Teaching

Eliot’s well-crafted lessons provide writers with practical and engaging strategies for revision and guides them to take the next best step wherever they are in the writing process.  
—K. Zwolenski, Author
I've taught writing and literature in about a million different contexts--and with students of all ages and experience levels--during the past two decades. At the moment, my teaching takes two main forms:
One-one-one writer coaching and lessons for fiction writers in search of goal-setting and accountability, craft skills upgrades, help getting started or with the revision process, or a bubble of support where their writing and creativity matter! If that sounds intriguing, please click through to my Coaching page.
Lit!Commons: The Loft Literary Center's online writing community and learning hub, Lit!Commons offers weekly access-anytime lessons from 10 teaching artists, plus weekly live sessions--and I lead the Revisionary pathway there! Click here to learn more at the Lit!Commons website.

I have also presented and taught about writing, editing, and how stories work through organizations including:
  • The Loft Literary Center
  • Contemporary Romance Writers
  • ACES: The Society for Editing
  • Popular Culture and American Culture Associations
  • International Conference on Narrative
  • St. Olaf College
  • The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
  • Duke Young Writers' Camp
  • ...and many more
Selected classes:
  • Plan and Start Your Romance Novel
  • Inclusive Language Explorations
  • Consent in Fiction: For Writers and Editors in Romance and Beyond
Selected presentations:
  • This Character's “Yes!": Consent and Craft in Romance
  • Finding and Creating Editorial Communities (with co-presenter Laura Burge)
  • Beyond the Gender Binary: Editing for More Inclusive Fiction (with co-presenter Tanya Gold)
  • From Enemies to Lovers with Microsoft Word: Tools and Tips for the Editing Process
Be in touch if your group might be interested in hearing from me!
Eliot West is an inclusive, well-informed, and supportive teacher. ... I highly recommend Eliot as an instructor and look forward to learning from them again in the future.
—Maya Berger, Editor