DETAILS

Part lecture, part workshop, this course will take you through the process of outlining, writing, editing, and submitting a children's picture book. Through weekly writing assignments, you'll master essential craft elements including plotting, outlining, and crafting a narrative arc.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Write in pictures
• Use techniques for hooking readers and editors
• Practice the science of making language sing
• Understand why editors like to choose their own illustrators
• Apply the nuts and bolts of marketing a manuscript

By the end of class, you will have:
A completed picture book manuscript, along with a cover letter for sending it out.

• Lessons: Learn new skills through video-based lessons
• Discussion: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

DETAILS

Are you struggling to make the transition from print to digital sales? With advertising budgets going increasingly online and mobile, this course will teach you the skills you need to stay ahead of the game. Learn the fundamentals of digital sales, including how ads are delivered and priced and how performance is tracked. You will develop a deeper understanding of industry terminology, standards, and trends. You’ll be able to craft competitive digital proposals and successfully manage their delivery.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Create and sell competitive digital proposals
• Understand industry terminology, standards, and trends
• Analyze and measure the performance of ad campaigns
• Understand the client POV to create effective proposals
• Manage research and creative for digital ad campaigns

By the end of class, you will have:
A framework in place for selling digital ad campaigns.

The online classroom has several components:

• Lessons: Learn new skills through video-based lessons
• Discussion: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

DETAILS

The op-ed page is the most sought-after real estate in any publication, with more venues for your work as newspapers, magazines, websites, and blogs expand first-person content. Op-eds provide an opportunity for you to showcase great writing while laying out forceful arguments. This class will show you how to write powerful op-ed pieces that will make your voice heard in print, online, and around the world.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Conceive and structure a convincing op-ed
• Organize your thoughts to present the best argument possible
• Decide which topics have the most impact
• Use first-person technique to write an engaging essay
• Make a pitch editors will notice

By the end of class, you will have:
Three op-ed pieces, pitch letters, and ideas on where to pitch.

Students who have taken this class have been published in:
Huffington Post, the Los Angeles Times, NY Post, NY Daily News, The New York Times, the Washington Post, and Newsweek.

The online classroom has several components:

• Lessons: Learn new skills through written lessons
• Discussions: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

DETAILS

Networks are always looking for the next great show. And with so many cable networks actively seeking original programming, the time has never been better to develop and pitch your own series idea.

In this intensive course, you'll learn how to develop your own television pilot idea, express it as a logline, structure the pilot, write a professional outline, and pitch the pilot idea.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Write a logline that will capture a producer's attention
• Create compelling characters
• Apply the rules of TV structure (A story/B story/C story, episodic versus serial programming) to your writing
• How to make your idea sustainable and saleable
• What to include in your pitch -- and what to leave out

By the end of the class, you will have:
A logline, a pitch, and a detailed outline of your project.

• Lessons: Learn new skills through written lessons
• Discussions: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

DETAILS

This class will provide you with the skills necessary to find work as a professional fashion writer. Through insight into the fashion world and media, you'll learn to grasp the different styles of fashion journalism and gain insight into and an understanding of the fashion industry.

Using trend reports, reviews of collections, and analyzing the craft and business of fashion, you'll learn how to tackle fashion stories from different angles for high fashion magazines, non-traditional publications, and websites. Learn the value of networking, creating and keeping contacts, and how to work with PR to get the heads-up on scoops and invites to press launches and fashion shows. You'll also learn to write pitch letters and emails to secure interviews with designers.

Throughout the course, you'll build a portfolio of spec clips that will exhibit your ability to analyze and report on fashion.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Watch shows, interpret collections, and develop an eye for inspiration
• Write fashion headlines, runway reviews, and fashion features
• Use your personal style to create stories that editors crave
• Understand the differences between fashion editors, writers, and freelancers
• Write compelling pitch letters

By the end of class, you will have: 
A pitch letter for a fashion feature and a collection of clips for a high fashion magazine.

