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I finally understand the saying😂😂

This is a really fun and interesting idea! I've been trying to figure out a schedule and how to break down my goals since I graduated from Uni in December, and I think this is my call that I need to "go back to school" to get my ducks in a row 😂

Hi all, at all of you using speech to text already - what software/app are you using? (Android users :)) greetings from Germany

I am going to use this so thank you! But let me just say, I LOVE your personality!! You are so fun to watch. It’s like I am watching a friend talk about something she’s excited about and it makes me want to get excited too!

😊 may I please give some friendly advice? Unravel that scarf, wash the yarn, then see if you can shift your feelings about it, so you can repurpose it. If not, please give it away, do yourself the favor of moving on and not losing more energy to it due to the negative experience that is attached to it 😊 I speak from experience . Also, thank you for your examples, I used to not even start a (writing) project because the adagio 'don't start if you can't finish' was too strong engraved. But then I realized that I need to start, practice and then see if I can finish. It feels better, like you say: stepping stones for future projects.

If you are stuck in a writing rut and low on travel funds, then you can: (1) dress up and go outside, walk around, explore your surroundings (2) go to the gym (3) go to the public library or bookstore or café (4) just do something else (5) check out some RUclips videos on ambience sounds

What a super fun idea! I think I’ll make myself a cozy mystery class for beginners and maybe something about lengthening books

SHE looked back to her WHAT?! 😂😂😂 And eyebrow um....both how?!

I’m familiar with the DIY MFA but this feels so much more doable esp with a f/t job, family and pets to care for. I think I’d like to study plot and scene structure and go all in. I already have several books and RUclips videos saved, it’s a matter of creating the syllabus and weekly lessons/deadlines so not to get off track 😬

Love this idea!!

video makes me so happy and inspired

I’m starting my Masters in Creative Writing this fall. Classes start this week!

Have you ever read DIY MFA or listened to the podcast? I think you'd really like it. She talks about how to "write with focus, read with purpose, and build your community." It really aligns with with your plans.

This is so fun!! I kinda fell off writer-tube/author-tube (is that what this corner of the internet is called? haha) after getting a new job back in like January, but I finally feel motivated enough to start writing again! I was supposed to be starting my master's degree this semester, but I have to put it off for another year, so I feel like this is the PERFECT time to do a writing semester. I remember thinking this was genius the last time you did it, and I'm so looking forward to making up a syllabus and everything tomorrow. I hope you give us updates on how your semester's going!

A note from the Crappy Handwriting Club. As long as you can read it, it doesn't matter what it looks like.

My stakes are not high enough or clear enough in my writing. (I've had author friends tell me that and I agree.) I bought H.R.D"Costa's book about Stakes, but I have not read it yet. I want my fall semester to focus on learning about stakes. I want to find some videos to watch that talk about stakes as well. Thank you, Kate, for sharing your learning plan.

I just started (last week) Sarra Cannon's Publish & Thrive course. I've wanted to take it for years, and finally enrolled. It's soooo much content, and 6 weeks of modules. I'm loving it, and can see how I'll definitely get my money's worth when I go to self publish my first novel. Have fun in your writing semester!

Just love this. I followed last year and loved the concept but I missed this video completely until sarra cannon mentioned it in her latest video. I wanted to plan something for September, but wasn’t sure what maybe a mini nano but the idea wasn’t inspiring me. This DOES! I need to rewrite the last 13 scenes for my manuscript. I need to come put with a fun name. Then I want to start with the handwritten draft I did last year and make it digital. Research class: topic Jack the Ripper. Library trip ofcourse and new supplies. 🎉love it

Thank you for this very relatable video. I'm also wrestling with IBS. Migraines are finally under control with medication and eyeglass/lighting changes, and slowly I'm adding more foods back. I'm already on medications for other things that make my providers reluctant to add anything else for the IBS, so I'm attempting to manage it all with lifestyle. It's sort of working, but the terror of family functions and eating out is real. I'm glad your team was able to help you find medication to mitigate that. It gives me hope that, even if it's just an "as needed" med, that an option may exist to make those less of a stressor, because I know the stress just makes it worse. I'm envious of your ability to work from home. One of my other terrors is of having to flee from my classroom full of students to get to the bathroom. That tends to lead to just plain not eating, which doesn't help matters. So I've also been changing my lesson planning to have more group work in class which creates natural times for me to leave, so long as I don't need to actually flee with extra flee. With regard to writing, I started the summer ordering myself to take 2 weeks off. That turned into no writing at all this summer, which is a break I think I really needed. That said, I'm now worried I won't get back to writing at all with the start of the fall semester. We'll see how that goes, I guess. Just trying to get the basic physical stuff handled before work is daunting, so I doubt AM writing is going to be a thing. Getting up at 5 is hard enough. I don't think I can push it back to 4.

