10+ Free Online Creative Writing Courses India

12/9/2020

To follow are 10+ free online creative writing courses in India to start creative writing or improve writing skills to craft your book, novel, script, poem or short story. These are free online writing courses for beginners as well as writers with experience wanting to undertake an e-learning course.

The following writing courses are some of best online creative writing courses on offer.

Even better, they're all free, so it won’t cost a penny to improve your fiction writing or learn the tips and techniques to take your writing to the next level, whether you want to finish writing a novel, be a children’s book author or a writer of short stories, or if you would like to write a script or poetry collection.

Whether you would like to learn from published authors, enroll onto instructor-led classes, or take part in online writing workshops, check out these 10+ free online creative writing courses in India.

1. Writing Your First Novel

Do you aspire to become a novelist? If so, this writing course from the University of Michigan via Coursera could be a great opportunity for you.

Even if you are a novice with no idea of how to get started writing a novel, this course program covers all aspects to help you to start from scratch.

You don’t need any special skills or prior experience to enroll onto this course.

Duration: 26 weeks
Certificate: Available – payment required ₹2216 Indian Rupee (INR)
Syllabus: The course is divided into 26 weeks, allowing learners to acquire skills on how to develop an idea for a novel, create character profiles, plan the plot, divide the novel into several chapters, and so much more. For each step, the instructor gives a week to learners so there is enough time to master the skills of writing a novel.

Course Link: Writing Your First Novel

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2. Writing for Young Readers – Commonwealth Education Trust

If you are passionate about writing fiction pieces for a younger audience, this course from the Commonwealth Education Trust is for you to excel further in your preferred genre. For those who possess creative inspiration for this particular target market, this course can help to write specifically for children and teenagers.

As well as becoming acquainted with various cultures, you will learn to deal with the technical elements of story writing such as creating characters, structuring the plot for a great story, creating dialogue, and much more.

Duration: 18 hours
Certificate: Available – payment required ₹2216 Indian Rupee (INR)
Syllabus: The entire course curriculum comprises study modules, video tutorials, and further resources. You can access the different study materials for 5 weeks, and these take you through the journey from starting your story, writing, editing, and finally publishing.

Course Link: Writing for Young Readers

3. An Introduction to Screenwriting

Would you like to write great scripts for TV or the silver screen? If so, this is a great course from the University of East Anglia via FutureLearn to get you started.

This script writing course provides essential information on the basic concepts and elements employed in creating professional screenplays.

It will help proficient writers and beginner scriptwriters take a step nearer towards accomplishing their screenplay writing goals and their dream career.

Duration: 2 weeks (3 hours per week)
Certificate: Available (you need to enroll for a paid plan)
Syllabus: The modules for the first week cover cinematic story, forms, and structure. During the second week, students learn about creating characters, writing scenes, and developing the final draft.

Course Link: An Introduction to Screenwriting

4. Unseen Poetry and the Creative Process

Do you want to master the art of putting your thoughts into beautiful rhymes? If the answer is yes, this course from the University of Reading via FutureLearn could benefit you.

It is an elementary course program for new writers wanting to master the art of writing poetry and verse.

After taking the course, you will be able to create beautiful poems worthy of publication.

Duration: 2 weeks (3 hours per week)
Certificate: Available (you will need to enroll for a paid plan)
Syllabus: During the first week you will learn about transforming different types of feelings into text, and how to develop the tone and figurative language. The modules for the second week give a comprehensive understanding of the creative process, writing, and shaping a poem, etc.

Course Link: Unseen Poetry and the Creative Process

5. Transmedia Storytelling

If you have the urge to write big and bold narratives such as Star Wars, Marvel films, and similar, the skills in transmedia storytelling can help you achieve such goals.

This course from UNSW Sydney via Coursera will help you to nurture your talent in the sphere of creating multidisciplinary narratives for films, books, games, and so on.

The full course title is Transmedia Storytelling: Narrative worlds, emerging technologies, and global audiences.

Duration: 6 weeks
Certificate: Available – payment required ₹2216 Indian Rupee (INR)
Syllabus: You will learn everything about the transmedia audience, how to craft your ideas into well-structured and exciting narratives, how to create complex worlds, the essentials of absorbing storytelling, the use of VR and AR technologies, and you will also interact with the instructors.

Course Link: Transmedia Storytelling

6. Sharpened Visions: A Poetry Workshop

If you want to dive into an in-depth learning program on poetry writing, this is a comprehensive online poetry course from the California Institute of Arts via Coursera which serves that purpose.

