Cultivating a new hobby, like writing, during lockdown is easier than ever with online communities and access to author tutorials at your fingertips
There's never been a better time to write that book you've been thinking about all these years. With the world in a pandemic lockdown and, let's face it, lots of downtime in the foreseeable future, it's the perfect opportunity to take advantage of online writing groups, expert tutorials, and digital workshops to engage in the solitary act of writing and process all those introspective learnings culled from nearly a year in self-isolation.
What's so great is that you won't have to go at it alone.
Over the past few months, so many literary groups and writers communities have sprung up online—bringing together anyone, from novices to professionals, looking for dialogue, ideas exchange, and a sense of community. Embark on a new writing project now and not only will it create opportunities to process difficult emotions in a complicated period of history, but participating in an online group gives writers from all different backgrounds the chance to engage with other writers working towards similar goals.
Here are some cool digital resources to explore if writing is something you'd like to explore.
Marian Keyes' free Instagram writing workshop
Bestselling Irish author Marian Keyes has been running a free writing workshop via her Instagram account @marian_keyes. The four-week Instagram Live course covers the basics of constructing plot, characterisation, and dialogue, and takes place at 7.30 pm GMT each Monday. Questions can be submitted to Keyes in advance via Instagram. Keyes is the author of 17 novels and 5 non-fiction books. Her latest novel, Grown Ups, was published in February 2020 and was a number-one Sunday Times bestseller.
See also: What Matters To Me: Award-Winning Author Amanda Lee Koe