The Pros and Cons of Writing Workshops

How do we improve our writing?

To pull from Dickens, it is a truth broadly acknowledged that writing is a skill best learned by doing. What better way to improve your writing than to write, under direction, and get feedback as you go?

This is the principle behind writing workshops. Under the guidance of a teacher, a group of writers similar in skill, topic, interests, and genre work on specific writing practices.

In fact, that’s the very meaning of the “work” in “workshop.” Attendees aren’t passive as at a reading, or receiving information at a seminar. They’re working.

All sunshine and roses, right? Not so fast. Writing workshops are an excellent way to up-skill your writing, but they’ve got their downsides, too. Let’s take a look at their pros and cons so you can determine what to look for and whether workshopping is right for you. But first, you should know that workshops come in different shapes and sizes.

The Different Flavors of Writing Workshops

There is no such thing as one size fits all in the writing world, and workshops are no exception. You can find classes focusing on nearly any topic or skill set. Parameters include:

• genre (e.g., poetry; nonfiction; short stories)
• topic, theme, or a specific craft focus (dialogue; backstory; research)
• duration/frequency (a one-off; classes that meet for several weeks; longer)
• skill level (intro/intermediate/advanced)
• generative- (you start from scratch or create additional material) or revision-based (work on something you’ve previously started) workshops
• with or without assigned reading
• potential to submit work to the instructor
• the group might read and comment on each other’s submissions

As you can see, you get plenty of options. Making these choices should be easy enough. You should know whether you’re writing nonfiction or poetry, for example, and if the topic description interests you. If you’re concerned about how your skill level measures up to the group, you can usually email the instructor directly and ask.

More advanced workshops may come with other requirements, such as previous coursework, an application, or approval from the instructor.

What Writing Workshops Do Well

Writing workshops are excellent tools for writers who want to get more practice, are interested in feedback, or are just starting to write. While I teach writing principles as a matter of course in my coaching and editing, by design I work with writers who already have a certain level of skill and understanding—the “intermediate” writers, in our list above. But workshops can be incredibly helpful, no matter how “advanced” your writing gets.

Pros of writing workshops include:

• practice of the craft
• feedback on your writing (from other students and/or the instructor)
• a community of like-minded individuals to learn with, from, and to provide support
• exposure to other types of writing—whether from assigned reading or your peers’ submissions—and ideas about writing, all of which can expand your own practice and skill set
• ongoing opportunities to ask and answer questions
• lower cost of entry than 1:1 coaching or editing
• motivation and accountability for your writing—especially if there are submission deadlines, or other formalized sharing in the group

In my view, the opportunity—you might even say the peer pressure—to practice is the number one reason to check out a writing workshop near you. I can also not overstate the value of community and exposure to other ideas.

Workshops Can Be Awesome, But Beware These Caveats

As with anything else in life, workshops have their potential drawbacks. Some of these (like the other students) are impossible to predict. However, it’s good to set expectations for yourself, and think about your non-negotiables.

Potential cons of writing workshops include:

• students who treat it like social time (the German term Kaffeeklatsch comes to mind), don’t know how to give good criticism—whether they’re unskilled or their comments are simply not that useful—or feel the “need” to be overly harsh or critical
• everyone has a different idea about how good your writing is or what it needs
• a certain individual or individuals dominate every discussion
• time and scope constraints—you’ll only be working on a part of your project at a time, because there simply is no way to address everyone’s full novel draft in an 8-week workshop, for example
• the amount of time it may take to read others’ work (and what your opinion is of said work)
• no one-on-one attention on your project (it’s a group, after all!)
• your work lives forever in limbo, never actually finished, because—and I say this honestly and from experience—you can always find something to improve or some reason not to be done (motivation to procrastinate)

A good instructor goes a long way toward setting healthy group dynamics and providing guidance on and managing feedback. YMMV (your mileage may vary). In my view, the most dangerous effect to watch out for is the motivation to procrastinate, closely followed by not getting a handle on your work as a whole.

Bottom Line

Do I love writing workshops? Hell yes.

The term “writing workshop” may conjure ideas of fancy-pants writers and professional industry schmoozers, but they’re truly an excellent tool for improving your writing, and connecting with the writing community. Yes, a community in all its messy, grandiose, self-important, self-abnegating, and creative glory. In the final analysis, know what you want going in. As long as you’re prepared, you can make any workshop work for you.

As long as you’re writing.

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CC image “Notes” courtesy of Brady on Flickr. Some rights reserved.