Top 10+ Online Creative Writing Courses For 2026 (Self-Paced)

This tutorial compares and reviews the best Online Creative Writing Courses to help you learn creative writing via online courses:

Creative Writing courses have now become an essential part of any individual’s development. Be it a business plan, newsletter, content marketing, content writing, blog, screenplay, script, story, novel, poem, social media content, or advertisement; writing plays a crucial part everywhere.

Freelance writing and Ghostwriting have also become pretty famous among people hoping for an independent income source or who want to follow their passion. Online writing courses offer an in-depth and self-paced education with relevant skills to perform any kind of writing job required or available.

Online Creative Writing Courses

Such courses come in handy when professionals hope to increase some credentials on their resume. Sometimes a writing certificate or a skill may land you with a good promotion or a handsome salary. Freelance writers also hope to make an independent career by offering various writing services to their clients.

In this light, a writing course becomes fairly important and in the following listicle, we will review some top courses which will help you decide which courses are suitable for you to get started in writing careers. Some courses are paid and some are free, it depends on the learner whether to get a certificate or just the skill and knowledge.

Types of Writers and Writings

1. Authors: They write novels, stories, short stories or even articles, columns, and essays.
2. Ghostwriters: They write novels, articles, blogs, etc but they don’t take credit for their work.
3. Freelancers: Write articles, stories, blogs, etc, and are paid on an assignment basis.
4. Content Writers: They write content for a specific product, topic, idea, or market. They can be paid on an assignment basis or salary basis.
5. Copywriters: They write marketing campaigns, ad slogans, or publicity material for a product or a company.
6. Script-writers: They write play scripts, film scripts, and ad scripts, basically they write for the visual medium.

The below graph shows  the number of writers and authors in the U.S. 2011-2019:

The graphs below show how the ‘gig-economy’ has grown in developed countries. People have chosen to be freelancers rather than working for some company. According to Freelancing in America report, we will soon reach the time when freelancers will contribute most to a country’s economy.

List of the Best Online Writing Courses

Here is the list of popular online writing courses:

1. SkillShare Online Creative Writing Classes
2. Wesleyan University Creative Writing Specialization – Coursera
3. ProWritingAid
4. Udemy’s Complete Creative Writing Course – All Genres
5. Gotham Writers Online Writing Classes
6. Reedsy Learning Courses
7. Udemy Creative Writing Courses
8. edX Creative Writing Courses
9. FutureLearn Creative Arts and Media Writing Courses
10. OpenLearn Creative Writing
11. Emory Continuing Education Creative Writing
12. Universal Class
13. Writers.com Online Writing Courses
14. Masterclass Creative Writing Classes
15. Masterclass

Comparing the Top Online Creative Writing Courses

Let us review the courses enlisted in this tutorial with their pros, cons, and other useful information.

#1) SkillShare Online Creative Writing Classes

Best for short-term writing skills like essays, short stories, copywriting, content writing, blogging.

SkillShare is the Netflix of the entrepreneur world. This platform is a New York baby and was built 10 years ago.

First of all, it is not made for educational purposes, neither its courses are certified. All the courses are skill-based i.e. entrepreneurs, creators, etc share their relevant skills, which made them who they are rather than sharing boring theoretical renaissance nostalgia.

It is a great place to grow for people who are looking to enhance their independent qualities and want to be self-sustained in the future.

Duration: Depends on the number of video lessons.
Type: Online video lectures.
Schedule: Self-paced.
Pricing: $13.99 (monthly) and $167.88 (yearly)

Pros:

• Real-world skills.
• Self-paced and interesting course material, in other words, learners can gain ‘Skill and Chill’
• Gives a free trial before learners take a subscription.
• Has many free courses that do not require a paid subscription.

Cons:

• Reviewers have said that not all teachers are great.
• No certification, so learners can only use the skills to enhance their abilities and not officially show them off.
• Too many ads on the free courses which become irritating.

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#2) Wesleyan University Creative Writing Specialization – Coursera

Best for Authors, Essayists, Bloggers.

