Writing Workshops

For 20 years I have helped people become more skilled and engaged writers on-the-job. Over three thousand people have taken a professional writing workshop with me.

Writing for the Professional

My signature workshop – Writing for the Professional – is the Yukon government’s longest-running and most in-demand staff training offering. This one-day workshop is relevant for any organization that seeks to level up employee writing quality.

Writing for the Professional provides a comprehensive review of writing in the workplace. Topics include writing resources, plain language, punctuation refresher, the writing process, AI and writing, Teresa’s Top Ten, the challenges of institutional writing, and being part of an editorial team. This workshop is ideal for employees who feel rusty or are looking to become confident in their writing.

Writing on-the-job is more demanding than ever: scrutiny is high, and tolerance for errors is low. Professional writing is different than writing for school, for publication, or for creative pursuits. Yet few workers – whether managers, technicians, or front-line staff – receive training on writing in the workplace. Writing for the Professional is an upbeat, interactive workshop that fills this training gap while also building confidence and editorial teams.

  • Thank you for a great course. It’s valuable to take the time to consider this aspect of our work. It was helpful to hear the challenges and insights from my peers. Teresa’s input was constructive and useful, and her instruction was excellent and detailed.

    Government Manager

  • Engaging instruction. Lots of relevant tips and tricks. I’m glad the workshop was interactive: the exercises and discussion really helped me.

    Veterinarian

  • Your workshop knocks down barriers and creates an atmosphere of vulnerability that is a positive thing. It’s your style and demeanor that make it work. You bring people together with different skillsets, and you acknowledge that writing is inherently part of storytelling.

    Government Director

  • Teresa knows her material. She’s passionate about it and makes the workshop engaging. The course made me rethink the entire writing process. I didn’t know what to expect, and it was a good fit for my work.

    Natural Resource Officer

  • Dang, Teresa is a phenomenal teacher. I really appreciated her enthusiasm about writing and the English language. I was impressed by her listening ability as she brought powerful messages back from each person’s input.

    Policy Analyst

Writing Clinic

The Writing Clinic is a high-value training series of four group sessions plus one-on-ones with a writing coach. The clinic format is suited to groups of colleagues who collaborate and write together. Our meetings are spread across several weeks, which allows for flexibility and creates opportunities to do progressive work.

The Writing Clinic is a combination of mini-lectures, small group work and one-on-one writing coaching tailored to the learning group. It’s more hands-on and tailored to specific needs, providing motivation to continue improving workplace writing skills. The format makes it accessible to staff who may benefit from one-on-one help, have specific questions or want to build confidence in their writing.

Participants can determine the program together, whether it’s mini-lectures or group critiques or supporting a writing project. It’s a supportive space where teams can find assistance through informal group discussions, additional resources and one-on-one work with the instructor.   

  • "We wouldn’t be in our roles if we weren’t pretty good at writing already. It’s important to take a step back from our projects to reflect on how we’re doing our work and think intentionally about our writing. The clinic described best practices and gave tips on how to modernize our writing conventions. This was time very well spent."

    Policy Analyst

  • About half of our staff are new, which is a constant challenge when building our editorial team. Today’s workforce is very fluid. As staff come and go we need to re-invigorate writing skills on an ongoing basis.

    Senior Manager

  • I remember being pleasantly surprised that our director made everyone join the writing clinic. I remind my staff that you can’t expect senior management to pick up the editorial and grammatical slack, that needs to happen when you write. I want my staff to lift the quality from the start, before something makes its way through the review and approval process.

    Biologist

Writing Coach

Building the writing skillset is much-needed but overlooked in the workplace. I help people become more effective and confident writers at work. Sometimes one-on-one coaching is the best approach to level up staff writing. Coaching is personal, private and focused.

Writing coaching will increase your confidence and competence as a writer. We tailor sessions to meet individual needs. Do you need a grammar refresh? Keen to level up your editing skills? Looking to strengthen your plain language writing? Perhaps you want to use our sessions to plan a major writing project.

Contact me about writing coaching for yourself, or to support members of your team.

  • "I booked writing coaching for my staff because there’s value in getting out of the office, talking about writing with someone objective, asking questions, seeing writing samples and critiquing them.”

    Office Manager

  • “Senior staff can get into a rut, writing and rewriting the same briefing notes. They’re also under tight timelines and they get comfortable with “good enough.” Our approvals process also works against them: the original writer doesn’t see later edits and there isn’t a built-in process to improve their writing skills."

    Finance Manager

  • “I’ve taken a couple of Teresa’s courses and found them to be very helpful, whether you’re a grammar geek or not. It was time for a refresh – language evolves over time! Teresa is a seasoned writer, a fun, engaging and gifted teacher, and she's good on her feet, adapting her courses to fit the needs of her students every time.”

    Office Manager