"Joy [Baglio] was beyond generous with her time; gave grounded, real world experience; shared extremely useful online resources; and followed up with the attendees promptly and with even more information. It's a wonderful opportunity to hear directly from a writer direct from her experience, including both failures and successes. I got more than I was looking for in this seminar and am leaving it far more informed and confident in my own practice. Thank you, Joy!" |
"I enjoyed everything: Joy [Baglio]'s energy, breadth of knowledge about the topic, the variety of exercises, the pace, the built-in breaks, the ineffable community-building that Joy creates among the group members." |
"This is the fourth class I've taken at PVWW and the second multi-week one, and I continue to be super impressed by the high quality of instruction, class participation and collaboration. You encourage creative idea generation and thoughtful approaches to craft in an ultra supportive, inclusive environment focused on positive critique, community and growth. Boom." |
"Carolyn Zaikowski is an excellent instructor and creative motivator, always encouraging her students to be themselves, to trust themselves, but also to experiment. Her insights on craft match or surpass MFA-equivalent instruction. Outstanding." |
"[Gail Thomas] is an excellent teacher -- a wise woman of poetry. [She] brings the sensitivity that poetry requires, the knowledge of time spent in trenches of verse, an inclusivity that makes writing easy for your students." |
"Carolyn [Zaikowski] is a fabulous instructor. Not only was the material eye-opening and fresh, but she did a great job juggling lots of different personalities and people at all different levels of skill. It was a safe and powerful container!" |
"Gail Thomas is a very warm and welcoming leader. And she knows her facts. I enjoyed everything about this workshop. Liked the exercise at the end and the discussion that ensued."
- Burleigh M., Publishing Your Poems
"This is my second workshop so far with Pioneer Valley Writers and I just can't say enough good things. Excellent instructors, a joy of the craft, and learning a ton of great things. I've taken workshops all over, and these are some of my favorites--and reasonably priced too! Highly recommend." |
"I don’t think I can adequately express how much I enjoyed this class! Take all the best, most positive adjectives you can think of and then apply them to the class, the instructor Carolyn [Zaikowski], the other participants, the prompts and the readings!" |
"Can't say enough about PVWW, Joy, and her amazing team of teachers! Writing is very much about the ability to sit in your seat for hours and put pen to paper, but coming to PVWW helps you build a community around your writing, breathe new life into your efforts, and get out of your own head a bit. And beyond that, I've learned lots of practical, nuts-and-bolts techniques that have vastly improved my work." |
"This class was a wonderful experience for me. It is the first time I have ever participated in anything like this outside of college courses, so I had no idea what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised how quickly I was able to engage in the writing process and the words literally flowed onto the paper with very little effort thanks to Carolyn [Zaikowski's] helpful guidance." |
"Joy [Baglio] is wonderful. I have been participating in her workshops throughout the pandemic and this was my second course. This one was loaded with practical info as well as encouragement. I especially loved Joy's illuminating insights about our first lines: so helpful! It was also great that participants happened to be at many different levels of experience and had much to share. This class truly answered all my questions about beginning to submit short stories for publication."
- Barbara L., Publishing Short Fiction in Literary Magazines
"A truly excellent class. Joy [Baglio] is wonderful. Her teaching is very clear and allows all involved to be included in discussion and clarification when needed." |
"Celia [Jeffries] is a master teacher and workshop facilitator. Time flew by, she had us working hard, and left us energized to continue on our own." |
"This was one of the best writing workshops I have ever attended. I have been writing for decades, but this class gave me new ways to think about putting a story together. It was extremely helpful and motivating." |
Although I was skeptical at first (strategic planning for creative writing sounded like a bit of an oxymoron to me), this workshop was INVALUABLE. Francine walked us through a number of steps that opened up questions and ideas for actually creating a full manuscript. I will continue to use her strategies in many areas of my life, Thank you! |
"Carolyn [Zaikowski} has a gift for teaching. She was engaging and gently challenged each participant in a way that felt safe to explore and play within the elements of fiction without judgement. I appreciated her keen awareness and her ability to communicate with authenticity. Carolyn led thought provoking conversations with us that led me to a new understanding of the fiction tools available to me as a writer...She was hands down one of the best professors I’ve ever had because she gave me one of the best gifts a student can receive: to be seen and truly heard, supported and encouraged without clouding the space with pessimism or heavy handed opinions. She helped me to explore and push my writing into new places each week with the assignments and well-planned famous works chosen for the class. With a clear natural talent for teaching, Carolyn is priceless. I am grateful for her wisdom and courage. I cannot say enough about what a pleasure it was to learn and write with her. Highly recommend!!" |
"I feel something special happened over the course of the recent PVWW sessions. Gail [Thomas'] supportive listening ear and constructive critique has helped sharpen my own pen to revise poems. Every one of the group brought an authentic poetic voice to our gathering. Thank you Gail Thomas, all of the writers & readers, and Pioneer Valley Writers' Workshop." |
I am a writer of personal essays, and this workshop gave me tools and knowledge to advance my skills, improve my technique, and increase my own confidence in my writing. Áine [Greaney] is a talented and experienced instructor who gave honest and meaningful information. I left with new-found knowledge as well as inspiration. I will absolutely put my new tools to work for me to develop both new habits and new pieces of work. Aine also gave tools to look at my essay drafts both objectively and subjectively for revision. I found the information about narrative voice, using the voice of experience vs. the voice of innocence, and the information about how to open an essay particularly useful. This workshop was money and time very well-spent! |
"The workshop was informative and fun. I really loved hearing about Gail [Thomas'] experiences with having each of her 4 books published. I also appreciated the informal atmosphere. Gail touched on all of the subjects promised. I'm not sure when I'll be submitting any of my poems, but I have a much better grasp of how it should be done effectively. Since it was my first workshop ever that had anything to do with poetry, it was a perfect introduction. Just hearing what each of the other poets had to say was so interesting. It was such a nice group of people. I also enjoyed each poem that was shared in the reading session." |
"I enjoyed everything: Joy [Baglio's] energy, breadth of knowledge about the topic, the variety of exercises, the pace, the built-in breaks, the ineffable community-building that Joy creates among the group members." |
"The two workshops I have taken with Pioneer Valley Writers' Workshop were both excellent, chocked full of information, handouts, and intelligent discussion. Workshop leaders really knew their stuff!" |
"It was a perfect mix of practical advice and creative work. Really really helpful and inspirational." |
"Sara [Rauch]'s extensive knowledge of the subject matter made this a completely worthwhile class to take (worth the money, certainly). Her experience as both a writer and an editor gave me some very useful tips. I appreciated that she centered the class around our questions and interests." |
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