Praise for Roberta's Workshops

"Roberta Allen is a superb editor with a highly original approach. Her practical, no-nonsence fiction writing techniques work for writers of any level. Her classes are the most effective I have taken."
--Elizabeth Ames

"I have participated in Roberta Allen's workshops for almost four years now, and am so satisfied with the improvement in my writing that I continue taking the workshop even though I have moved to Philadelphia."
--Julie Price

"Roberta is an enormous help to me. First, she guided me from prose poetry to short short fiction and then into short stories. With her support and expertise, I've been able to expand my ideas and take them for all they are worth. Because the setting is non-judgemental, I've taken chances and have been surprised to find they work. Roberta is expert at discerning trouble spots and exploring them in a way that I can see how they are not working or that they work in ways I did not intend. Her way of looking at a story has also helped me hone my own instincts."
--Karen Neuberg

"Roberta Allen has the ability to quickly prune away the weeds in a story and help the writer bring the essentials into the sunlight. She diagnoses problems quickly and deftly, but takes the time needed to guide the author to the solutions. Her critiques are no-nonsense; so are the techniques she suggests for revising, breaking writer's block and expanding short pieces into longer ones."
--Patricia McCormick

From Some of the Many Letters Roberta Has Received

"The experiences and insights on writing you shared with us have been invaluable and have given me even more definite goals for myself."
--Kendall M. Lynch

"I loved your course! It was enlightening and helpful and has affected my writing in a variety of ways."
--Margaret Anderson

"Thank you for a great class and for encouraging me to send my short short stories to magazines. I just got two of them published. I always recommend your class to anyone interested in a writing course. I especially liked the five-minute exercises."
--Cynthia Lewis

"I just want to thank you for your help, your advice, and fleeting moments of wondrous conversation."
--Larry Ross

"It was a real pleasure being in the Sunday workshop. I've been writing so much since then and finding a clearer focus on a story that has been problematic, thanks to you and the other writers in the group."
--Annecy Baez

"I've really enjoyed your class an awful lot. It was a lot of fun and VERY challenging. I must admit I thought you were crazy to want a piece written in five minutes but I saw your point quickly too! Thank you for your encouragement: you repaired all the damage done by the professor who assured me I couldn't write for toffee! Lastly, I have to thank you for convincing me to write EVERY day. Even a little story is excellent practice for the larger picture. You see, I always assumed I was going to have problems with the day-to-day discipline of writing. I honestly don't see that as a problem anymore!
--Paddy

"Taking your class has been an extraordinary journey for me. I had never written fiction before - or anything else for that matter. Now that's all I think about. I want to thank you for being an inspiration to us all. Your book is a great tool!"
--Tatiana Abbey

"Two weeks ago I had the opportunity to read my Vietnam story to an audience of 300. What an experience! Thanks to you this story developed. I got many compliments."
--Alison White

"I love your meticulous editing."
--Stephanie Dickenson