Creative Writing Online Courses How To Be A Good Student

Just for kicks, plunk yourself down in the middle of a room of writers and throw out the question, “What’s the best way to be a good writing student?” You’re almost guaranteed to hear one main belief echo around the room:
“Turn in good writing.”
But should that always be the ultimate? Sometimes being overly intent on “achieving” can cause us to miss important opportunities and nuances in life. Taking the time to be a good student will not only get you greater value for your tuition fee, it will also give you a deeper, more fulfilling experience.
Here are 4 practices that can transform your experience from anxiety and struggle to answering an even bigger “Yes!” to that burning question: “Is writing my destiny?”
Use the Curriculum As It Was Intended to Be Used
It can be tempting to login to an online course and turn yourself loose on it like it’s the last day of your life. But this can lead to jumping around, looking ahead, missing important assignment instructions and the inability to remember where you left off last time you logged in.
Every good course is designed to unfold in a certain progression, for your greatest learning benefit. Taking your time to properly digest each step–not moving ahead until you’ve integrated the lesson or completed the assignment–is your golden key to getting the most from the course material.
Connect With Your Creativity
Trying to force good writing to happen is counter-productive. Don’t let a grim quest to “be a good writer” interfere with the most important source of good writing: a strong connection with your own creativity.
The more you can relax and allow yourself time to connect to the riches within you, the more firmly you’ll be on the path to becoming a good writer. Our next point–pacing yourself–will give you some easy clues about how to connect.
Pace Yourself
Most writing students are intimately familiar with procrastination, usually caused by a dread of not being any good when you write the assignment. But leaving it until the last moment robs you of that very chance to do your best.
If you have a deadline for each assignment, instead of letting yourself run out of time and then frantically attacking it at the last hour, approach it in baby steps.
Step one: become intimately familiar with the assignment instructions. Taking time to understand the instructions will help you avoid glitches caused by making hasty interpretations.
If you have a few day’s lead time, you’ll have the luxury of allowing the instructions to then percolate in your mind. Some writers need this percolating time to get in touch with their imagination. As long as you start the writing itself in a timely manner, this “brewing” stage can be time well spent.
Or, you might feel inspired by the assignment and start writing immediately. Let that first rush of raw material flow onto the page without trying to over-think it. Starting early means you’ll have time to let the piece sit. You can then go over it with your strokes of finesse (and with a fresh eye) before it’s time to submit.
Ask for Help When You Need It
Find out the rules about seeking support, and then avail yourself of the help when you need it. This could be for anything from confusion about assignment instructions to feeling unsure of how to get started (aka writer’s block).
Many students mistakenly believe they’ll be showing their ignorance if they ask for help with such matters. Asking for help when you truly need it is a sign of strength and self-assurance, not of weakness. Bumbling through without help can lead to backtracking for you–and it might even be more inconvenient for your teacher than if you had seized the chance to ask for help.
Be as clear and specific as you can when asking for help. This will help your instructor to know which kind of help you most need.
Using these four steps will give you a greater ability to also meet that other cherished goal: to turn in good writing. Being a good student can take you far in life. And in writing.