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A Writing Workbook You Will Love!

Writing workbooks coming soon
Writing workbooks coming soon

I know. I know. I KNOW.

I’ve been quiet.

No new blog posts.
No fresh stories.
No flash fiction.

And apparently that has people wondering if I’m okay.

I’m okay.

I’m just… full.

Booked.
Scheduled.
Overflowing.

So much so that I’ve had to close enrollment in my writing workshops.

That’s the good news.

And the hard news.

Why My Writing Workshops Are Full

My workshops have always been conversation-driven.

Real people.
Real stories.
Real courage.

That’s where the magic happens.

Someone says, “I’ve never told anyone this before…”
And then they do.

Every new voice changes the room.
Every perspective deepens the learning.

But a workshop can only hold so many people.

And lately, there’s simply been no more room at the table.

It’s a wonderful problem.

But it means some of you are waiting outside the door.

I don’t like that.

Why I’m Creating a Writing Workbook

So here’s what’s happening behind the scenes:

I’m building a writing workbook series..

Not a watered-down version of a workshop.
Not a fluffy PDF.

A real, structured, step-by-step guide built on the same philosophy I teach live:

Keep it simple.
One idea at a time.
Clear beats clever.
Anyone can learn to write well.

Because I believe that.

Truly.

What Makes This Writing Workbook Different

A workbook can’t replicate conversation.

It can’t raise its hand.
It can’t laugh at the right moment.
It can’t gently ask, “What do you really mean here?”

But it can give you structure.

It can give you prompts.
It can give you rhythm.
It can give you focus.

If you’ve ever felt intimidated by writing, or if you’ve started and stopped more times than you can count, this is built for you.

This is for the beginner.

The hesitant writer.

The thoughtful overthinker.

Can a Writing Workbook Replace a Workshop?

No.

And it’s not meant to.

Workshops are alive. They breathe. They’re interactive.

But a writing workbook can open the door.

It can prepare you.

It can build confidence.

It can help you discover that you are more capable than you think.

And when space opens in a workshop?

You’ll be ready.

Who This Writing Workbook Is For

It’s for the person who didn’t get a seat.

It’s for the person who isn’t quite ready to speak up in a group.

It’s for the person who has a story but doesn’t know where to begin.

It’s for anyone who wants clarity instead of complexity.

Because writing doesn’t have to be complicated.

When the Writing Workbook Will Be Available

It’s not ready yet.

Good work takes time.

But it’s coming.

And when it’s ready, I won’t make a huge splash.

I’ll just quietly open the door.

If you’d like to be the first to know when the writing workbook for beginners is released, make sure you’re subscribed and keep an eye on this space.

Seats may fill.

But the page is wide open.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

About Me

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I Found Myself on the Brink of Inappropriate

Illustration of a crab wearing a cowboy hat used to represent an inappropriate moment turned humorous in an online middle school classroom.
Illustration of a crab wearing a cowboy hat used to represent an inappropriate moment turned humorous in an online middle school classroom.

I teach middle school online.

At the end of every class, we spend the last 30 seconds on scribble time.

Everyone gets to scribble on the screen.

On the one hand, it’s stupid.

On the other hand, the kids love it.

And in an online classroom, that kind of joy matters.

Scribble time is a tiny but powerful way of building community online.

Today, during scribble time, one student announced,

“I want to talk about Jeffrey.”

“Jeffrey Dahmer?” another kid piped up.

Oh no.

We are NOT discussing Jeffrey Dahmer.

I’m not going to explain  Dahmer to the kids who don’t know.

That inappropriate topic is way above my pay grade.

I was one second away from closing down an inappropriate session when the student held Jeffrey up to the camera.

Jeffrey was a 3D-printed crab.

Wearing a cowboy hat.

Whew.

Jeffrey the Crab I can handle.

A conversation about 3D printing?

Absolutely within my pay grade.

But the kid who immediately jumped to Jeffrey Dahmer?

Yeah.

I’m keeping my eye on that one.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

About Me
Want help writing your own funny anecdotes? join a grand slam writing workshop!

This post might include affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a small commission from the seller at no cost to you.

WHY IS CONFLICT IMPORTANT IN A STORY?

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Pecan. It’s Been Resolved – How To Pronounce It!

Pecan - How Do You Say It?
Pecan - How Do You Say It?

Pecan – How do you say it?

Everyone’s got an accent.

Yes, even me, the English teacher.

Some of my ESL students have studied British English, and they think I’m the one with a funny accent.

I have to slow down my speech, stretch out my vowels, and try to sound less… fast.
(Their words, not mine.)

But here’s the thing.

Accents aren’t just an international issue.

Even within the United States, we’ve got regional accents that could fill an entire communication workshop.

Which brings us to our annual Thanksgiving debate.

Is pecan pronounced:
PEE-can?
PUH-can?
PICK-an?
Puh-CAN?
Puh-CAHN?

