My signature Write Where You Are online writing circles are containers in which creativity flourishes. Most members have profound, intimate, productive, and transformational experiences. Participants connect deeply with themselves and others. These circles include a wide range of writers, from beginners to pros, working across genres. We all learn from each other. Writing Circle members receive coaching from me while they write novels, memoirs, poetry, short stories, articles, blogs, essays, plays, and more. I am an experienced, skillful facilitator who knows how to create and maintain a safe, sacred space in which magical things unfold! This group will inspire you to write what wants to be expressed through you. Our circles take place via Zoom. Students from all over the English-speaking world participate. All you need is a computer with internet connection. Participants write and read in every meeting. It’s celebratory, inspirational, and fun!
FALL 2025 WRITING CIRCLES:
MONDAY: CIRCLE #1 8 Mondays, October 6 - December 1 1:00 - 3:30 p.m. PT / 4:00 - 6:30 p.m. ET No Meeting November 24 WEDNESDAYS: CIRCLE #2 8 Wednesdays, October 8 - December 3 4:00 - 6:30 p.m. PT / 7:00 - 9:30 p.m. ET No Meeting November 26 THURSDAY: CIRCLE #3 8 THURSDAYS, October 9 - December 4 4:00 - 6:30 p.m. PT / 7:00 - 9:30 p.m. ET No Meeting November 27 Investment: $499 for each session. Make up classes available. Please note: Enrollment is contingent upon Bella’s approval and writing circle availability. New Students: After registration and payment, you will be taken to a final page to complete a New Student Application. |
“Bella’s class is like a Bunsen burner cooking up all kinds of stuff in my imagination!” —Vik Sheldon, Artist Bella’s class is a writer’s oasis, for both beginners and seasoned writers alike. She provides an environment that supports, encourages, and challenges the creative process in all of us. A great class for those who want to connect with their inner storyteller and get it down on paper. Highly, highly recommended!” —David Cordova, High School History Teacher |
More About My Writing Circles
Writing Circle participants are wise, accomplished people from diverse backgrounds, with varying degrees of writing experience. Each circle has 6-8 members.
My writing circles are not genre-specific, because no matter what you’re writing—poems, essays, fiction, memoir, blog posts, articles, blogs, or performance art—the process is the same. The structure/container takes on a different shape depending on the project, but the creative process does not. While most people gravitate toward a genre that feels right for them, several of my students write more than one genre.
My focus is on process rather than product. Engaging in the creative process honestly, and with integrity, automatically generates product. Product is excrement of process. I guide people as they work from the inside out, and provide an expansive yet intimate setting.
Writing circles begin with a guided meditation, which helps students come into the present moment. I invite students to connect with their breath, drop down into their bodies, and enter a receptive state.
After the meditation, you will write for thirty minutes. I provide a variety of juicy prompts gleaned from the work of my favorite poets. The only rule here is to write as fast as you can without thinking. This bypasses the inner critic. No matter what people are working on, the prompts give whatever is percolating underneath the surface a chance to come forward in fresh and unexpected ways.
Participants read after they write—either what they’ve written during the timed session, something they’ve brought from home, or both. Circle members are asked to share what they appreciate about what they've just heard. Critiques, or suggestions for improvements, are not offered unless the writer requests that feedback. In the writing, we celebrate courage, honesty, vulnerability, and the willingness to go deep. We also look for threads to pull whatever timid or reluctant stories might need unraveling.
My job is to facilitate self-expression. I pull the goodies out of writing circle participants, and help them mine their inner gold. I know where and how to dig! This is a live, intuitive, creative, process that often leads to people finding their voice on the page—and in their lives. It’s humbling and inspiring to bear witness to a person expressing something painful or deep, some truth that’s been hidden, shamed, or forgotten. I am deeply in love with this work.
Out-of-circle assignments are optional and individualized to meet each writer’s needs. I meet students where they are—each person is in their own place—and then usher them to the next level. Incrementally, over time, writing circle participants experience growth as writers and human beings.
My writing circles are not genre-specific, because no matter what you’re writing—poems, essays, fiction, memoir, blog posts, articles, blogs, or performance art—the process is the same. The structure/container takes on a different shape depending on the project, but the creative process does not. While most people gravitate toward a genre that feels right for them, several of my students write more than one genre.
My focus is on process rather than product. Engaging in the creative process honestly, and with integrity, automatically generates product. Product is excrement of process. I guide people as they work from the inside out, and provide an expansive yet intimate setting.
Writing circles begin with a guided meditation, which helps students come into the present moment. I invite students to connect with their breath, drop down into their bodies, and enter a receptive state.
After the meditation, you will write for thirty minutes. I provide a variety of juicy prompts gleaned from the work of my favorite poets. The only rule here is to write as fast as you can without thinking. This bypasses the inner critic. No matter what people are working on, the prompts give whatever is percolating underneath the surface a chance to come forward in fresh and unexpected ways.
Participants read after they write—either what they’ve written during the timed session, something they’ve brought from home, or both. Circle members are asked to share what they appreciate about what they've just heard. Critiques, or suggestions for improvements, are not offered unless the writer requests that feedback. In the writing, we celebrate courage, honesty, vulnerability, and the willingness to go deep. We also look for threads to pull whatever timid or reluctant stories might need unraveling.
My job is to facilitate self-expression. I pull the goodies out of writing circle participants, and help them mine their inner gold. I know where and how to dig! This is a live, intuitive, creative, process that often leads to people finding their voice on the page—and in their lives. It’s humbling and inspiring to bear witness to a person expressing something painful or deep, some truth that’s been hidden, shamed, or forgotten. I am deeply in love with this work.
Out-of-circle assignments are optional and individualized to meet each writer’s needs. I meet students where they are—each person is in their own place—and then usher them to the next level. Incrementally, over time, writing circle participants experience growth as writers and human beings.
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“Where the spirit does not work with the hand there is no art.”
—Leonardo da Vinci
—Leonardo da Vinci