Coursera remains one of the best choices when we are looking for an academic treat for our brains. It is not only beneficial for knowledge-hungry enthusiasts but also for professionals who want a raise or a promotion. Wesleyan University’s creative writing course provides a beginner-level effort in the world of creative writing.

There is no screening for admissions, and anyone can try their hands. Despite being free, the instructors of this course are professional writers and professors. The course is self-paced and supports individual freedom of schedule.

Schedule: Self-paced.
Type: Online video lectures and online assignments.
Duration: Each course is 4 weeks long.
Pricing: This is a free writing course.

Pros:

• Absolutely free.
• No screening
• At the end of several assignments, the course sponsors grant various discounts and offer on their products.
• Write-bros provide 80% off on their memberships and also 30% off on the writing software ‘Scrivener’.
• The online writing community Scribophile offers a 30% discount on their memberships.

Cons:

• The course is at a beginner’s level, so if you’ve already studied creative writing at College, this course mightn’t come in handy.
• Due to no screening, the assignments are also judged at a superficial level and an in-depth critique is not offered.

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#3) ProWritingAid

Best for editing capabilities with a grammar checker and style editor.

ProWritingAid is a grammar checker and style editor. It contains various capabilities like in-depth reports that will strengthen your writing skills. It offers eBooks to help you with novel writing, developing skills, building your profile, etc. It also has an eBook for editing tips. These books are available to download for free.

Its content is divided into topic-focused chapters. These books will also provide references for investigating the topics. It offers free access to its growing collection of books & resources.

Schedule: Self-paced
Type: EBooks

Pricing:

Monthly price: 

• $30 Premium 
• $36 Premium Pro

Yearly price:

• $120 Premium 
• $144 Premium Pro

Lifetime price:

• $699 Premium Pro
• $399 Premium

Pros:

• ProWritingAid’s eBook on the novel-writing training plan helps you shape your ideas.
• Its eBook on editing tips is by professional writers. This gives you the 20 most important writing tips and techniques.
• It offers one more eBook on “3 Steps to Success” that will help you with developing your skills, creating content that resonates, and building your profile.
• ProWritingAid contains functions for eliminating embarrassing errors, finding the right words, in-depth reports, etc.

Cons:

• No such cons to mention.

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#4) Udemy’s Complete Creative Writing Course – All Genres

Best for Aspiring Novelists, Essayists, Bloggers, Content Writers, etc.

If you wish to sharpen your skills as a creative writer in all sorts of genres, then this course from Udemy was tailor-made for people like you. The course covers 4 crucial genres of creative writing, which are poetry, drama, fiction, and creative non-fiction. The course was designed to make your writing as engaging as possible so it can connect with your audience.

There are over 43 video lessons covered in the course. Each lesson includes a quick writing assignment, a practical project application, and a lesson that covers a particular area of course content. You are provided with notes, graphics, assignment sheets, and more to make your learning process simple and hassle-free.

Schedule: Self-Paced
Type: Online Video Lessons
Duration: 12 Hours
Pricing: $19.99

Pros:

• Covers core aspects of all 4 genres of creative writing.
• Pay only one time and get lifetime access to the course.
• Can be accessed via mobile and desktop devices.
• Certification is rewarded by the end of the course.
• Reasonable price

Cons:

• Better assessment techniques other than written assignments and quizzes could have made the course even more compelling.

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#5) Gotham Writers Online Writing Classes

Best for Content writers, Copywriters, Authors, Fiction/Non-Fiction writers, etc.

If you’ve ever been to New York City or even seen the city featured in films, you’ll recognize the ‘Gotham Box’. Gotham Writing Classes were started by Jeff and David, two enterprising and independent individuals, in 1993. It became pretty famous in New York City for students, professionals, or just learners all around.

In 1997, they started their online course and since then they’ve never fallen short of admissions. Gotham offers almost every kind of genre course; from creative writing to fiction, from article writing to non-fiction, it has everything included. The crowd is generously kept less so that each individual is given due attention.

