terminology, and show me where to find out more. I did not expect to get so many extra templates and examples and so many of my questions answered without having to ask them. The fact that there was a bonus lesson that focused on the exact questions I had at the end of the course left me very smiley about the whole experience - I would definitely recommend this course.

Bernadette's depth of experience shows in the clear structure of the course and her care for the user experience (each topic is introduced when it will make the most sense). Her feedback was detailed and I felt personally seen by her. I admired her efficiency and practical focus.

I enjoyed the lectures but I got the most out of doing the assignments. They were well designed: not too big or off-putting, but by the end of the course I felt I had at least one experience with all the key skills I would need to get started as a copywriter and it had not been traumatic.

This course has been the specific antidote at the right time for me. As a kid, I wanted to write fiction but had neither the organisational skills or the life-experience to back myself in that. After 20 years as an English teacher, I have the organisational skills, a decent bit of life experience, and I discovered I liked a lot of the incidental writing that is part of the job. I was missing the concrete steps to transition from teaching to copywriting and I didn't know what was really inside that box. Now I know it is what I want to do and am making slow but concrete plans to shift my life into this new course - wish me luck!

This course will provide you with all you need to get started in copywriting and enough knowledge to see if this career would suit you. It feels generous - there is always a little more given than expected - and highly refined through experience. You will be in good hands.

Thank you Bernadette - I feel buoyant about the possibilities here. I know I will be working my way through your Bootcamp and Podcast episodes to keep my energy afloat.

I needed a focus to keep me in the writing discipline, and guidance on where to go next in the journey. I watched the promotional videos and read the descriptions and something in me clicked which said, 'This is for me, right now.'

I really liked the personable conversational style of the feedback and the insights into the writing of the other participants. I had a sense this was the life of the writer, being engaged, not formal, and able to explore through conversation. I really appreciated the different insights.

I could work at a pace that fitted in with my job (in education, which can be hectic), and the assignments were achievable and well explained. The audio sessions were excellent and well told.

I now have a new direction for a piece I have been working on, and have committed to completing a word count each week that is achievable. I don't agonize anymore, and if I draft it, I know it can be worked on later.

Go for it. It's five weeks that could change your life.

I learnt a lot from the course, broadening my ideas of picture book writing and its complexities - beyond my naive ideas of its simplicity and realising its depth was greater than I first thought.

It's made me put into words my story, work on the ideas creatively, and rethink my original piece to my final piece, knowing there is more work to be done.

This course challenged me to go deeper into my writing, and gave me excellent support in working out a possible structure for my story. The handouts in particular were tremendously helpful.

Understanding structure - without getting bogged down - is so important to building confidence and just getting on with writing your first draft. I think it will probably save me months of work and heartache, and reinforces the idea of 'just get on with it'. Any problems can be ironed out later.

AWC courses are practical, sensible and full of great content.

Jen was awesome. Very honest and open feedback.

The main thing I loved was the variety of feedback I received on my submissions. It was truly helpful. I found my strengths and weaknesses very quickly and I now know what I need to focus on in my future writing.

The AWC is an accelerator for aspiring writers with education, community, and accountability built in!

Dean was great. He has a friendly, professional nature and very good knowledge about the industry and its pitfalls

The course has shown me how to go about writing this kind of copy and the resources are fabulous.

I feel extremely motivated and confident after completing this course and can't wait to get started on building my database, my website, getting business cards, etc etc. The practical advice on the course was super.

Bernadette was fantastic. Her feedback was always very positive but also constructive. I also thought that the time I had to dedicate to this course in the space of a week was very manageable.

I enjoyed the assignments. I loved how I could apply the techniques to different businesses, services and products and I found the feedback extremely valuable.

For the last few years I have been procrastinating about setting up my own writing business. I have tried various different courses and enjoyed them all and took a Masters in Multimedia journalism. I have also been working running our family business with my husband. This course seemed to highlight the path I should be going down, combining my business skills with writing, and in the 5 weeks I've got my website started, business cards designed and am raring to get started.

It's a very flexible way to learn and not too onerous in terms of time during the week. The practical advice about starting a career in writing is great too. It's not all just about the writing, but the writing part is great too.

