Writers Track and author Julie Smith have come up with an innovative twist on online courses--classes you can take at home that still permit direct contact with teacher and class. The twist? They're given by telephone conference call. (PRWeb) February 15, 2007 -- An innovative course for aspiring novelists who don't have time to go to class -- or can't for some reason -- is now being offered by award-winning novelist Julie Smith, (NEW ORLEANS MOURNING, P.I. ON A HOT TIN ROOF, and many more). "Four great things about it," Smith says. "You can take the course from anywhere in the world; you never have to leave the comfort of your home; you still have close, direct contact with your teacher and classmates; and you can wear whatever you want."

Smith's Great American Novel Track, available at www.writerstrack.com , is given by conference call -- a simple matter of dialing a number and punching in an access code.

Does it work?

"So far just about every one of my students has started a novel," Smith says. "It's turning out to be very motivating. So different from online classes, because you can actually talk to the teacher."

When Smith first heard of the innovation in distance learning, she immediately thought of the technical and time-saving advantages of the system. "It's unbelievably simple, both for teacher and student," she says. "And the sound quality is terrific. The technology allows you to mute everyone but the host, so that all outside interference is filtered out. But here's the best part -- everyone would normally have to get ready for class, drive to campus, find a parking place, and then drive home, all the while arranging their whole morning or evening around the class. You don't have any of that with teleclasses -- they cut at least an hour off your schedule. "

Smith claims you could even do two things at once if you have a headset or speaker phone. "You could actually cook and eat dinner while taking the class," she says. "Or run your normal five miles on the treadmill. So it's great for multi-taskers, people who have trouble getting out -like those with children or transportation problems -and others who are just plain so busy they're never going to take a writing course unless it flies through the window ."

Smith believes just about everyone has a novel in them, but many make the mistake of thinking they know enough to start writing "just because they speak English. Big mistake."

"We teach the barest essentials of fiction -- the very most basic concepts, like voice, point of view, dialogue, structure, and pacing, not to mention our old friends plot and character. You absolutely have to know this stuff to write fiction -- and hardly any beginning writers even know the vocabulary."

Smith is the author of some twenty novels, plus dozens of short stories and essays. She is a winner of the Edgar Allan Poe Award for best novel given by the Mystery Writers of America.

Students can register for the next session, beginning Monday, February 26, on Smith's website, www.writerstrack.com, and can sample the classes one at a time if they choose before signing up for the whole course. For more information, please visit www.writerstrack.com , or call Lindsay Peterson at 504-944-7466 for an interview with Julie Smith or WritersTrack graduates.

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