Online Personal Essay Writing Courses

10 Things to Know Before Enrolling in an Online Essay Writing Class

by Margo Steines

Online writing classes allow you to access teaching far beyond your geographical location, from the comfort of your own home. Since the pandemic there has been a huge expansion in the quantity and diversity of online essay writing classes, which means there is a rich selection of options available at any given time. This is so exciting! And, it can also be overwhelming—because choosing the best online essay writing course for you is more of an art than a science.

Let’s unpack some best practices for picking the course that will help you work toward your writing goals, deepen your craft, and meet a community of likeminded writers (ideally while also having some fun).

What to Know Before Taking an Online Essay Writing Course

Writing a literary essay is a complex process, and the support of a class can provide structure, pacing, motivation, and a container for this work. If you’re thinking of taking an online essay writing class for the first time (or the hundredth time), here are some tips and best practices to help you find a great-fit course and instructor for you and your essay.

1. Get Clear on What You Want

Articulating what you want to get out of a class is key to being satisfied and fulfilled by the experience. Like IRL classes, online classes in essay writing vary significantly in how they are structured and delivered.

Online classes in essay writing vary significantly in how they are structured and delivered.

For example, some classes are seminars, in which the instructor is delivering information in a largely one-way direction. Seminars typically do not include feedback, group work, or significant discussion (but always read the details—just because two courses are both called “Seminar In ___” does not mean they will be identical, or even similar in terms of how the instructor teaches and how the course content is delivered).

Other classes are workshops, which indicates that you will create a new work and receive feedback on it—but again, read carefully, and ask. Not knowing what you want, or not carefully reading the course description, are two ways to be disappointed in a course experience. Getting super clear on what’s available and how that dovetails with your goals is the best way to have a great online essay writing class.

2. Set Specific Goals for the Course

Only you know what your specific goals are. Your instructor might have their own goals for you—for example, drafting a certain word count, or polishing a piece for submission. By all means consider their suggestions, but before even shopping for your online writing course, spend a bit of time listing your goals.

Before shopping for your online writing course, spend a bit of time listing your goals.

Be specific: do you want to learn a new research modality or technique? Want to draft an essay for submission to a specific publication? Want to home in on a particular element of craft? Knowing what you want is the first step to getting it.

3. Research Your Instructor

Some writers you’ve never heard of are incredible instructors. Similarly, just because you love someone’s writing does not mean that they necessarily offer the best essay writing courses online for you. Consider what matters to you in an instructor: their personality and “bedside manner”? Their literary stature and prestige? Their depth of experience and publication history? Their academic or professional credentials and experience? Their creativity?

Just because you love someone’s writing does not mean that they necessarily offer the best essay writing courses online

Many writers who teach maintain websites and social media platforms where you can get a sense of their vibe and how they work. If you’re able to find any video content, that can often give you insight into their style, and if they have been interviewed publicly, you may be able to get a sense of their teaching philosophy and pedagogical lineage. If you’re on the fence or uncertain about fit, some instructors offer email contact and/or discovery calls, in which you can ask questions about the course and assess their vibe and your rapport.

4. Prepare Thoughtfully

For an in-person essay class, most students know how to prepare: read the assigned materials ahead of time, complete any assigned homework, prepare notes and questions for class, and arrive on time, ideally well rested, fed, and hydrated. Bonus points for researching your instructor and possibly reading their work to get a sense of their craft and style as an artist.

Preparing for essay writing in online courses is exactly the same as for in-person courses.

Preparing for essay writing in online courses is exactly the same! Even though you might be joining casually from your couch in your pajamas, you still want to prepare with intention. If possible, complete your work and reading ahead of time and set aside a bit of time just before class to review your work and clear your mind to focus on the class.

5. Ask Questions

The best way to maximize your experience in online classes on essay writing is to ask questions in class. While teaching styles and course structures vary, the power of the dialectic (aka a dialogue between people in the attempt to arrive at a/the truth through discussion) hold great potential for thinking through questions of craft, process, and ideation. If you’re wondering something—whether it’s what a particular literary term means, what an example of the concept under discussion might be, or how to enact a literary device the instructor has asked the group to engage with—ask.

The best way to maximize your experience in online classes on essay writing is to ask questions in class.

If you’re concerned about taking up too much time or space in the course, it is a fine idea to ask your instructor before or after class how they prefer you bring questions to them. Some instructors will encourage you to ask any questions in real time, while others may prefer you to send them via email, or to use the Zoom chat function instead of stopping their lecture. Again, you only know if you ask!

