Granta Writers' Workshop

Video | What Makes Granta Workshops Special?

Managing Director of Granta Trust Luke Neima outlines the vision behind the Granta workshops and presents the exceptional talent behind the learning experience.

Luke Neima | on Granta Writers’ Workshop

We wanted to provide a means by which people who were serious about their writing – working writers – could find a way to improve their technique, to learn more about writing, and to do so with reference to the best writing that we’ve published in the past.

As an editor, I’ve always felt that the best way to improve your work is by reading – and with reference to the sort of writing that you want to do.

I think looking at the work of past writers is an essential thing, and being able to read writers from the Granta archive, and to sit down and really learn from what they’re doing – to try and take it apart and really understand the sorts of decisions they’re making in terms of form, in terms of scene setting, dialogue – those technical decisions are often behind the scenes.

I think as editors we’re always looking for voice, and we’re looking for confidence in a piece of writing. The subject matter itself is almost less important to the way that a thing is expressed. And I think for an author to do that, they have to have a lot of confidence in their skillset; in the way in which they approach a story. They have to feel able to just write from the heart or to express themself naturally, to take risks.

You need to have read across the genre. You need to read deeply and think deeply about the other authors working in that space. So we’ve designed these courses to look at the great writers in Granta’s history, and we’ve engineered it so that you’ll learn from their work.

And the courses offer a space where working writers can do that. They can look at the work their peers are doing. They can read the work that’s being published by the top writers in the field, and they can have a one-on-one with an expert tutor and writer who can draw the best out of them.

So it’s important to have that community, and to have other people reading you and asking you questions that can allow you to refocus your own thinking on a project and reorient yourself – and to surprise yourself as well. That’s what we hope these courses will provide.

Testimonials

By the end of the course, I wasn’t just leaving with new ideas about craft- I was leaving with a finished novella and a stronger belief in the possibility of a writing life. The Novel Writing course helped me see that becoming an author isn’t an impossible dream reserved for others. For the first time, it felt like something I could genuinely work towards.

Abigail Hutchison
Writing a Literary Novel alum

The course is a generative writing space, and I got to connect with other writers. I’m disabled and navigating chronic illnesses, so the asynchronous format is ideal for what my body needs.

Crow Lyman
Writing Nature alum

There are lots of asynchronous courses available but this one provides a community as well. I’m looking forward to trying new things and seeing how they land, and what better way to do so than with a group of like-minded people all seeking to do the same.

Rosie
Writing Memoir alum

The course transformed my writing at a neural pathway level.

Krupa Ge
Writing Literary Short Fiction alum

Before the course, writing often felt like a solitary act, something I did quietly, without much sense of where it might lead. But through the Granta literary fiction course, that began to change. The tutors and fellow writers created a space that was both generous and rigorous, where thoughtful feedback and genuine enthusiasm for each other’s work made a real difference.

Abigail Hutchison
Writing a Literary Novel alum

What made the experience so meaningful was the sense that my voice mattered. The discussions, the careful reading of our work, and the encouragement to take risks on the page all helped me grow in confidence as a writer. Instead of feeling like I was experimenting with stories in private, I began to feel part of a wider community of people who cared deeply about fiction.

Abigail Hutchison
Writing a Literary Novel alum

I’m so sad that our workshop is coming to an end. I feel I have gotten to know people on a deeper level based on their writing and how they look at the literature we have consumed. Sometimes I wonder if our closest friends even know this side of us or are capable of knowing (most of my friends do not read or write).

Tiffany X Yun
Writing Literary Short Fiction alum

Getting to know people through their writing is such a unique and privileged way of learning about someone; it is vastly different to the day-to-day knowing.

J Min Wang
Writing Literary Short Fiction alum

Thanks for a great course, Sarah! It helped me reconnect with my love of writing and reading, amidst very challenging times in the US where so much is money-based, transactional and business-oriented. I plan to do a mini-writing exercise from your list every day from now on before I write a section of my novel, the way stage actors warm up before a performance doing zip-zap-zop and the like.

Aurelie Thiele
Writing a Literary Novel alum

This is the longest piece I’ve ever written and the most personal. I can’t say how valuable and meaningful the careful critiques have been from Midge and the group! It’s helped me see my writing from different, crucial angles.

Corrina Allen
Writing Memoir alum