Students who have taken this class have been published on:
NYMag.com, Glamour.com, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The online classroom has several components:

• Lessons: Learn new skills through video-based lessons
• Discussion: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

DETAILS

Remember The Glass Castle? It's time for you to write your New York Times bestseller.

This class is geared towards anyone ready to write a memoir but needs to learn how to tell it -- and sell it. You'll participate in a stimulating, supportive environment where you can workshop your memoir-in-progress and receive invaluable feedback.

Through weekly assignments and lectures, you will learn how to turn your idea into a book deal and produce up to 50 pages of text and an outline. You will also learn about craft, style, and the development of your unique voice.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Find your authentic voice and unlock memories
• Know what the 'theme' of your story is
• Find the most effective structure for your story
• Approach literary agents
• Understand techniques for selling a memoir before you have finished writing it

The online classroom has several components:

• Lessons: Learn new skills through written lessons
• Discussion: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

CERTIFICATE Use this course to earn a certificate in Public Relations.

DETAILS

Over the last decade, we've seen an unprecedented surge of interest in public relations that is creating an incredible abundance of PR jobs in firms, corporations, non-profits, and consulting.

In this course, learn how to break into PR, enhance your skills, and develop PR programs. You'll also find out everything you need know to get that all-important first job.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Develop a targeted, tactical PR plan that generates results
• Write dynamic biographies for yourself, your clients, and your associates
• Execute a targeted media outreach program geared to the needs of your client
• Draft attention-getting media pitch letters
• Distribute a news release

By the end of class, you will have:
A tactical public relations plan, a corporate biography, and a news release you can use in job interviews.

• Lessons: Learn new skills through video-based lessons
• Discussion: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

CERTIFICATE Use this course to earn a certificate in Digital Marketing. 

DETAILS

With the proliferation of smart mobile devices, marketers have more access to consumers than ever.

In this course, you'll learn how to conceive, implement, and manage a mobile marketing strategy. We'll examine the growth of the mobile marketplace, from text messages to apps to the rise of HTML5 as the next web standard. We'll also cover how to use analytics to determine where to focus your mobile efforts to maximize engagement with your branded content.
 
In this class, you will learn how to:

• Optimize content and email marketing efforts for mobile devices
• Use analytics to determine where to focus mobile efforts
• Understand the anatomy of a mobile landing page
• Know when to use text message (SMS) and multimedia message (MMS) campaigns
• Audit a multi-faceted mobile strategy

By the end of class, you will have:
A thorough understanding of mobile marketing and a campaign strategy.

DETAILS

Travel writing is a way to engage with the world and to build a bridge that brings faraway places home. This advanced class for experienced writers examines the romance and realities of this exciting and lucrative market.

You'll consider the various forms of the field, from travel-related news items to personal essays, with the goal of selling these pieces to local, regional, and national publications. Each week, students will be assigned a travel-related article up to 1,000 words, along with an optional pitch letter, and will investigate unfamiliar neighborhoods, seek out experts in the field, and demonstrate the highest levels of research and reporting.

This course generally requires a commitment of at least eight hours a week of outside work.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Use where you live to break into the travel market
• Find and develop your beat
• Make travel a conduit to writing beyond the travel section
• Write perfect pitch letters
• Negotiate with your editor for travel compensation

By the end of class, you will have:
A complete portfolio of eight publishable articles and pitch letters. Assignments will generally include a travel-related news item, a service round-up, a destination piece, a day trip within the region, a historical research piece, an article on the tourism business, and a personal travel essay.

Students who have taken this class have been published in: Travel + Leisure, The New York Times, The New York Times Magazine, Vogue, The Los Angeles Times, Budget Travel, Dwell, Gourmet, Men's Journal, Modern Bride, National Geographic Traveler, Salon.com, Saveur, Time Out New York, New York Magazine, The Boston Globe, Conde Nast Traveler, and The San Fransisco Chronicle.

• Lessons: Learn new skills through written lessons
• Discussions: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

DETAILS

Since its launch in January 2013, Vine has added sound and motion to Twitter, making microblogging even more fun and interactive. These six-second videos are a great way to get noticed on the web and get the word out about your brand, project, or business. 