6. Engage in Class

If you get a group of writing instructors together, before long we will end up talking about how much we appreciate the students who nod vigorously and ask questions. Any decent instructor is working hard to engage the class—and your part in the co-creation of the class is to participate actively. Students almost invariably find greater satisfaction when they are open to speaking up and answering questions.

Students almost invariably find greater satisfaction when they are open to speaking up and answering questions.

If it feels intimidating to engage verbally in your online essay writing course, never fear! The virtual space allows for multiple modalities of engagement, from live comments to Zoom reactions (you can “clap” with emojis) and the text-based chat. Ask your questions, share your experience when appropriate, and push yourself to share your work when prompted. The more you put in, the more you are likely to get out of the experience.

7. Focus on Your Independent Work

No matter how inspiring, entertaining, and motivating an instructor is, or how good a fit your online essay writing course is, the real work takes place between classes, when you are alone with the page. Sometimes students expect a class to magically extract a polished essay from them during class time–and even the best essay classes online cannot do that (nor can IRL classes). That’s because the work of the essayist requires deep thought, lots of drafting, and often much reading as well.

The real work takes place between classes, when you are alone with the page.

Think of your creative process in an online essay writing class as having two parts: the class sessions, in which you are gathering information, inspiration, and experience, and then your independent work, in which you are taking all that good stuff and putting it to work. There’s no formula for exactly how much independent work time you’ll need to maximize your investment and experience in online classes in essay writing, so it’s up to you to determine that. Asking your instructor, either before you enroll or at the start of a course, how much independent work they suggest you budget time for is an excellent first step.

8. Use the Class as a Starting Point

The class is the starting block, not the finish line. Having realistic expectations is key in any learning context, and especially so in essay writing online courses (where you are building a complex piece of writing in a virtual environment). Taking some time to consider your goals for your holistic writing practice is a great start. From there, think about where you want to take your writing after the class.

Think about where you want to take your writing after the class.

Is publication a goal for you? Residency? Grant applications? MFA programs or other advanced courses of study? Are you a multimodal creative looking to deepen your artistic practice? Do you want to read your work publicly? Knowing—or at least having a sense of—your writerly aspirations will allow you to envision and enact a plan for your writing life that extends beyond the timeline of any one class. The best essay writing courses online will explicitly ask you to consider these factors, but starting to think them through on your own as you shop for courses will allow you greater opportunities for reflection.

9. Secure Your Environment

Unlike an IRL class, where the instructor prepares the class space and environment for the group, in online essay writing classes, each student handles their own environment. This is a great amount of freedom—and also, you may be surprised to realize how much thought and intention goes into curating a space for writing and learning.

Because our work does not require many materials, writers can work with very few tools, in totally inhospitable environments (loud coffee shops, I’m talking about you). This is an amazing amount of flexibility as compared to that of, say, a sculptor or a pianist. However, it also means that we tend to forget about our material needs. Beyond your computer, consider your environment and your tools.

To have your best essay writing course online, try to anticipate your wants and needs.

You do not need to sit in a hardbacked chair unless that feels good for your body. How are you most comfortable? What are you sitting on during your online essay writing class? Is it comfortable? Do you like it? What creature comforts allow you to show up well for your work—a blanket? Several beverages? An oil or incense that pleases you? A specific pen? You may not strictly need these environmental amenities to write, but they certainly can improve the experience. To have your best essay writing course online, try to anticipate your wants and needs.

The other part of your environment to consider are distractions. Are your family members, coworkers, or roommates aware that you are taking a course and need to focus? Or are they having a dance party on the other side of your office door? Is the road outside your house getting ripped up? A little advance planning to set your physical environment up well for focus goes a long way when you’re taking an online writing class in essay writing. Think about where you’ll be Zooming into your class or watching your recording from. What environmental factors contribute to the best-for-you writing space?

10. Plan Your Offboarding

When your online essay writing course wraps, what’s next? It is very common for students to experience a period of “doldrums” after a class—the sudden loss of structure, accountability, and deadlines can feel like you are floating in a void. It is an excellent idea to set up a system of accountability for yourself before the close of your class. This can look a lot of different ways:

• Forming a reciprocal reading and/or feedback relationship with another student in your class
• Enrolling in another class that starts shortly after the wrap of your current class
• Joining a writing group (online or IRL)
• Buying a craft, process, or pedagogy book like Melissa Febos’s Body Work, Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way, or Felicia Rose Chavez’s The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop.
• Joining a virtual writing community on Substack, Discord, or other social media platforms
• Planning your attendance at creative networking events like readings and author talks

Take An Online Essay Writing Course with Writers.com

Want to uplevel your craft and feel reinvigorated in your writing practice? Want to work in tandem with a group of other essayists? Check out the unique essay writing online courses here at Writers.com!