You can now review Claire Keegan’s courses and workshops, and read previous reviews, on g.page/ckfictionclinic/review
Review Claire’s classes on https://www.facebook.com/ckfictionclinic/reviews/
Reviews
“I attended Claire’s classes at Trinity and always came away feeling inspired and encouraged. I find I come back to pieces of her advice regularly – about fattening up the text, being generous to the reader, and simply staying in my seat to get the work done.” Sorcha Hamilton
“I’ve been to a few writing instructors but found only one or two who really spoke to me. Last week Claire Keegan really spoke to me. I came away inspired, enlightened, and energised, a very good bargain for a few dollars. I hadn’t heard of Claire Keegan when I signed up for the course at the end of last year, but since then I’ve read some of her stories. She has only written short stories, so far, and if you are looking for the highest quality in short stories, read her work.” Desmond Kelly, Australia (read his complete article here)
“I participated in one of Claire’s earliest workshops in a hotel in Stillorgan shortly after the publication of Antarctica. It was one of the most profound workshops I’ve ever attended, not just for craft, but for the care she extended to all fledgling writers.” Paul Curley, Dublin
“I went to two of Claire’s courses. They were intense experiences, sitting with new perspectives, new ways of seeing, feeling things open up. I learnt things that stayed with me deeply: how having respect and compassion for the characters of your story elevates the work. How I needed to “go into the loss”, rather than avoid that difficult place. And much more. Before her courses, I thought just writing would eventually teach me how to write. Now I understand that I can learn so much more from reading, and how to do that. Before her courses, I didn’t feel confident about writing fiction, worrying I didn’t have the imagination. Now I have a new sense of solidity and trust. I trust the road I’m walking down now. So, a truly unique, invaluable experience, and highly recommended!” A. Chipper, Ireland
“I’ve tried quite a few writing courses over the years and I’ve always learned something at them. I was often advised to read. It wasn’t bad advice. It is, in fact, excellent advice, but as an avid reader, it wasn’t what I felt I needed to hear. Claire’s writing courses are different. You will leave her courses changed – her eyes will continue to guide you as you read and her voice will be in your ear as you write. She shows you how to attend to your characters’ eyes and hands so that you follow their desire. Her courses not only distill the craft of writing but unlock the imagination and honor the complexity of human longing.” M. Ryan, Ireland
“I went to two of Claire’s courses. They were intense experiences, sitting with new perspectives, new ways of seeing, feeling things open up.
I learnt things that stayed with me deeply: how having respect and compassion for the characters of your story elevates the work. How I needed to “go into the loss”, rather than avoid that difficult place. And much more.
Before her courses, I thought just writing would eventually teach me how to write. Now I understand that I can learn so much more from reading, and how to do that. Before her courses, I didn’t feel confident about writing fiction, worrying I didn’t have the imagination. Now I have a new sense of solidity and trust. I trust the road I’m walking down now.
So, a truly unique, invaluable experience, and highly recommended! ” S. Trieux, Ireland
“I’ve been to Claire Keegan’s manuscript workshop, and her weekend on ‘Beginnings, Middles and Endings’. She’s FANTASTIC. I recommend her courses to everyone I know who’s serious about writing. Don’t let the cost put you off, it will be the best money you ever spent. ” C. Adam, Ireland
“Claire Keegan’s fiction classes are phenomenal. She is as talented at teaching, as she is at writing, which is really saying something! Claire’s theory on how to structure narrative is compelling, and her advice to writers regarding how to raise their prose to the next level is incisive. You will come away from her classes with a much keener eye in relation to both writing and editing your work. For anyone seeking to improve her writing craft, I’d highly recommend attending a workshop.” F. Ennis, Waterford
“Claire Keegan’s workshops are a (sometimes terrifying) joy to attend. I have never encountered a teacher like her – she is so insightful and honest and passionate about her subject. I haven’t once come away from a workshop without having had a eureka moment about my writing. She sets the bar high but what I also appreciate about the workshops is that Claire never adjusts that bar for anyone – that seems to me a real mark of respect to her students.” L. Costello, Dublin
“Attending Claire’s manuscript workshop was like a shot of adrenaline in the arm, lovingly administered. Claire gets to the heart of the matter in a way few others can, offering keen insights with candour and heartfelt generosity. I highly recommend Claire’s workshops to anyone who is looking to develop their fiction writing. ” M. Allen, Dublin
“Claire Keegan’s fiction classes are phenomenal. She is as talented at teaching, as she is at writing, which is really saying something! Claire’s theory on how to structure narrative is compelling, and her advice to writers regarding how to raise their prose to the next level is incisive. You will come away from her classes with a much keener eye in relation to both writing and editing your work. For anyone seeking to improve her writing craft, I’d highly recommend attending a workshop.” Fiona Ennis, Ireland.
” I have attended writing courses given by Claire Keegan that examined the works of the great masters of fiction and workshops based on participants’ manuscripts. I have found both the workshops and courses to be enriching and stimulating. As a result of attending these courses and workshops I have begun to read widely, carefully and attentively. Claire Keegan has the absolutely rare quality of making participants curious about how people manage to live ordinary lives and how they always managed. Claire is meticulous in preparation for each workshop and fair and respectful towards all participants. Her feedback is thorough, useful and focused. She is extremely generous in sharing her insights and has the strength of character and innate kindness to enable her students to risk sharing their work with others.” Margaret Mary Lynch, Dublin.
“I have learned a great deal from Claire Keegan’s generous teaching. The Fiction Workshops have helped me to become a better reader, to care, more critically, not just about how my own work is made but about the work of others, also. The courses are consistently thorough and well planned and provide the necessary focus on the craft of writing and the importance of structure. Days spent exploring the art of the short story through the works of Chekov and Carver, Cheever and McGahern, were valuable, enriching and memorable.” M.G. Murphy, Dublin.