Schedule: Self-paced with a real-time interaction per week.
Type: Online video lectures with a once-a-week Zoom interactive class.
Duration: 10-week workshops and 6-week classes.
Pricing: $300-$400/ workshop

Pros:

• Available both online and offline.
• It is a fairly reputed institution.
• It also organizes free events all around the year.

Cons:

• Costly- each course is $300-$400/ workshop.
• The online courses are not real-time. Although there is once a week live session.
• After you’ve finished, the institution takes no guarantee of a job offer.

Website: https://www.writingclasses.com/classes/online

Further Reading => Most Popular Screenwriting Courses of the Year

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#6) Reedsy Learning Courses

Best for beginners in any field of writing.

Reedsy has beautifully designed a snap-shot tutorial for every kind of writer. Reedsy offers a smart and free 10-day tutorial on various topics (as we choose). This 10-day tutorial is mailed to us page-by-page, which helps in time management and also ensures that the learners do not simply mug up the topics.

The course is not institutionally curated, so generalized courses like ‘Creative Writing 101’ or ‘Fiction 101’ might not be found here. Examples of some courses are: ‘How to find your target audience’ or ‘How to Write a suspense novel’.

Duration and Schedule: Self-paced.
Type: Provides reading material through mail.
Pricing: Free writing course

Pros:

• Absolutely free.
• Highly time-effective.
• Builds up a daily routine of learning something new.

Cons:

• Offers just a sneak peek into the world of writing.
• Only to develop an interest in the particular genre and not to gain proficiency from it.

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#7) Udemy Creative Writing Courses

Best for almost every genre of writing.

Udemy, like Coursera, offers a variety of online courses on streams of subjects. The difference is that at Udemy, individuals can themselves create courses, but at Coursera, they accept only institutionalized learning. So, if you’re looking for a change in your writing schedule, or are bored of ‘Creative Writing 101s’, you should try Udemy.

It will offer you a fresh perspective of people working in the same field as you. It’ll also generate a sense of being a part of a writer’s community. At Udemy, you are in for the kind of ‘Pink Floyd’ self-paced and rebellious education. You might also learn different ways in which writers sustain themselves.

Suggested reading =>> 70+ Best Udemy Courses

Schedule: Self-paced.
Type: Online video lectures and assignments.
Duration: Depends on the number of video lessons.
Pricing: $5-$177

Pros:

• Self-paced, independent learning.
• Varied individual perspectives.
• Real-time experienced teachers.
• The fee is low (for now).

Cons:

• No job guarantee.
• Sometimes the teachers might not be as professional as we think.
• Many courses, so the selection of a good course becomes difficult.

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#8) edX Creative Writing Courses

Best for full-time students in writing.

edX, like Udemy and Coursera, is an elaborate learning platform. The catch is that edX is not just a platform but the whole institution (or many institutions together). edX provides different types of courses on different streams of interest and from multiple institutions.

Universities like Berkeley, Cambridge, Washington, etc have teamed up with edX and they now offer full-time online courses up to the level of a Master’s program. For the general fee, learners can get their degrees online.

edX also offers Micro-graduate, Micro-postgraduate, or certificate programs to learners and students who wish to do introductory courses before joining full-time degrees.

Duration: Varies with the type of course.
Type: Online video lectures and assignments.
Schedule: Self-paced.
Pricing: Depends on the course.

Pros:

• Effective for people who want to continue their education while working.
• The courses are ‘fool-proof’ because they are provided by reputed institutions.
• edX offers a great chance to learners who want to study in good institutions but cannot afford travel and accommodation along with the course fee.

Cons:

• Students lack a harmonious university environment.
• Some courses are of high cost and some are even higher.
• The professors cannot take live sessions daily and so real-time learning is missing.

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#9) FutureLearn Creative Arts and Media Writing Courses

Best for Beginners, Copywriters, Content Writers.

FutureLearn is another online platform that provides micro-credential courses. These courses become essential while applying for multi-disciplinary jobs or positions. It is natively British and most of the courses provided are run/managed by different facilitators, which may or may not belong to the institution maintaining the course. The different courses provide a well-served buffet for a learner.

