The University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies has added a new online guided writing course to its roster of creative writing courses taking place this spring and summer. 

The course, taught by novelist, journalist and veteran SCS instructor, Kim Echlin is designed to help writers at any level either start a writing project they have had percolating in their mind or to overcome writer’s block and breathe new life into a piece that has stalled. 

“Guided Writing is useful to create structured time to write, to get past writer’s block, to discover both creative energy and story-telling technique,” explains SCS Creative Writing Program Director Lee Gowan. 

Students will follow Echlin’s instructions and structured writing prompts and write for at least half of each class. The other half of each class will be devoted to studying technique and workshopping pieces with their classmates. 

Every student will be given the instructor’s Writing Handbook, The Scribal Art, to supplement their in-class writing. This handbook includes a number of illustrative examples as well an introduction to techniques that all writers need to know for fiction, genre writing, memoir and nonfiction.

“At the end of this course students will not only be better writers but better readers, recognizing key elements of style,” says Gowan.

The first offering of Guided Writing will take place Tuesday evenings from July 6 – August 30, 2020.