This could change my year. I've been feeling pretty detected because I have to defer going back to school for a year due to finances. But I can use the year to get some independent study done and get ahead of the learning I need to do next year. ❤❤❤ thank you.

Figuring out a way to eat that sits well with my IBS ... I'm 55 years now and it has been a struggle for so long, but these past 6 months I feel I'm finally getting somewhere. And it makes such an impact, positively, not having stomach aches all the time ❤ so, I can very ,ich relate to that. Acknowledging that creative writing is something I really need 100% for my balance, and joy that was also a very good change in my life, last year.

Of course right as I'm looking for something to watch this comes recommended to me 😂😂😂

Fantastic idea! I love setting schedule blocks - but tying it with back-to-school excitement is so fun ✨

I wonder if it's intentional that you've chosen hidden storage spaces for your titles. I keep thinking you need one about an attic. An Attic Stacked with Aces (tarot inspired) Or An Attic full of Auras.

This is such a fun idea! I took a class in college where we focused on one specific writer that changed every semester (my class was Dickens) and basically did a deep dive into their work and looked at common themes and also historical context. I feel like it would be fun to do something similar with a specific book, maybe a comp title for your wip or even a book/writer you really love and feel inspired by and just do a really deep analysis of how everythings working to tell the story. Look at the first and last sentences (or paragraphs) and think about why they're so strong or maybe rewrtite them to try and make them even stronger? Track character arcs, voice, strong setting descriptions, track the outline through the three act structure and see if it sticks to it or where it deviates and why. Maybe even get a cheap copy of the book to annotate the heck out of or just transcribe certain scenes you really like and just obsess over every sentences and what its function is. Basically make yourself an expert in that specific book to better understand why it resonates with you and other readers

Ahhh I remember really wanting to do this last time you talked about it and then never finding the right time to start... Maybe I should try an extremely cut down version, but I don't think I could decide what to focus on, I want to do all the things! Also your names for the three classes are perfect! 😂

Love this idea! Going to start working on my plan for my first class: Character Arc(haeology).

This happened to me too.. being a pantser wasn’t working out for me but suddenly outlining is coming naturally to me these days and I don’t hate it! Now I actually gotta do the writing.. looool

Had to add a note since you got a Peter Pauper Press notebook. The quality on those is great. I stick to the oversize (though I've journaled in the smaller sized ones as well). My oldest ones are going on 14 years and they hold up to regular journaling and all of the page turning of rereading, annotating, etc. This fall for my quarter I'm splitting it into 4 week sessions to see if it helps a bit with burnout since it'll be 12 weeks total. Switching between less and more structured writing. Nothing fancier than that but learning from winter, spring and summer from this year.

This is such a fun idea! I’m going to be signing up for masterclass again this year and I’m definitely going to use some of your ideas to make sure I stick to watching the classes. Thanks!

It looks fun, love the idea of your own writing semester!

This is a fantastic idea! I'm going to do this, but the night class edition for folks like me with day jobs. And it's an excuse to buy planner with all of the bells and whistles.

Yay, fun! I too am designing a 12-week “term” for myself that includes writing/research, P.E., art, and ASL. I look forward to seeing how your semester unfolds in your future vlogs!

6:00 Cute notebook!

THANK YOU!! I am not going back to school, but I've always been great at school.... just having a really tough time getting myself to write. I feel like this could help me.

You have inspired me to make my own little semster! Both my kids will be in school full time (kindergartener and third grader waaaahhh) and while I'm looking for some part time work I also want to use that unemployed and un-parenting time to focus on writing and my craft and this is just genius. AND I'm not going to lie I have FOMO about the fun stuff I'm getting my kids for back to school, so like I want in. XD So thank you for this little break down! It helps. :D

Love the idea to write your own semester! I'm always move motivated to work in an academic environment, so this is a very appealing form of accountability with some fun rewards.

