Book Workshop
Transform your book idea into a fully realized proposal, ready to be shopped to agents and publishers. With personalized edits, small group work and lectures, this course combines all the best elements of a writers retreat with a rigorous classroom experience and the best of book doctors.
The Program
The Book Workshop at Columbia Journalism School begins with a three-day, in-person residency at our Morningside campus, January 9-11, 2026. Students will learn about the necessary elements that must be part of any serious nonfiction book proposal and how to execute. Course time will include an overview of the publishing industry, conversations with industry insiders and experts, as well as time devoted to developing and workshopping proposals individually and in small groups. With a fellowship meal and group critique and conversation, this short residency brings all the best elements of a writers’ retreat and gives participants the framework to return home to do critically important work.
The program continues with regular virtual meetings for the cohort to guide their research and writing as they develop their proposals. Participants will draft a full proposal for personalized editing from the course director.
The program ends with a second three-day residency, back on campus, to discuss the individual edits and continue workshopping and revising. This is scheduled for May 22-24, 2026. Class time will also cover how to search for the right agent for you and your project, querying and expectations for the agent-author working relationship. Students should finish the program with a complete book proposal draft.
Faculty
The Book Workshop course is led by professor emeritus Samuel G. Freedman and is based on his popular book writing seminar, which he taught for over 34 years at Columbia Journalism School and resulted in 100+ book contracts for his students. A former New York Times columnist, Freedman is the author of many books himself, including National Book Award finalist, Small Victories and Pulitzer Prize finalist The Inheritance: How Three Families and America Moved from Roosevelt to Reagan and Beyond.
Who Should Attend
This course is designed for serious writers of narrative nonfiction across category. This is not a course for novelists or memoirists.
Applications
Applications are open now and admissions are rolling. The final application deadline is November 3, 2025.
The application requires:
- Professional biography (150 words or less) or CV
- Overview of your nonfiction project (500 words or less)
- Statement of your goals for participation (250 words or less)
- Two writing samples (2000 words max)
Financial Requirements
The course is $7,500. Fees include instruction, including a complete line edit from the course director, and a fellowship meal during each residency. All other expenses, including lodging and travel, are the responsibility of participants. There are no scholarships or financial aid to this course.