This online poetry writing course provides the ultimate knowledgebase for poets that can be helpful in producing literary gems.

Duration: 6 weeks
Certificate: Available – payment required ₹2216 Indian Rupee (INR)
Syllabus: Over the 6 weeks you can learn how to convert lines into beautiful stanzas, and the art of using metaphors, abstracts, rhymes, and rhythms in poetry.

Course Link: Sharpened Visions: A Poetry Workshop

7. Free Writing Courses and Tutorials – Udemy

There is a class for everyone, whether a beginner or advanced author wanting to improve their writing skills or try another writing discipline. The content of the free courses from Udemy is the same high quality as their paid-for courses, but students don’t have Q&A access to instructors or receive a certificate upon completion.

Udemy is a popular and well-known e-learning provider that teaches millions of students internationally with approx. 130,000 courses. Other courses provided include business, marketing, health and fitness, programming, and much more.

Here listed are some of the free online writing courses from Udemy for beginner writers:

On Writing – The 20 Minute Jumpstart for Novices and Writer-Blocked Writers
Starting to Write – Be a more creative you. Take small steps and start writing today.
Secret Sauce of Great Writing – Ex-Wall Street Journal Editor Teaches How To Make Your Blogs, Books & Business Writing Sparkle.

If you would like a more advanced writing course, check out the following free online writing courses from Udemy which are applicable for any level of writer:

Creative Writing Sample Lesson – Video lectures and plenty of activities about setting, character and plot with best-selling novelist K.C. Finn.
Let’s Write a Basic Story – A step-by-step walkthrough. Write your own story.
Use Show Don’t Tell to Improve Your Writing – A free mini-course about one of the most important skills in writing.

You can find a full list of Udemy's free online writing courses currently available here.

Once you've tried a free course (or several) from Udemy, you can sign up to one of the various comprehensive paid courses with low prices during flash sales.

8. Start Writing Fiction

If you want to learn how to create convincing and rounded characters, establish the plot and setting, the uses of genre, and much more, this free writing fiction course from OpenLearn via The Open University could be perfect for you.

From a world leader in distance learning, The Open University self-paced course Start Writing Fiction can be accessed at any time. You can print off the course content or download to access offline.

Duration: 12 hours
Certificate: Free statement of participation is provided upon completion of this course.
Syllabus: During this course you will demonstrate a general awareness of fiction writing, identify strengths and weaknesses as a writer of fiction, and discuss fiction using basic vocabulary.

Course link: Start Writing Fiction

Find more free creative writing courses from The Open University:

9. How to Plot a Novel

If you would like to enroll onto a creative writing course that gives you a step-by-step guide on story structure and a solid template on which to craft your story, this free online writing course from Reedsy could be the ideal option for you.

This is a 10-day course where the 5-minute lessons are delivered to your inbox each day. Sign-up to a free account is required to get instant access to the course.

Duration: 10 days (5 minutes per day)
Syllabus: On this course you will identify the elements of the 3-Act Story Structure, use this structure to build towards an impactful climax, learn how to pace your story, and more.

Course link: How to Plot a Novel

Find more free online creative courses from Reedsy:

Click here for a full list of free courses from Reedsy.

10. Supercharge Your Productivity

If you've always wanted to write but don’t know where to start or you’d like help to actually finish writing projects while not getting distracted, this free online course from the National Centre for Writing could benefit you.

Packed with advice and information to shed light on your writing habits – whether good or bad – this writing course will help you to identify habits, what distracts you, and how to deal with procrastination. All in all you will be shown how to supercharge your writing productivity. The full title of this course is Supercharge Your Productivity - How to Develop Good Writing Habits.

Duration: 1–2 weeks, but the course is self-paced and can be completed at any time
Syllabus: This course will identify unhelpful habits and how to break them, discover when and where to write, how to incorporate writing time in your routine, analyze where wasted time during the day could be utilized more effectively, and more.

Course link: Supercharge Your Productivity

Conclusion

I hope this list helps you to find a course that will be valuable for mastering the art of creative writing in your desired genre and writing area, whether that be understanding the essential aspects of writing a novel, how to engage and write for children, becoming skilled at script writing, or learning poetry.

This could be the start of your writing journey or the motivation needed to finish your manuscript, so take a more in-depth look at these free online writing courses and get started today!