Adult Writing Classes - Austin Bat Cave

Austin Bat Cave offers adult writing classes for writers of all skill levels. Because we want our programming to be available to writers of all backgrounds and income-levels, we are pleased to offer participants support through payment plans.

As an organization, ABC is working to ensure that our writing classes, events, and media are equitable and accessible for all. Unless otherwise noted, virtual classes are conducted in English. Currently, we provide students with closed captioning and recorded workshop sessions.* If you need other accommodations that will help us create a healthy mental, physical, and inclusive space, please let us know at registration.

*ABC is committed to student privacy. Recorded sessions will not be made public or available for purchase, with the exception of our SSSF seminars. To encourage open, honest discussion and create an environment of support, instructors of classes with highly-personal, intimate subject matter may decide to record only a portion of class.

The fees from ABC’s adult writing workshops subsidize our free writing programs for kids and pay our adult workshop instructors.

Spring 2025

Reading & Discussion Group: Middlemarch, by George Eliot with Facilitator Rose Smith

Virginia Woolf described Middlemarch as “one of the few English novels written for grownup people.” 150 years later, countless contemporary novelists still cite Eliot’s novel as inspiration for their work. Lauren Groff, in a speech at the Harry Ransom Center, called it the “spirit animal book” of her current project. What makes this 19th century novel about ordinary citizens, leading ordinary, and yet utterly consequential lives, a literary icon? Why does it still capture our imaginations and tell us the truth about ourselves? We’ll do a close reading of the novel, over five sessions, with a determined focus on the role of sympathy in the narration. In the words of Zadie Smith, “the novel is a riot of subjectivity… Middlemarch is a book about the effects of experience that changes with experience. It gets better as you age.” Whether this is your first time reading Middlemarch, or your tenth, think of this as a lively book club for readers of all levels, and for readers who are also writers.

When and Where: Tuesdays, 7:00 – 8:30pm, April 8th – May 6th at First Light Book Shop, 4300 Speedway Unit 104, Austin, TX 78751

About the instructor:

Rose Smith’s fiction and nonfiction can be found in The Missouri Review, CRAFT, Five Points, and The Swannanoa Review. She was the winner of The Missouri Review’s 27th Annual Editors’ Prize and was named a finalist for Narrative Magazine’s 2018 Story Contest. As a film producer, her work has aired on PBS and Sundance Channel among others, and has screened at various festivals, including Sundance, SXSW and MoMA Documentary Fortnight. She received her MFA from the Warren Wilson Program for Writers. Rose lives in Austin, Texas and is currently at work on a novel.

Rose Smith, a white woman with long brown curly hair, smiles at the camera while sitting in a beige chair wearing a red and white floral print dress.

General Info

Class times are listed in Central Time (CT).
All classes are non-refundable but are transferable to another person or to another class of equal or lesser value.
The fees from ABC’s adult writing workshops subsidize our free writing programs for kids and pay our adult workshop instructors. A major factor in determining tuition rates is the instructor’s time and preparation outside of the classroom. Classes that provide students with highly-personalized feedback, such as long-term workshops, will generally be priced higher than courses that meet only once. If you have the means, we encourage you to consider donating to Austin Bat Cave and help arts education and literacy continue to thrive during these challenging times.

Financial Assistance

Most adult classes feature a sliding scale to allow a wider range of participation. A limited number of seats in each class might be reserved for scholarships. Scholarships cover 100 percent of tuition-fees, and are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.

We especially encourage BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ writers to apply, though all are welcome. We do not ask for financial information or outside documents.

You may request a scholarship by emailing info@austinbatcave.org

Special Offers

ABC Virtual Literary Salon: Take advantage of this free archive of reflections and writing prompts from authors in our amazing creative community including Karen Russell, Lara Prescott, and more!

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Recorded Sessions

Image of writer and comedian Sophia Benoit

class Reviews

“The instructor was well prepared and I felt supported as a participant. I enjoyed the writing times she built in. Jenny was a wonderful instructor and did such a wonderful job curating a space that felt safe and connected over Zoom.” – The Personal Essay, Revamped with Jenny Tinghui Zhang

“Shannon is an exceptional instructor. It is clear that she puts so much thought and care in class preparation. She has an incredible teaching style that is warm, engaging, and supportive as well as incredibly challenging. She also did an incredible job leading discussions, which can be hard in in-person classes, but takes on an even more difficult dimension for online classes. The class exceeded my expectations in every possible way.” – Stories that Sing with Shannon Perri

“I found Rachel to be a very skilled teacher—she paced the class well, was well-prepared for each meeting, including having read the students’ submissions, fostered lively and free discussion, and offered specific and valuable feedback. She also handled the transition to on-line for the last two class meetings very well. I think she’s terrific!” – Start Your Novel with Rachel Heng

“I was terrified of writing poetry until I took this class. Now I’m writing poems. That’s in large part because Susan was so kind and nurturing. I know I still have a lot to learn, but now this seems like a journey I’m capable of making.” – You Are A Poet. with Susan Niz

“I left class feeling more inspired than I have been in quite a while.” – LA Seidenberger, Dear Diary with Bridget Brewer

“ABC’s Summer Festival was a remarkable and creative response to the limits imposed by the pandemic. I have admired so many of the writers for quite some time and the opportunity to listen to them and engage with them in a workshop setting has been thrilling. The course cost was very modest considering the amount of thought and preparation that went into all of the programs. Rion Amilcar Scott‘s workshop was very engaging and offered unexpected perspective on world building and far more. ”

“Sophia Benoit’s comedic personal essay class was a wonderful and genuinely insightful lens into the process of a very funny and talented writer. It contained so much that will continue to help me develop my writing practice and it helped a large group of people feel a sense of community through creative vulnerability.” – Nick Bachan

“You guys are a hidden gem! Such an excellent value. . . I could have paid twice this and still felt I had gotten my money’s worth. More of this, please!!!” – Crystal Ockenfuss

“It was amazing! Better than I knew an online seminar could be.”

“The community that was so quickly created in this workshop was so needed, for me anyway, right now. Being among like-minded writers and being able to engage and even share our work gave a fantastic flow to the entire seminar.”