Writers, are you in need of a new challenge? The Great Smokies Writing Program’s fall workshop series beginning September 12 offers local writers challenging workshops in poetry and prose taught by regional professors and noted writers. Classes are open to beginning and experienced writers.

Award-winning poet and author Cathy Smith Bowers will teach “The Three R’s of Poetic Process - Reading, ‘Riting, and Revision: A Poetry Workshop.” This course will meet at the Asheville School, 360 Asheville School Rd., from 6 to 8:30 p.m. on 10 consecutive Tuesdays beginning September 12. Students will practice the skill of reading as a writer as well as use these skills in writing and revising their own poems.

UNC Asheville Adjunct Literature and Language Professor Valerie Bandura will teach “Poetry Work and Playshop.” The workshop will meet at the Montford Learning Center, 90 Montford Avenue, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. for 10 consecutive Tuesdays starting September 12. The course will encourage students to assist with each others’ poems, discuss published work, learn to streamline the revision process and generate a small portfolio of poems.

Historical fiction author Charles Price will lead “Meeting the Challenge of the Novel: A Workshop for Long Fiction.” The workshop will meet at the Montford Learning Center from 5 to 7:30 p.m. for 10 consecutive Wednesdays beginning September 13. The course covers novel-writing from conception through plot development, structure, narrative voice, language and characters. Special emphasis will be given to the problems of sustaining pace and consistency, unique to long fiction.

Sebastian Matthews, noted prose and poetry author, will teach “True Stories: A Creative Nonfiction Workshop.” This course will meet at the Asheville Area Arts Council, 11 Biltmore Avenue, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. for 10 consecutive Wednesdays beginning September 13. Designed for both beginning and experienced writers, this course works with a variety of nonfiction forms, including personal essay and memoir. Students will discuss each others’ work and explore revision strategies.

Dale Neal, local journalist and fiction writer, will lead “Writing to Grab the Reader, Part II: A Prose Workshop for Beginning and Intermediate Writers.” This workshop will meet at the Montford Learning Center from 6 to 8:30 p.m. for 10 consecutive Thursdays beginning September 14. The workshop will critique and encourage students to write their own attention-getting stories with emphasis on developing character, conflict and plot.

Courses qualify for two UNC Asheville credit hours in literature and language. Tuition and fees are $158.38 for applicants who meet North Carolina residency requirements. In addition, there is a one-time visiting student application fee of $20. Class size is limited; early registration is suggested.

For more information or to register, call UNC Asheville’s Extension and Distance Education Office at 828/232-5122 or e-mail fox@unca.edu.