Writing by the Lake offers community members the opportunity to take writing seminars from award-winning authors at Lake Forest College.
Learn essential techniques and experiment with new forms.
You’ll connect with other writers from the community, and our outstanding faculty will provide individual advice and mentorship for your work. Whether you are a novice or a pro, Writing by the Lake will let you get to the next level.
Taught by award-winning authors, each seminar consists of four two-hour sessions and ends with an individual evaluation and “Next Steps” conference. Your “Next Steps” conference will provide one-on-one time with your Writing by the Lake faculty member to discuss where to take your writing next.
Fall 2025 Class
Screenwriting with Professor Joshua Corey, Poet and Novelist Professor of English and Creative Writing at Lake Forest College
Time: Wednesdays, 9:30am-11:30 am
Dates: September 24, October 1, 8, 15 and 22
Location: Lake Forest College Krebs Center for Humanities, 1045 Walden Road, Lake Forest, IL 60045
Have you ever thought of writing your own screenplay? Join us for this five-week seminar led by Professor Joshua Corey, award-winning Lake Forest College Professor of English, as he walks you through the art of creating a screenplay. This class is open to both novice and experienced writers, and will be a hands-on seminar with instruction, group discussion, and in-class writing exercises.
This class will cover all aspects of screenwriting, including plot structure, creating dynamic characters, and writing compelling dialogue. The five-session course meets once a week for two hours in the beautiful Krebs Center for Humanities House, just east of the Lake Forest College campus. At the end of the seminar, each student has the option of a one-on-one consultation with Professor Corey.
Joshua Corey is a poet, critic, translator, and novelist whose most recent publications include Shelter in Place (an ebook), How Long Is Now (Spuyten Duyvil, 2022), a novel; and Hannah and the Master (MadHat Press, 2021), a work of speculative poetry. Learn more at joshua-corey.com.
How to Apply
It’s easy! Submit the Writing by the Lake application. You will be asked to tell us about your writing experience and goals, and to provide a brief writing sample (up to 500 words).
For more information, please contact Don Meyer at meyer@lakeforest.edu or 847-735-5171.
Tuition
Tuition for a Writing by the Lake seminar is $350, which includes four two-hour class sessions, an end-of term writing project evaluation report, and a “Next Steps” conference with your faculty mentor.