Writing Imagined Worlds

This program is open to participants 16 and older. If you are younger than 18 please complete your registration (below) and then contact Nandita for a consent form that will need to be signed by your legal guardian: nanditadinesh@gmail.com.

Writers at any stage in their journey are welcome to participate. Exercises are scaffolded to benefit first-time and experienced writers.

Nandita’s approach is rooted in Project Based Learning, which means you learn from her as much as you learn from one another. Everyone brings something to the table, whether they’re writing for the first time or have been at it for years.

During the first month, even writers who arrive with a project already underway are encouraged to explore techniques, either on new texts or by rewriting existing ones. This gives the whole group a shared language to talk about craft, no matter where each person’s work began. The Spotlight then makes sure we all get to hear and learn from each other’s writing.

This is not a lecture-based classroom, and you won’t be taught the “right” way to write. The workshop is about finding your own voice, learning from everyone in the room (new and experienced alike), and discovering that although writing is a solitary practice, you don’t have to be alone while doing it.

UWC stands for the United World Colleges (www.uwc.org). Nandita is an alumna of UWC Mahindra College, India and is a former staff member at the UWCs in India, Armenia, and the USA. This course is endorsed by the international office of the UWC, as an initiative that works toward the movement’s vision.

Participants in this program are automatically eligible for a UWC short course certificate if they meet the attendance requirements: they don’t miss more than one session in each of the first two months, attend their two 1:1 sessions in the third month + successfully complete a final presentation.

Absolutely not. While English is the primary language of facilitation and engagement, you will be welcome to write in the language of your choice. We will use online translators to help support the feedback process.

In order to create a cohesive environment for everyone present, participants are requested to commit to the entire duration of the program.

For applicants to whom the United World College (UWC) Course completion certificate is a desired outcome, attendance is required in at least 3 of the 4 sessions in each of the first two months, followed by attendance at the two 1:1 sessions + final presentation.

The program fee is $350 per person:
You can pay the program fee in full, or in two installments.

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REFUND POLICIES:

• If you cancel one month or more before the program starts, you will receive a full 100% refund of the amount you paid.

• If you cancel between one month and two weeks before the start date, you will receive a 50% refund of the amount you paid.

• If you cancel fewer than two weeks before the start date — or once the program has already begun — no refund will be issued. Exceptions to this final rule are made only in the case of verifiable emergencies.

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SCHOLARSHIP INFORMATION
We have a limited number of full and 50% scholarships available for this program, based on financial need. Our process is as follows:

• Completed applications for scholarships are due ONE MONTH before a program begins.

• Participants are responsible for ensuring that their references submit the required documentation by the deadline (the documentation is explained further in the application form linked below).

• Only complete applications will be shortlisted.

• The day after the deadline, we will use a randomizer to pick scholarship recipients from the shortlist.

• If the applicants who are picked are no longer able to attend, we will move down the list.

• To apply for a scholarship please fill out this form.

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If you’d like to offer this program for a group from your community, please get in touch to discuss a discounted group rate.

Previous scholarship recipients are welcome to apply again. However, priority will be given to those who have not received a scholarship in the last year.

If you would like to join as a group of fewer than 10 people, we recommend signing up as individual registrants i.e., each person registers on their own, enabling us to gather the necessary information from each participant.

If you’d like to offer this program for your community and can guarantee 10 or more participants, please get in touch to discuss a discounted group rate.

Absolutely! If you’d like to gift a spot to a writer in your life, you can do so here. Please note that this is not a traditional gift card and is non-transferrable to other programs. We recommend ensuring that your recipient is aware of the course dates and times; they also need to be 16 or older when the program begins.

If you’d like to gift a spot to someone you don’t yet, we invite you to get to know our scholarship program.