“Claire Keegan deserves her reputation as a fine teacher of writing. In two days (Beginnings, Middles, Endings class in London) Claire’s insights, shared with clarity, humour and authority, changed the way I read and think about stories. I’ve also received Claire’s advice on two short manuscripts — in her feedback, she was direct and honest and got to the heart of things, breathing new life into my work. ” Chetna Maroo, London
“Claire Keegan teaches the craft of fiction with inimitable skill and intensity. Her content-packed courses cover fundamentals like the ‘who’, ‘when’ and ‘where’ of beginnings, ‘going into the loss’ and ‘following the feet’ – topics I had never encountered in other courses or books on creative writing. Her manuscript-based workshops are not for the faint of heart – with disconcerting insight and forthrightness, she shredded my prose and my paragraphs. However unlike Humpty Dumpty, Claire provides guidance to help put my writing together again. I strongly recommend Claire’s courses and workshops to anyone who feels their writing is not quite working and doesn’t know why or how to put it right. My regret is that I live too far away to attend them more frequently.” SL, Singapore
“I have just returned from a writers’ weekend with Claire Keegan. A great writer doesn’t always make for a great writing teacher but Claire is both, sharing her knowledge with seriousness and authority, whilst remaining playful, reactive and magically in the moment.
Her deep and insightful knowledge of writers and their writing craft was inspiring, and she helped foster an extraordinarily heightened atmosphere of supportiveness and commitment to learning from all the writers attending. A wonderful kick-start to my own writing in 2020: I immediately signed up for another of her workshops on Chekhov and Carver in Dublin in February. ” A. M.
“Thanks to a residential writing retreat – complete with silent writing spaces without mobiles – I am more open to the heart of my writing and back on track. Claire has such generosity of spirit and shared her writing experience and knowledge which allowed for enlightening discussions and encouragement. I am already looking forward to my next writing retreat with Claire. ” S.G.
“I have attended several of Claire Keegan’s workshops and each time I find my mind blown, my learning about the elements necessary for writing strong, fresh prose reinforced. Claire’s passion for reading and writing illuminate her sessions and her thoughtful analysis convinces me she is the best teacher of creative writing a fellow writer could ask for. Writers wishing to improve their craft by enrolling on MA Creative Writing programmes would do well to save their money and sign up for Claire’s courses instead.” H. V.
“Wonderfully alive masterclass – bit of a privilege – I felt to listen to Clare – getting to the heart of story writing- and not in an academic way but through the blood and guts of finding, fixing, stirring a story to life. I did return with many notes but that is not the point. I felt physically invigorated, as well as intellectually armed to keep writing. Can only hope my stories are some kind of testimony to being there.” Dee Bee
“Claire Keegan’s workshops clearly and carefully lay out for participants the elements necessary for writing strong, fresh prose. Key among the learning I have come away with is that writers need to be kind to their readers. Above all, through Claire’s teaching I appreciate character as a physical body moving through time. Claire’s passion for reading and writing illuminate her sessions and her thoughtful analysis convinces me that she is the best teacher of creative writing a fellow writer could ask for. ” H.W.
“This was my third workshop. Claire puts so much energy into both her preparation and her delivery. I always come away full of questions, answers and ideas. For aspiring writers I suspect these workshops are essential, but for anyone who simply loves literature these workshops help you to understand exactly why it is you love it. The guided discussions are always robust and challenging. Claire never patronises but encourages exploration.For this workshop, the selection of stories was both imaginative and stimulating. Claire’s approach was creative. I would feel able to recommend these workshops to anyone with a love of the written word.” J.L.
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“Attending a Claire Keegan course on creative writing is a major treat. She’s a wonderful teacher, exposing students to the greatest authors and texts, breaking down the process of what makes fiction work and bringing it to life. We’re very lucky to have a creative writer and teacher of Claire’s calibre in Ireland.” D. O. B.
“Claire Keegan is an incredible writing teacher. I’ve been to four courses with her, and have reached a level with my writing I didn’t think was possible. Her passion for literature is inspiring. As is her generosity as a teacher. She really shares everything – all the insights/understandings about fiction that she has toiled to gain. I’ve done manuscript courses with her (where she gives feedback on submitted work) and courses analysing the published work of fiction masters, and both kinds of course have been excellent. If you want to up your game, book a course with her!” P. M. N.
“The two-day course on dialogue with Claire was excellent, as expected. Claire is able to cut to the very core of a chosen story and demonstrate the writer’s skill. In the course on dialogue in early October, Claire showed, very clearly, the difference between drama and tension, between feelings and emotion. In the two days she managed to get through 8 short stories and an extract from a novel, all from well-known writers. The stories were very different but there was something to be learned from each one. After two days, after looking closely at the texts and learning new techniques in story-telling, your head is full and you’re in a rush home to your desk to improve your own writing. ” M.R.
“Workshop “What’s the point in talking?” October 5&6 2019 I learnt an immense deal of things about the nature of dialogue in a work of fiction, and how it affects the story both structurally and semantically. Claire was tremendously well prepared – we were given 9 texts to read prior to the workshop, and we managed to discuss all of them, and I felt not a second was wasted. It was intense and beautifully enriching. If you want to work hard, listen to someone who is willing to share their knowledge and experience with you, enjoy talking about Literature which is talking about the human condition, then Claire Keegan is your teacher. ” V.N.
“I went to my first course with Claire Keegan in October and was blown away by the quality of the lectures and the insights I was given. No creative class I attended before was this thorough, enjoyable and useful. I would highly recommend it.” Monica Strina, Dublin.