This Stay-at-Home Weekend in St. Petersburg: Activities and Courses

Get your writer’s cap on

Got stories to tell – but don’t know how to tell them? This course by the Open University is here to help, with established writers – including Louis de Bernières, Patricia Duncker, Alex Garland, Abdulrazak Gurnah, Tim Pears, Michèle Roberts and Monique Roffey – giving you their best tips and tricks. You’ll consider the rituals of writing and keeping a journal, learn to develop your ideas, reflect on your own writing and editing, hear the writers talk about their approach to research, and start turning events into plots.

If writing for the screen is more of your jam, take a look at this MOOC by the University of East Anglia, which will introduce you to the basic elements and key concepts behind a professional screenplay. You’ll learn from a mixture of basic theory, script analysis and practical exercises, exploring key principles as they’re expressed in great films, then immediately putting this knowledge in practice. 

Pen your first song

Kick off your journey to the top of the charts with this course by the University of Sheffield, which will familiarize you with the tools and techniques you’ll need to write your first song. You’ll also meet established musicians and songwriters, as well as experts in music and psychology, who will share their insights into what makes a successful song.

Have a go at podcasting

Everyone and their dog now have a podcast – so why not jump on the bandwagon, especially when there is an entire MOOC to initiate you into the art? On this course, offered by the University of Wollongong, you will explore exactly what a podcast is and why it’s so powerful for storytelling. You’ll develop your own plan for a podcast, produce a script, and investigate different platforms for publishing your brand-new creation for the world to enjoy.

Learn a new language

Gripped by wanderlust? Explore new cultures and learn their languages to prepare you for your eventual travels, with the help of online courses. Learn the Korean alphabet Hangeul, fall in love with Mandarin discovering Taiwanese culture in the process, learn to speak everyday Dutch, or master the basics of Norwegian – the internet is your oyster.