Creative Writing Classes & Seminars
Looking for a place to express your inner writer? In each of our three yearly sessions (winter/spring, summer, and fall), we offer creative writing classes on weekday evenings, weekday mornings, and the daytime on weekends. Classes range from those geared for novice writers or those with some writing experience who are looking for a structured environment in which to bloom to those geared for intermediate, advanced, or professional writers.
We offer classes for adults as well as pre-teen and teen writers. Genres and topics offered include a variety of creative writing classes in poetry, fiction, flash fiction, memoir and creative nonfiction, screenwriting, playwriting, storytelling, comic books and graphic novels, songwriting, food writing, science fiction, fantasy, children’s book writing, journaling, and multi-genre writing, as well as seminars in writers craft, research, and professional development.
Class size is usually capped at 8 or 9 students—classes with different maximum sizes are indicated in the class listing. We teach short seminars that meet once all the way to longer workshops that meet up to eight times.
Search our classes by genre, level, and time of day below.
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May 2022
Brittney Boyd Book Launch and Q&A
Join The Muse Writers Center for a reading by Brittney Boyd from her debut novel, Suspended License. After the reading, there will be a Q&A and book signing. This event will be held in person at The Muse. Proof of vaccination is required to attend. See the Muse's current Covid-19 policies. About the book: Alexis (Lexi) and Mia have been best friends since age seven. They went from sharing their CD collections to planning their weddings together. Now at age thirty, Lexi…
May 20 @ 7:00 pm EDT - 8:00 pm EDT
Stockley Gardens Arts Festival Spring 2022
Come visit the Muse table at the Stockley Gardens Arts Festival on May 21st & 22nd! About the festival: The Stockley Gardens Arts Festival has been a biannual staple in the Hampton Roads area for the past 37 years, as well as being Hope House Foundation’s biggest fundraiser. The money raised during these events helps pay for rent, transportation, food, furnishings, unmet medical care, and more for people with developmental disabilities in Norfolk, Chesapeake, and Virginia Beach. Stockley is a…
May 21 - 11:59 pm EDT
Comics For Young Writers
For children ages 8-12, this one-off workshop will be filled to the brim with exciting comic-making exercises. Students will be given flexible prompts and art supplies to make their imagination and creativity take flight. No experience, no problem. Our teacher holds five years of experience in guiding and encouraging young artists to bring their ideas to life. Between projects, attendees will have the chance to share their work with the class in a fun, no-pressure, low stakes environment. Have a…
May 21 @ 1:00 pm EDT - 3:30 pm EDT
“What’s Going On?” – Understanding the music of the Vietnam Era
How can we historically understand the war in Vietnam and its music? First, let’s take a listen to some songs of the 1940s that motivated the soldiers of World War II. The surrender of Nazi Germany in 1945 gave rise to the Cold War—a phrase first uttered by George Orwell—when the uneasy alliance between the United States and Great Britain on the one hand and the Soviet Union on the other started to fall apart. The “red scare” will usher…
May 21 @ 4:00 pm EDT - 6:00 pm EDT
The Fiction Studio: Wednesday Mornings
The Fiction Studio continues with returning members and new members with professional fiction workshop experience. We will actively write and revise original short stories and chapters of novels as well as consider various aspects of the creative and professional life of the fiction writer. All members of the group will have the opportunity to submit material for the workshop, with at least two to three opportunities to be critiqued during the session. New members must receive pre-approval to register from…
Wednesdays, May 25 - July 27 @ 10:00 am EDT - 12:30 pm EDT
Dylan West Book Launch and Q&A
Join The Muse Writers Center for a reading by Dylan West from his new book, Scribes' Descent. After the reading, there will be a Q&A and book signing along with a raffle for a hardcover copy of the book, with proceeds benefitting The Muse. There will ALSO be a chance to play the video game version of Scribes' Descent! This event will be held in person at The Muse and copies of the book will be available for purchase. Proof of…
May 31 @ 7:00 pm EDT - 8:00 pm EDT
June 2022
Tell Me A Story
In this workshop led by National Book Award Nominee and former Virginia Poet Laureate, Tim Seibles, we will develop narrative poems that carry specific details and insights of remembered moments--particularly those from our teenage years. There will be both in-class and beyond-class writing/reading assignments. Come ready to write with a fever and feel your brain sizzle. Fiction writers also welcome.
Saturdays, June 4 - June 5 @ 1:00 pm EDT - 3:30 pm EDT
Fiction 2: Monday Evenings
The fiction writing journey continues where Fiction 1 left off. Returning students and writers new to The Muse (who have fiction writing experience) will be encouraged to produce and submit original work for discussion by the group. Using the students own work and stories published by established writers, the participants will take a deeper look at the essential craft elements of fiction writing. We will refine the understanding of POV and the limitations & benefits of those choices, learn revision…
Mondays, June 6 - August 29 @ 7:00 pm EDT - 9:30 pm EDT
Nonfiction in a Flash
In this workshop, creative nonfiction and memoir writers will explore the genre of flash creative nonfiction (between 500 and 1,000 words). We will discuss and discover the many craft elements that make flash nonfiction an engaging, experimental and exciting genre! Every session we will generate and critique our small memoir and nonfiction stories and essays and focus on the unique opportunities that flash gives every creative nonfiction writer. Working in a shorter form allows you to take a fresh look…
Mondays, June 6 - August 29 @ 7:00 pm EDT - 9:30 pm EDT
Writing Children’s Books
Do you have an idea for a children’s book? This fiction workshop will focus on children’s picture books, chapter books, and middle grade novels. Our discussions will include the unique voice, character development, plot, and world building needed to write in these different age categories. You will actively write and revise original picture books or chapters for book-length projects and submit them for review. You will have at least two to three opportunities to be critiqued during this course. This…
Tuesdays, June 7 - August 16 @ 7:00 pm EDT - 9:30 pm EDT
The Advanced Screenwriting Workshop
This workshop will focus on the all-important revision process in screenwriting, with members sharing the successes and difficulties encountered in the scripting process for feature-length, short, or TV scripts. You will have at least three opportunities to turn in pages of a screenplay for group review, workshop, and discussion—all in an atmosphere of mutual exploration and understanding. This class is open to continuing members as well as advanced screenwriting students.
Tuesdays, June 7 - August 16 @ 7:00 pm EDT - 9:30 pm EDT
The Memoir Workshop: Thursday Mornings
Workshop is for writers who want to think seriously about book-length memoir or collections in the context of narrative voice, structure and improving their craft. We’ll work with prompts, exercises, and consider strategies for revision to help you see your memoir in a new light. Each week we'll look at exemplary readings and tackle issues such as characterization, description, scene vs. narrative summary, time and pacing, arc, and real-world consequences and ethical considerations when writing and publishing true-to-life stories. You…
Thursdays, June 9 - August 18 @ 10:00 am EDT - 12:30 pm EDT
Accessibility for Those with Disabilities
The Muse Writers Center strives to be a fully accessible facility. Please contact us if you have any questions or concerns or would like to request an accommodation.