There are three kinds of subscription schemes:

1. Free; with limited course material benefits
2. Certification for a specific course (involves fee)
3. Unlimited; which provides a subscription with certification on all FutureLearn courses for a year.

There are mixed reviews on the functioning of the courses, some learners loved it while others have complained about subscription shams and certification problems.

Schedule: Self-Paced.
Type: Online video lectures and assignments.
Duration: Depends on the specific course.
Pricing: $279 for an unlimited subscription.

Pros:

• Free learning on most of the courses.
• Self-paced learning from home.
• Provides clear basic concepts for beginners.

Cons:

• Less practical experience.
• Some users have complained about shams.
• Some users have complained about below-par learning material.

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#10) OpenLearn Creative Writing

Best for Beginners, especially for lifelong learners.

OpenLearn is run by The Open University, which is again natively British. It is an open learning initiative that aims to provide free education to all. Almost all OpenLearn courses are free, and after the course, the learners are provided with an official completion badge.

Some courses that pertain to, say, a Bachelorette or a Masters Degree are fee-based and at the successful completion of such courses, you are officially provided with the specific degree from The Open University (which might or might not be valid in the learner country concerning the credit system).

All the degrees hold the same standards as the degree of any other reputed British University, and so they maintain the class.

Schedule: Self-paced
Type: Online video lectures.
Duration: Lifelong.
Pricing: Free online writing course

Pros:

• Life-long learning material.
• ‘Earn while you learn’ where learners can gain recognition after course completions.
• A social platform for universal education.

Cons:

• Most courses are highly basic.
• Since there is no subscription-based certification for the free courses, a learner cannot officially claim the course on their CVs.

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#11) Emory Continuing Education Creative Writing

Best for students or professionals choosing to be full-time writers.

The ECE runs as a branch of Emory University itself. ECE certificate programs are based on non-credit systems, i.e. a sum total of hours and assignments are required for completion of a course and not a divided sum of hours distributed among sub-courses (as happens in the for-credit system).

Students having an ECE certificate are not labeled matriculated under Emory University but the courses are nevertheless accredited to Emory University. It is a venture for professionals seeking skills to develop their CVs and also promote personal growth.

ECE offers a well-framed creative writing certificate course which may be helpful to professionals or freelancers trying to gain some extra income or make a shift in their careers.

Duration: 6-months or annual sessions.
Type: Online video lectures and assignments.
Schedule: Self-paced.
Pricing: $425/course

Pros:

• A reputed university skill certificate.
• Well-experienced instructors.

Cons:

• Does not offer much variety.
• High fees($425) per elective course.

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#12) Universal Class

Best for all genres of writing.

There are more than 500 writing courses available at UniversalClass. From grammar basics to solid business, Universal class offers you a great deal of variety if you’re looking for polishing your basics or becoming a full-time writer. Similar to other MOOCs, these courses also stand on a subscription basis.

These also offer you a monthly, yearly, bi-yearly, and even a tri-yearly subscription. Although the subscription is somewhat costlier than other MOOCs($189)/yr, Groupon and other libraries offer premium coupons and offers that reduce the pricing to even $89. For some customers, the subscription has been free due to multiple coupons.

Schedule: Self-paced
Type: Online video lectures.
Duration: Depends on the number of video lessons.
Pricing: $189/yr

Pros:

• The content material and variety are huge, so the learner can get almost any genre of course.
• Like every other MOOC, this is also self-paced.
• All the courses are certified.

Cons:

• The subscription fee is higher than other MOOCs.
• Some users have complained about not understanding the course material.
• Some users have complained about the lack of generosity in customer care.

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#13) Writers.com Online Writing Courses

Best for professional full-time writers of any genre.

Gen Z might not be familiar with Writers.com as it has very few ads running throughout the Internet, but that’s just because it doesn’t need that many! Writers.com has been a pioneer in online learning platforms especially online writing classes. It is a full-blown writing school accessible 24/7.

The unique quality of Writers.com is that it offers private classes for an individual learner or even a group of friends, which is not the case with other MOOCs. Started in 1995,Writers.com has great reviews from its learners. The instructors even offer genuine feedback and critique on your written work.