Ah, thank you sooo much for this video, Kate! “Make bats” sounds great … 🦇🦇🦇 PS: I'd love to take the course: “Fuck (scusi) Perfectionism!” I'm afraid I need to take some drastic measures to overcome perfectionism. Perhaps these applications can help: “The Most Dangerous Writing App” or “Write Or Die”.

Omg the way I am literally doing this exact same thing as an experiment for August!!! Slay! (Also omg so excited to celebrate the release with you and then retreat afterwards!! It’s gonna be an awesome semester 😂)

A Basement Brimming with Bodies is such an excellent title for a sequel! I love it! 🥰 I think creating your own writing semester is a really good idea! I might have to try it sometime. I just finished my PhD in Education/Disability Studies last year (and I have an MFA in Screenwriting). My PhD dissertation is a one-hour supernatural drama pilot that I adapted into an Adult contemporary fantasy novel. After 6 drafts, I’m finally querying the novel. I started querying in July and the script has been submitted to TV writing fellowships. Most of my formal writing training has been in screenwriting/TV writing and I’ve taken fiction writing workshops with Tin House and Futurescapes, which I think are valuable. I would love to apply to more genre fiction workshops like that! I think it’s harder to find genre fiction workshops and programs as most undergrad and MFA programs focus on literary fiction. However, there are a few MFA programs in genre and/or kidlit that look really interesting (that I wish I could do). I also teach workshops now, so I’ve been both the student and professor!

Ahh if I wasn't already in school I would do this! I feel like I'd go crazy trying to do both.

I'm not a writer but I enjoy your videos because they're cozy. This video is getting me hyped to 'go to school' for reading. I like the idea of going to school and studying great or not so great books just for more knowledge but I wouldn't enjoy mandatory essays and I'm definitely too poor to go to school for fun. 😅

I would give myself a class on blocking, I.e. movement and action during dialogue. I feel like mine is stale and boring and it’s something I should study more. But I am also taking an actual linguistics class so who knows how much time I'd have.

The first line for sure. Please make a video sharing the tips you learn along the way!

After reading every craft book on writing by now - I wouldn't take any course (I could probably teach all this stuff). I will say none of the books out there teach everything needed to be a good fiction writer, too much to teach for just one book. I think it takes about 10 years to be really good in this craft to crank out some publishable stories. but if I had to start over from scratch, I would study how to use association diagrams. It's used for everything in the writing process from sentence structure up to Story outlining, It emulates how our brains work. All stories are multi-dimensional anyway so it's the perfect writer tool to bang out a finished story.

I’ve wanted to do this since you did it last year! This time I’m going to join you! My classes are: - Adulting: learning to write adult because I’ve only ever written YA - Show & Tell: improving my showing skills instead of telling - Witty Banter: improving the wit and humour in my prose - Vampire Lore: new novel research 🧛🏻‍♀️

I don't have the time now, but what I would like to do at some point is to try and experiment with different concepts like "show not tell" or "world building" maybe take a class or read a craft book about it and also research what different writers think about that and how they go about it in different kinds of stories. Then it would be great just to try some of these different ways. I am just starting writing again and I need to learn so much. So learning by doing experiments seem like a fun way to me. I also have an idea for a theatre play but noticed very quickly that I need to learn about the structure etc. and also learn how to make something surprising and not give it away straight away. Sooo much to learn 😅

I love everything about this! Also I'm currently reading "Entangled Life" small world. I don't structure into semesters I do "rolling quarters" where I have a craft focus and a subject focus. Right now I'm studying essays and flash non fiction on the craft side; on the subject matter side is plants, trees, and fungi. Because my subjects tend to cycle in and out the quarters help me delve into deeper study or move to a different subject.

This sounds like so much fun! I love doing new things. My latest project just went live. It's called The Writers' Planner, for all my RUclips writer friends. Monthly, weekly, daily, insert your own dates. Shiny new idea boxes and gratitude boxes. Full color, paperback, 8.5x11 so lots of room for notes and appointments and special entries for live streams.