This fierce, heated, bitter debate has raged on for as long as I can remember, and the issue has never, ever been resolved.

Here’s my official English Teacher Opinion:

You’re all correct.

And quite honestly?

I don’t care.

Not even a little bit

Pronounce it however you like.

Just get that pie into my belly.

That’s what truly matters as the holiday season rolls in.

Call it whatever you want.

Just make sure I get a nice, big, sticky slice.

Mmmmm, pecan pie.

That’s what I’m talking about!

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

About Me
Want help writing your own funny anecdotes? join a grand slam writing workshop!

This post might include affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a small commission from the seller at no cost to you.

HOW TO TELL A FUNNY STORY

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How To Win A Communication Battle

How To Win A Communication Battle
How To Win A Communication Battle

Communication Begins With A Laugh

There’s nothing funnier than the person who isn’t amused.

Ordering someone not to laugh is a guaranteed way to make the thing even funnier.

And trying not to laugh? Forget it.

The harder you fight it, the funnier it gets.

Once, when one of my boys was little, I got an indignant call from a teacher.

Apparently my son had burst out laughing when a tumbleweed blew past the classroom window.

She wanted me to have a talk with him.

Seriously?

That kind of talk guarantees that tumbleweeds will become the funniest thing on earth.

But yes, she was serious.

My kid, she said, had been disruptive.

“Did you ask him to be quiet?” I asked.

“I did.”

“And did he quiet down?”

“He did.”

“Well then,” I said, “maybe just let it… blow over?”

She didn’t laugh.

So I sat my son down for the most serious, most-non-funny, most-don’t-you-dare-laugh-about-tumbleweeds conversation of my life.

As expected, tumbleweeds became the biggest joke for the rest of that year.

Which brings me to the 6–7 trend.

You know – the loud one with that goofy hand gesture every teacher is trying to outlaw.

Many teachers are frustrated by it and have banned it in their classrooms.

Which, naturally, turns it into the holy grail of inside jokes.

Now that it’s forbidden, it’s become hilarious.

If you really want to get a kid to stop doing something, don’t ban it.

Join in.

There’s nothing less cool than Mom or Dad or Teacher trying to do the cool thing.

Beat them to the punchline.

Do the gesture first.

Laugh louder.

Recruit other adults.

In other words, don’t fight the laughter.

Outlaugh it.

That’s how you win.

Laughter doesn’t disrupt communication.

It is communication.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

About Me
Want help writing your own funny anecdotes? join a grand slam writing workshop!

This post might include affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a small commission from the seller at no cost to you.

HOW TO TELL A FUNNY STORY

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How To Make Numbers More Fun

Numb and number
Numb and number

In an English class today, we were studying how mb can sometimes make a /b/ sound – like in numb, thumb, and climb.

Other times, we pronounce both sounds separately, as in lumber or timber.

One quiet, serious ten-year-old, who rarely says much, suddenly raised his hand with excitement.

He said, “English makes me numb… but math makes me number.”

Dead silence.

Then – laughter.

The kind that rolls through the whole room and doesn’t stop right away.

It took some of the kids a moment to catch up to the joke.

The boy was playing with the double meaning of the word number.

Number can be a noun meaning a numeral, in which case you would pronounce both the /m/ and the /b/.

But this case, the student used it as a comparative adjective meaning more numb.

In this example, you would pronounce the mb as /m/.

Clever, right?

That kid’s already telling great dad jokes at ten years old.

I’m sure his father is proud.

That little spark of wordplay turned a basic English pronunciation lesson into something hilarious that everyone will remember.

Because when we connect through humor, we remember what we’ve learned.

Ralph Smedly said, “We learn best in moments of enjoyment.”

The greatest lessons aren’t just taught.

They’re felt.

The next time English grammar makes you numb (or math makes you number), take a breath, laugh a little, and remember to have some fun with it.

What about you?

Has a language mix-up ever made you laugh?

Share your story in the comments – I’d love to hear it!

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

About Me
Want help writing your own funny anecdotes? join a grand slam writing workshop!

This post might include affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a small commission from the seller at no cost to you.

HOW TO TELL A FUNNY STORY

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Connection Is So Much More Important Than Perfection

Connection is greater than perfection
Connection is greater than perfection

I’m an English teacher.
I teach children and adults.
Native speakers and non-native speakers.
ESL, communication, and creative writing.

The one thing that holds up most students in both subjects?
Their obsession with perfection.

But perfection shouldn’t be the goal.
Perfect English is stiff, unnatural, and, frankly, a little boring.
It’s not how people really talk.
And it’s not how people truly form a connection.

You wouldn’t know that by the number of grammar police patrolling the internet.

Yes, some grammar rules are non-negotiable.
Capitalize the first word in a sentence.
Use punctuation at the end.
Period.

But other rules?
They’re more flexible.

