On Wednesday, October 8th during Extra Help, the Grier Writing Center hosted its first ever writing workshop, one of many to come as part of its expanding writing program. Writing tutor and Senior Editor of the Cricket, Sophia Richards-Cordell, sat down with The Cricket to discuss the creation and future for this exciting new program.
Writing is a skill that takes a lot of time to develop. At Grier, students have an abundance of resources to help their writing thrive. The Writing Center is a place where students can seek help from peers who are trained to support their classmates with writing skills.
Richards-Cordell makes a point of mentioning that no writer is perfect. She encourages writers to ask for help and push themselves out of their comfort zones. If you’re interested in it, go do it,” she said. “Take every opportunity that you can. Especially with these writing workshops–they’ll really help you to develop your writing no matter what type of writer you are.”
These writing workshops are a brand new initiative as part of the ongoing expansion of the Writing Center. “It’s the first year,” said Richards-Cordell, “so, this year it’s just going to be a learning process.”
The program may be new, but the Writing Center workshops are all run by the writing tutors who are trained in how to break down the writing process. Richards-Cordell says that people shouldn’t be afraid to join these workshops or come to the Writing Center to practice their writing skills. “Never be nervous,” said Richards-Cordell. “It’s always a process with writing– even with the best writers.”
The first writing workshop, led by Richards-Cordell herself, taught students how to write spooky stories. Students had the opportunity to practice building suspense, create a dark mood, implement plot twists, and even kill off characters. They brainstormed ideas together and worked on crafting the perfect story for dark Halloween nights.
The Writing Center at Grier is continuing to evolve, but it maintains its goal of being a judgment free zone that offers constructive feedback and allows students to ask a multitude of questions. Now, with the new addition of Writing Workshops, writers can seek support and new knowledge in all genres of writing. The Writing Center will host more workshops in the coming months with subjects ranging from poetry, to song writing, to college essay workshops. The variety gives writers a chance to move away from traditional essays and school assignments and explore areas outside of their comfort zone.
So whether you’re an experienced writer, or just starting out in the world of writing, these workshops are for you. The next workshop will be November 3rd and will introduce poetry techniques. So stop by then to read, write, and learn with fellow aspiring writers.
