Classes
MASTER YOUR CRAFT WITH MICHAEL TODD GALLOWGLAS, MFA
M Todd Gallowglas’s writing classes combine two of the most elusive things you can find: applicable, useful knowledge and a whole lot of fun. You’ll leave a better writer than you came, and you’ll do so with a big smile on your face. – Mark Gelineau, author
Tuesday evenings at 7 pm Pacific Time, I stream a web show LIVE! I talk about writing, living a writer’s life, books that have taught me about writing, possibly some Lit Theory, and/or whatever else happens to pop into my brain. One of the best parts about this show is going to be the live chat channel, so viewers will be able to ask questions in real-time. Some of my best stuff comes from going off on tangents inspired by insightful questions.
Join me at twitch.tv/mgallowglas
GROUP CLASSES & WORKSHOPS
FOUR PRINCIPLES OF ENGAGING WRITING – $50
Limit to 15 students
Meeting via Zoom 8-10 am Pacific: Jan 11 & 26, Feb 8 & 22, March 8 & 22
This class will take students on a deep exploration of Gallowglas’s 4 Principles of Engaging Writing. Students will submit work online and meet bi-weekly to discuss works and concepts. By the end of the class, students will have a greater understanding of layered, nuanced writing, and they will have at least one completed story to shop around.
POETRY FOR GENRE WRITERS – $50
Limited to 15 students
Meeting via Zoom 8-10 am Pacific: April 12 & 26, May 10 & 24, June 14 & 28
Fantasy was born from the mythic traditions of epic poetry. Ray Bradbury told writers to read poetry every day. More and more writers are writing spectacular poems about the nerd experience. This class will explore awesome and evocative poetry as a jumping point for students to write their own poetry, create poetic forms for their own imaginative worlds, and learn how to mine poetry to improve upon their fiction writing.
READING AS A CONTACT SPORT – Free, with donation
Part book club, part geek lit theory group class, part writing class. Each month the class will read a book together, discuss over Discord throughout each month, and then meet on Zoom for writing prompts and exercises inspired by the book we just read.
- January 4th – America Fantastica – Tim O’Brien (Redux)
- February 4th – The Saint of Bright Doors, Vajra Chandrasekera
- March 1st – Some Desperate Glory, Emily Tesh
- April 5 – The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece: A Novel, Tom Hanks
SELF PACED CLASSES
EXPLORING YOUR AESTHETIC – Self-Paced Class ($75 per month) – 3 spots open.
We writers are artists. We view the world of words, phrases, sentences, paragraphs, pages, chapters, stories, and novels with an eye and ear for the aesthetic they achieve. However, in all the creative writing classes I’ve taken, workshops and panels I’ve attended, and books I’ve read, few have directly addressed how writers can explore their aesthetic as artists. Part of this is because writing is a medium working on visual, auditory, and intangible levels all at the same time, which makes it a particularly challenging medium to master. In this class, students will explore all levels of their relationship with their writing.
EXPLORATION OF CRAFT – Self-Paced Class ($75 per month) – 4 spots open
This class takes a writer on a deep journey through the realms of the craft of writing, from the macro levels of story structure to the very building block of writing, sentence construction. In this intensive class, students will be asked to consider and re-consider what they know and think they know about how various aspects of the writing craft. By the end of the fourteen lessons, students will have explored the creation of three stories from the initial structure outline, through various perspectives, and finally to completed drafts. Then they will re-explore one of those drafts into a full rewrite.
Story Generative Boot Camp – Self-Paced Class ($75 per month) – 5 spots open
This class starts with a ton of writing: a month of writing every day, if the student follows the curriculum. Then, students take that writing and re-explore their work through directed, practical exercises that will broaden their imagination and expectations of what written storytelling can be.
MENTORSHIP – Private Class (Tuition per month varies) – 4 spots open.
In a mentorship, the student and I will discuss the student’s goals. We can work together on a single project or strengthen their writing skills in general. Based on that discussion, I’ll come up with a reading list. This will be a combination of fiction (short stories and novels), possibly poetry, and essays about the craft of fiction intended to help the student meet their specific goals. I can’t say much more about this class, as I expect each mentorship will be vastly different from the others. I currently have two going on, and I’m discussing a third; each student has vastly different reading and different writing goals.
TESTIMONIALS
As a writer, I forget sometimes that the best teacher is continuing to read, often books I wouldn’t initially pick up off the shelf myself. But where to start? There’s an overwhelming amount of books out there. The Reading Like a Writer class takes out all the guesswork for me. Gallowglas picks fantastic reads and challenges you to take what you’ve learned and apply it to your own work. – Katie S.
For the last few years as a writer, I’ve struggled with discouragement and had little sense of direction. “Exploring Your Aesthetic” helped me rediscover what’s important to me about writing. Delving into the excellent readings expanded my perspective on what it means to be a writer and the immeasurable value of the written word. As a teacher, Gallowglas has done a great job of letting me learn for myself while encouraging me to go deeper, look harder, and get everything I can out of the course. The creative exercises have been challenging and a lot of fun. Number one most important fact: I’m writing again and enjoying it. – Rebecca C.
My critical reading and writing have improved since working with Gallowglas as my mentor. His approach allows me to dig in where I want, and keeps me on the path we’ve set out. Asking Gallowglas to mentor me is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. – Stephanie A.