In this webcast, Gemma Craven, executive vice president and New York group director of Social@Ogilvy, will show you how her team has used Vine to demonstrate tricky concepts and bring information to life for brands like State Street asset management and Twitter’s own ad API. She’ll show you what works and what doesn’t work on Vine and answer your questions about how to make the video app work for you and your brand. 

You'll learn how to:

• Create Vine videos that will stand out and get noticed 
• Choose effective content and visuals that will work for your audience
• Write a script, storyboard, and shoot your video
• Use mentions and hashtags to draw attention to your Vines on Twitter 
• Embed Vine posts on the web to enhance your site

How this works:

• You'll participate in a live video discussion with an expert speaker who will provide insights, case studies, and real-world examples of strategies that have worked
• You'll have the chance to ask questions and get advice from the speaker in real time
• You'll receive a copy of the speaker's presentation slides and access to a recording of the presentation
• If you can't make it to the live presentation, you can watch the recording for one week after the live broadcast.

DETAILS

This class will teach you how to create and edit entire pages in Adobe InDesign, the industry-standard page layout program for magazines, newspapers, and print content publishers.

Through lessons and assignments, you'll gain hands-on experience and practice. Weekly discussions include live video presentations and demos through our webcast platform. After this class, you'll be able to confidently add "skilled in Adobe InDesign" to your resume.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Use the toolbar and palettes
• Create and edit style sheets
• Import images, add colors, and change colors
• Change and edit the built-in spell check
• Customize your hyphenations

By the end of class, you will have:
Knowledge of Adobe InDesign for editing projects.

You will need access to Adobe InDesign software to complete assignments. You can download a free 30-day trial version of the Adobe InDesign CS5 at adobe.com. Students can complete assignments using any version of InDesign.

CERTIFICATE Use this course to earn a certificate in Digital Journalism.

DETAILS

You’ve mastered writing and editing for publications. But can you crop and resize photos, navigate a content management system, or understand what makes a great user experience?

Thanks to improvements in computer software and content management systems, you don’t have to be a web developer or tech person to create dynamic digital content. Through assignments and discussions, you will learn how to think past the written word and create content that is multi-dimensional and editorially relevant, uses the web to its full potential, create stories that have social media campaigns built in, and increases your value as an employee.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Navigate and create content in a basic Content Management System, such as WordPress
• Crop, resize, and optimize photos, create graphics, and enhance static text through basic HTML/CSS
• Understand what makes a user-friendly website and how to create UGC contests that maximize and enhance your social presence
• Know which web technologies to follow and which to ignore
• Measure effectiveness and revenue potential through traffic and user engagement analytics

By the end of class, you will have:
A thorough understanding of how to conceptualize, articulate, and execute digital content that enhances your site’s editorial mission and is technologically sound.

The online classroom has several components:

• Lessons: Learn new skills through video-based lessons
• Discussion: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

CERTIFICATE Use this course to earn a certificate in Ad Copywriting or Public Relations.

DETAILS

DETAILS

Learn how to write a video script and light, shoot, and edit your footage. We'll also show you how to broadcast your brand content or creative project on video-sharing sites like YouTube and Vimeo. 

We'll explore examples of engaging online video, discuss the cameras and microphones you'll need, and teach you the basics of shooting, editing, and distributing your content.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Integrate video into your content plan 
• Draft and edit video scripts 
• Light, record, and shoot video for the web
• Select the software programs you need to know
• Post and tag your entries on YouTube and Vimeo to attract new viewers

By the end of class, you will have:
A video posted to YouTube or Vimeo and the skills to complete new projects going forward.

Students will need their own consumer-grade cameras to complete the assignments for this class. 

CERTIFICATE Use this course to earn a certificate in Copy Editing.

DETAILS

Remember sixth grade English class? We don't either.