Basically, the aim is to bring talented writers out of the boring and cyclical content and make the learners enthusiastic about their chosen field.

Schedule: Self-paced with interactive real-time sessions.
Type: Online video lectures and Zoom interactive sessions.
Duration: 5 weeks to 10 weeks.
Pricing: $200-$500.

Pros:

• Instructors offer passionate and genuine feedback and analysis.
• Mostly has positive reviews.
• The platform only concerns itself with writing and teaching the art of writing, so that makes it special.

Cons:

• The courses are heavy in terms of a subscription fee (ranging from $200-$500)

Website: https://writers.com/

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#14) The Novelry

Best for beginners as well as experienced writers.

The Novelry is a writing school that offers original and effective courses. The courses are created by an award-winning author. The lessons will be inspiring and there will be a friendly community of fellow writers.

It provides one-on-one tutoring sessions. Various courses are available with The Novelry such as The Book in a Year, The Big Edit, Children’s Fiction, etc. These courses are open to all. The lessons will be deposited into The Novelry’s library daily once you sign up.

Schedule: Self-paced.
Type: One-on-One Session or Access to the course.
Duration: They offer access to the course for a year. You can also try the small monthly subscription.

Pricing: The Novelry offers various courses and the prices are The Big Idea ($149), The Classic Course ($365), The Ninety Day Novel® ($425 for 3 months), and The Editing Courses ($485).

Pros:

• The Novelry offers self-paced courses hence you can set your own schedule.
• It allows to choose your preferred author tutor for one-on-one sessions.
• The course will start immediately after you sign up.
• It supports all currencies and is available worldwide.

Cons:

• It offers access to the entire course only with limited courses like The Big Edit.

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#15) Masterclass

Best for Learning writing for blogs, novels, screenplays, etc.

When it comes to creative writing classes, Masterclass is a different beast altogether. You’ll find bite-sized video lessons on creative writing being offered by the masters of writing themselves. You’ll find creative writing lessons created and taught by the likes of R.L. Stine, Margaret Atwood, Billy Collins, and many more.

The platform covers all sorts of creative writing verticals. Whether it is screenwriting, poetry, or composing a novel, there is a class here for whatever writing skill you wish to master. You’ll learn everything from structuring your ideas to turning your passion for writing into a profitable business.

Suggested Reading => A Complete Review of MasterClass to Know All about it

Duration: 10 Minutes on average
Type: Online Video Lectures
Schedule: Flexible
Pricing: Individual Plan: 15/month, Duo Plan: $20/month, Family: $23/month (billed annually)

Pros:

• Access more than 180 classes with a one-time payment
• Flexible pricing
• Lessons thought by established writers
• Learn at your own pace.

Cons:

• No certification

Website: https://www.masterclass.com/

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FAQs Regarding Writing Courses

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Conclusion

There is an enormous number of courses available to learn the art of writing online, but it depends on the level and comfort of the learner to choose the appropriate course. If one is just a beginner, then one should first opt for some free online creative writing courses, possibly on Coursera or Reedsy. These courses could give the learner a heads-up on what’s going to come next.

Once the beginner studies some free basic courses, they should then try out writing and analyzing their own mistakes and difficulties. Once the problems or gaps are known, it is easy to decide on the type, of course, one wants to opt for.

For people who’ve already done some writing and are looking to build a parallel career based on their writing skills or are trying to strengthen their CVs; certificate courses might come in very handy. By giving the specified amount, one can self-pace themselves towards their credits and earn a major certificate. Most MOOCs can help with this.

For writers who want more personal experiences, feedback, critique, etc should opt for Gotham Writer’s Workshop, Writer’s.com, and if you have some good money saved even Masterclass is a great option.

Our Research:

• Total possible alternatives for online courses on creative writing researched: 27
• Total shortlisted online courses on creative writing: 12

Our reviews are based on analysis and customer experiences. The courses mentioned above have to be analyzed with a specific perspective and need. They do not configure ranks in any order.