Creative Writing Classes

I’m launching my first season of creative writing classes this winter.

I aim to start the classes around third week November, depending on numbers. The other way you can contact me to find out more is through my website contact form:
http://jakk1954.wix.com/johndodds#!contact/c1kcz

I will be covering: story creation, creating characters, dialogue, short and long forms of story, and more, plus elements of style for different genres – those who attend can choose their preferences. First season, 10 weeks. The objective is that everyone will complete at least one short story (2,500 to 5,000 words) and peer discussion on the work. I also aim to put the stories into an ebook anthology.

Recommendations requested

I’ve just starting running creative writing classes for Bulgarian teenagers who are learning English. The young people at the American College Arcus in Veliko Turnovo, Bulgara, range in age from 15 to 17. They are great students, and the reading aloud segment in the first week uncovered a few kids who are born actors. Keeping their enthusiasm levels going, though, will involve not just creative approaches to sparking their interest in creative writing, but finding things besides their set texts which will feed their imaginations.

At the end of each of my six classes in week one, I read aloud the opening passages of Neil Gaiman’s Coraline and Brandon Sanderson’s Alcatraz Versus The Evil Librarians. The class loved them. One of my colleagues has asked for recommendations for other YA books her students might enjoy, so I’m looking for recommendations. They could be e-books, or books that are low priced (budget is a consideration). Free ebooks are fine – so long as they are good. I will, of course, recommend the school pick up copies of these two great books also.

Please give me your thoughts and ideas in the response to this post. Everyone who posts gets a free copy of the ebook version of my short story collection, Dr. North’s Wound and Other Stories.