Get a grammar refresher and learn the rules that matter and those you can break. This course will help you navigate best grammar and style practices to produce clear, concise and engaging copy for editorial, business, or creative writing.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Understand the various parts of speech
• Make sure your subjects, verbs, and objects agree
• Ensure that punctuation serves the sentence
• Craft a perfect sentence
• Define of exactly what style is and why it differs from style guide to style guide

By the end of class, you will have:
Training in the fundamentals of grammar to improve your current and future writing projects.

DETAILS

Learn how to make the current climate in both publishing and parenting work for you. We'll explore the different outlets available to parenting writers, from blogs to websites to magazines, as well as the story ideas and formats that editors are looking for. Learn the nuts and bolts of researching, writing, and revising a parenting story. We'll also show you how blog posts, magazine stories, and newspaper stories differ, and how to develop strong relationships with your editors. 

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Mine your life, experience, and connections for ideas
• Define yourself as a parenting writer
• Identify which market is right for you -- magazines, blogs, or websites
• Target your pitches
• Research topics and identify sources

By the end of class, you will have:
Two stories with pitch letters, a list of targeted venues for publication, and a strategy for getting published.

• Lessons: Learn new skills through written lessons
• Discussion: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

CERTIFICATE Use this course to earn a certificate in Copy Editing.

DETAILS

This course is for anyone who wants to break into copy editing or feel more confident wrangling words. We'll cover the basics, from understanding copy editing marks to avoiding rookie grammar mistakes. You'll have the tools needed to enter the field and an understanding of how to create smooth, readable copy. And you'll have another skill you can add to your resume and put into action.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Determine when a sentence needs tweaking or is best left alone
• Understand copy editing lingo, including proofreading symbols and common terms
• Navigate stylebooks and prepare for a copy editing test
• Find the best reference materials for a copy editing assignment
• Tailor a resume and find copy editing jobs

By the end of class, you will have:
Knowledge of the copy editing field and the tools to pursue a job as a copy editor.

• Lessons: Learn new skills through written lessons
• Discussion: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM
  
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

DETAILS

• Lessons: Learn new skills through video-based lessons
• Discussions: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions

DETAILS

The advertising landscape is changing, with new opportunities to run ads online in addition to traditional print, television, and out of home campaigns. But the process for selling digital ads is different, and to land clients you'll need to know how to approach them and convince them to use some of their ad budgets online. From knowing who to reach out to, what to include in a proposal, and how to close the deal, this webcast will take you through the digital ad sales process.

You'll learn how to:

• Navigate a corporate and agency org chart
• Understand the role of the media buying/planning agency, the CMO, and niche positions
• When and why to go to the client directly
• Break down a brand portfolio like P&G or Ford Motor 
• Stay ahead of the planning cycle
• Understand the process of selection on the agency and client side

How this works:

• You'll participate in a live video discussion with an expert speaker who will provide insights, case studies, and real-world examples of strategies that have worked
• You'll have the chance to ask questions and get advice from the speaker in real time
• You'll receive a copy of the speaker's presentation slides and access to a recording of the presentation
• If you can't make it to the live presentation, you can watch the recording for one week after the live broadcast.

CERTIFICATE Use this course to earn a certificate in Public Relations.

DETAILS

To start or grow your public relations business, you need to land new accounts, manage existing clients, and exceed expectations. Learn how to approach the business development process, develop and qualify prospects, respond to prospects’ needs, create a winning pitch, and close faster.

In this class, you will learn how to:

• Find, target, and qualify new business leads
• Launch a sales campaign and lead prospects through the path to closing
• Prepare winning sales presentations and deliver your pitch
• Use digital media to enhance your network
• Sell add-on services to existing clients for increased revenue

By the end of class, you will have:
The skills to win business, qualify leads, and close new accounts. You'll also know how to structure client relationships, account for scope creep, and offer additional services to maximize returns.

The online classroom has several components:

• Lessons: Learn new skills through writtenand video-based lessons
• Discussion: Join a weekly live, interactive discussion via IM and video
• Assignments: Complete homework and receive instructor feedback
• Forums: Exchange resources, meet peers, and ask your instructor questions