If you’ve been reading our articles for any length of time (and we thank you very much if you have), then perhaps you are growing familiar with two names – Melinda Long and Tim Davis. (If these names sound new to you, it would be completely worth your clicks and your time to visit both of these talented authors’ sites and to get a feel for the writing and the illustrating they have each done.)
Melinda and Tim are both writers. They’ve both written for us at Traveler Rest Here. (And we are so glad. We are kind of big fans of the both of them.) Tim and Melinda both loves stories about people and history. But there’s more that this pair have in common. They are both full time authors – Melinda has written two New York Times bestsellers for children, as well as several other books, and Tim has authored seven books for children.
Both authors have been honing their crafts for decades. And both authors have used their experiences in writing to teach other hopeful authors a few additional skills as well.
Travelers Rest will be home to their partnership once again this week as Tim and Melinda team up to teach a class entitled Writing & Illustrating for Children for Adult Students. (In case the wording throws you off – it is a class for grown ups. For grown ups to learn about writing for children. Something both Melinda and Tim excel in doing.)
“I taught language arts and just about everything else on a middle school level for 23 years,” Melinda shares. “It was hard to leave teaching, but I did it for the opportunity to write full-time. That’s why teaching adults to strengthen their writing skills is so rewarding. I get the best of both worlds.”
The class, which meets on Thursday nights for six weeks, will help writers make progress on manuscripts that they have already started. There will be help in making revisions, in editing and creating dummy copies for illustrated books.
This is not the first class Tim and Melinda have taught together before. They bring various skill sets to the table and what they offer students in their courses is invaluable as the students progress in their own writing journeys.
“Tim and I have seen some seriously good writing emerge from these classes,” Melinda says.
Tim agrees. “I’ve read some great stories, some going on to publication down the road.”
Students have also often found that the relationships they create through the class and the shared work loads and assignments benefit them long after the six weeks are over.
“The students often develop creative friendships along the way that last well beyond our class times,” Tim says.
Students attending the class come with various styles of writing and ideas already formulated. Tim says they have taught students who are writing anything from board books to young adult fiction.
And this teaching of students and seeing them reach their full potential is something that Tim keeps coming back for. “I’ve been teaching writers for twenty years in various settings, including many community colleges in New York State, as well as here at Greenville Tech and Furman. Few things are as consistently rewarding as helping someone formulate their story, develop their voice, and find the courage and accountability partners in class that will get that story into writing,” he says.
You can register for this class right up until the very minute the class starts – which is this Thursday at 7 p.m. at My Sister’s Store in Travelers Rest.
We’ve got all the details you’ll need right here:
Begins Thursday, April 20.
Class runs six weeks.
Meets Thursdays from 7 to 9 p.m.
Classes held at My Sister’s Store.
Cost is $160 and is due at the first class.