I have learned a great deal from every one of the courses I have taken at the Australian Writers' Centre, but this one has been fantastic in terms of being just the right thing at the right time for me to move my writing career forward. Thank you, Bernadette.

Bernadette Foley is a great facilitator, who offers thoughtful feedback and good, practical advice for all course members. It's been a pleasure to share time with her, and the other participants, over the past six weeks.

I enjoyed the considered and useful feedback provided by everyone who took part in this course - and also the opportunity to meet such an interesting range of characters and other worlds.

AWC courses are practical, focused and great value. Highly recommended.

Bernadette is just amazing. So experienced and honest with her teaching. I enjoyed the online community with other keen writers, the achievable expectations and the teacher's presence.

I am now clearer in strategic ways to write, power words and the confidence that I actually just may be great at copywriting.

You should look at AWC courses as they will give you the confidence to follow your dream, and upskill you to be the writer you want to be. Such clear teaching style and you will join a warm online community during and at the end.

Bernadette was excellent. She was very affirming, very helpful and managed the group with great skill. Her feedback was practical while not being too prescriptive.

I enjoyed the fortnightly exercises. I did not have a story that I was working on, so I just threw myself into the exercises to try out new skills. Very useful.

Great value and very useful. The tutors work to set up a safe environment for workshopping each other's work. It has given me the confidence to be bolder in my writing and keep going. I can now move forward with my ideas for a story.

Thoroughly enjoyed all of it and it opened my eyes to different opportunities. Has made me get off my backside and start doing the things I love and to achieve my writing goals.

If you would like an adventure to open yourself to new amazing opportunities this is the place to learn.

Started a story but had no training - wanted to increase my skills as a writer so I could finish the story and make it as good as it could be.

The tutor was extremely knowledgeable and encouraging. I've really appreciated all her feedback and time answering questions.

I enjoyed building a community (chat with the students) and real feedback on submissions. The course content was fantastic and I love that I can work through the modules in my own time.

I have more skills and more confidence to continue writing. I appreciate the messaging around finishing first drafts, and feel supported by other authors who have had the same doubts as me.

This course was a fantastic overview of everything you need to start building a real story. I looked forward to every Monday, when I could access the new lessons. I've loved being part of this beautiful community.

Thank you all! Thank you Petronella for your feedback, and thank you Abby for your support as well!

Writing has been something I've been interested in for a while. When I finally started researching a creative writing course to begin, the AWC courses stood out.

Due to writing being a completely new thing for me, I was worried the course would be too hard for me or too in depth, but I thoroughly enjoyed the five weeks of this course.

Suzanne's feedback was insightful, and constructive. She also gave such nice positive feedback which was a huge boost to someone like me who's never written anything before.

Even though I hated school as a teenager and dislike study, I found I actually really enjoyed the audio lessons and looked forward to the new week starting. I enjoyed taking notes and I found all of the content in the lessons to be very beneficial.

It has spurred me to take writing more seriously, and it's made me realise that the dream of being a writer isn't actually so far fetched as I thought.

I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of the course, and I believe it's an excellent starting point into the world of creative writing.

Thank you to everyone involved that makes courses like these available, and so accessible. I had a great time learning the basics of creative writing and I'm very glad to have found this course :)

I enjoyed being accountable. Submitting to a criteria and deadline and, weirdly, excitedly anticipating the feedback, which was always very positive. Also, by hearing the feedback for the other course participants, there was useful tips and pointers to take on board for my own writing.

As always, submitting pieces of writing that were going to be read by someone was very daunting. I survived... Yay!!

Every tip, pointer and bit of encouragement gives me the confidence to continue to write and, having completed the course through AWC, I feel as though my journey as an aspiring author has been given more credibility.

Thanks for putting together a great course!! It is easy to access, the content is well structured, the requirement to complete the assignments keeps you accountable and the feedback on your work is a valuable way to nourish your writing growth.

Pamela is always very engaged with her students and their work, and very knowledgeable about writing theory and technique. She clearly wanted us to get as much as we could out of the course.

I enjoyed the regular weekly feedback sessions. Also enjoyed the recorded lessons and the editing steps were very useful.

It made me understand that editing is a systematic process that, if I plod through it step by step, will improve my story.