Hi, I'm Tessa Smith McGovern. I've taught writing for 22 years (since 2011 at The Writing Institute, Sarah Lawrence College). I'm also an award-winning, Amazon best-selling writer selected as a 'Featured' author by Kirkus Reviews.
Some people think writing is a mysterious process, that it can’t be boiled down to a simple approach.
But the truth is, there IS a simple approach - blocks you can avoid - to start writing.
And these mindset shifts work for ALL types of writing from literary fiction to genre fiction.
Writing becomes easy once you know what to avoid.
Writing becomes fun again, and so deeply rewarding!
That’s why so many people - published and unpublished - continue to write their whole lives.
And the best part? You can post these mindset hacks somewhere prominent and avoid slipping back into the old, bad habits of thinking.
You can come to the free, weekly sprints to get writing, get organized, and become the writer you long to be.
More about Tessa...
Tessa's linked short story collection, LONDON ROAD: LINKED STORIES, received a ‘Featured’ review from Kirkus, is an Amazon best-seller, and a gold medal winner in the 2012 eLit Awards. Her non-fiction book, COCKTAILS FOR BOOK LOVERS (Sourcebooks), is also an Amazon best-seller. Her many publication credits include the Connecticut Review and Equinox, a UK poetry journal. She’s currently writing a contemporary fantasy novel inspired by British mythology and pursuing her MFA in Writing at the Vermont College of Fine Arts.
She is founder and editor of eChook Digital Publishing . eChook won a silver medal in the 2012 eLit Awards and its stories have been read by thousands of readers in 100+ countries.
Tessa is also host, writer and producer of BookGirlTV (BGTV), an award-winning digital channel that promotes books and reading. BGTV has 6 million+ minutes viewed on YouTube and 10,000+ likes on Facebook.
Tessa was born in England, moved to the United States in 1993, and published her first short story in 1996. She’s currently working on a contemporary fantasy novel (witches and talking animals!). She lives in Connecticut with her family, a black English Lab, a mini black Schnauzer, a red Shih-Poo, a seal point Ragdoll cat, and a black and white Maine Coon.
She teaches the following:
1. On Tuesdays at 12 noon EST and Wednesdays at 7 PM EST Zoom for the Westport Library, Westport, CT (Free and open to all writers, wherever you live)
2. Her upcoming class, ‘How to Link Your Short Stories and Memoirs into a Collection’ for The Writing Institute, Sarah Lawrence College, NY, begins November 1, 2022 (see Free Zoom sprints/Classes tab at top for more details).
N.B. The ‘How to Link Classes Your Stories into a Collection’ class regularly sells out so please don’t delay if you know you want to take it.
Sign up/more info here: ‘How to Link Your Short Stories and Memoirs into a Collection.
KIND WORDS FROM STUDENTS
“Tessa was a remarkable teacher, not just of writing in the digital age, but of the art and craft of writing in general. Her vision was timeless and inspired, and her course was truly life changing for me.” – Jeanne Chinard, The Writing Institute, Sarah Lawrence College, NY
“If you are planning to write for the digital media, you must meet Tessa Smith McGovern…Her knowledge of the internet, the publishing world, and the steps to successful digital publishing is current and extensive. She has valuable insight into the psychology of writing and writers.” – Jeanette Gould, The Writing Institute, Sarah Lawrence College, NY
“Tessa Smith McGovern’s class ‘Writing for Digital Media’ is one of the best writing classes I have ever taken. In addition to teaching us step by step how to blog and tweet and link our pieces to Facebook so we could truly begin to build a platform for publishing, Tessa’s advice and critique of our writing was unfailingly helpful and supportive. Tessa individualized our assignments so that each student made progress in her work. I cannot recommend this class highly enough.” – Florence Reiss Kraut, The Writing Institute, Sarah Lawrence College, NY
For more information, please email [email protected]
Publications
US:
SHORT STORIES/PROSE POEMS: Connecticut Review, Crack the Spine Literary Journal, Evening Street Review, CellStories.net, The Dirty Goat, RiverSedge, Studio One, The Distillery, BCtheMagazine, Happy, Georgia State University Review, Verdad Magazine, Portland Magazine
BOOKS: Cocktails for Booklovers, 2014, Sourcebooks Inc, London Road: Linked Stories, 2011, eChook Digital Publishing
UK:
SHORT STORIES/PROSE POEMS: First Offense, Carillon, Lucid Moon, Equinox Poetry Journal, UK
Awards
2011 – Silver Medal (Editor), eLit Book Awards, ‘Memoir, Vol. 1’, eChook Digital Publishing
2011 – Gold Medal, eLit Book Awards, ‘London Road: Linked Stories, eChook Digital Publishing
2009 – Winner, Connecticut Press Club Creative Writing, ‘When Janice Bailey Walked’
2005-2008 – Honored Writer, the Annual Ultra-Short Competition of the Binnacle (University of Maine at Machias)
1996 – Honorable Mention, the Abiko Quarterly with James Joyce Studies, ‘Night of Glass’