I’ve been teaching English for years.
I’m an avid reader. A word jockey.
But I still can’t, for the life of me, figure out the difference between affect and effect.

One’s a noun, one’s a verb.
Except when they swap roles and the one’s a verb and the other one’s a noun.
Gahhh!
My brain just can’t.

So I go to great lengths never to use either one. That’s my solution.

One of my ESL students once told me about a squirrel who stole his lunch in the park.
He couldn’t remember the word squirrel, so he called it a “tree rat with a big tail.”
I knew exactly what he meant.

I tried to help him pronounce squirrel.
It didn’t go well.
Finally, I said, “You know what? Maybe this word doesn’t really matter. How often does anyone actually use the word squirrel anyway?”

And, truthfully, the ‘tree rat’ version of the story was funnier than the ‘squirrel’ version.

Don’t waste your precious energy on one tricky thing.
Focus on communicating clearly in general.

This same advice applies equally to speaking and to writing.
Writers often get tangled up trying to craft the perfect sentence or find the perfect word.
But stories, like people, are more interesting with a few rough edges.

Once, I told a story that mentioned Fireball whiskey.
Afterward, someone pulled me aside and scolded me.
“I thought you were an English teacher,” they admonished me.
“Why did you use sloppy language?”

Yes, I did use sloppy language.  

On purpose.
A story about whiskey told in perfectly polished prose would have sounded ridiculous.
Whiskey needs a little grit.
I used poor grammar for effect.
Or was it affect?

Either way – it worked.

Remember this about communication:
The goal isn’t perfection.
The goal is connection.

Don’t let the hard stuff stop you from expressing yourself.
Focus on confidence, clarity, and creativity.

You’ve got this.
And if you’d like a little help along the way, I teach short, friendly, microlearning sessions in English, communication, and creative writing.

Each workshop is designed to build your confidence, not your anxiety.

No grammar police.
No red pens.
Just real connection.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

About Me
Want help writing your own funny anecdotes? join a grand slam writing workshop!

This post might include affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a small commission from the seller at no cost to you.

HOW TO TELL A FUNNY STORY

IT’S YOURS! A FREE GUIDE – Four Easy Steps To Editing Your Perfect Social Media Post. All you’ve got to do is SUBSCRIBE!

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A Weird Glitch in the Matrix

A weird glitch in the matrix
A weird glitch in the matrix

A Weird Glitch in the Matrix?

Here’s the funny thing about names.

I once heard the author David Sedaris speak. He said there are certain kid names that always spell trouble.

And you know what? He’s right! Every kid I’ve ever met with those names has been a handful.

But I’m not going to tell you which names, because, well, I’d like to keep these folks as friends.

I always pay attention to names.

Right now I’ve got one particular kid in one of my classes.

This child has a unique name.

I’ve taught this student for about a year.

Not once have I seen a smile or heard a giggle.

This kid is like a tiny human Eeyore, always sighing, perpetually hard-done-by, yet quietly diligent.

A solid student. A hard worker. Just… allergic to joy.

Then I got a new student in a different class.

With the same unique name.

And guess what? Same personality!

I did a little research and guess what? Both of them have a mom with the same name.

So… are they siblings?

With the same name?

Or is this some kind of weird glitch in the matrix?

Either way, I’ve learned one thing:
some names come with a factory-installed personality.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

About Me
Want help writing your own funny anecdotes? join a grand slam writing workshop!

This post might include affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a small commission from the seller at no cost to you.

HOW TO CREATE A VIVID PICTURE WITH WORDS

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How To Ruin Your Day With One Simple Grammar Lesson

A difficult grammar lesson
A Difficult Grammar Lesson

I tried to explain the difference between lay and lie in an English grammar lesson.

At first glance, it sounds easy.

Lay is a transitive verb. It needs a direct object.

You lay a book on the table.

A chicken lays an egg.

Lie is intransitive. No object needed.

It means to recline.

Or to fib.

Simple, right?

Not so fast.

“Yesterday, the dog lay down on the cool floor,” was our example sentence.

Hold up.

“Lay down” is the past tense of “lie down.”

But lay is also its own verb in the present tense.

That’s when my brain broke.

Lay?
Lie?
Transitive?
Intransitive?
Present?
Past?

The class just stared at me.

Honestly, I just stared back stupidly for a minute.

Then I pulled myself together and finished the lesson.

English grammar can be so exhausting.

Chickens lay eggs.

People lie down.

And English teachers?

We sometimes lay our sanity aside and lie in a whimpering heap on the floor.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

About Me
Want help writing your own funny anecdotes? join a grand slam writing workshop!

This post might include affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a small commission from the seller at no cost to you.

HOW TO CREATE A VIVID PICTURE WITH WORDS

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An Easy Way To Become Fluent In English Conversation

Become Fluent in English
Become Fluent in English

Become Fluent in English with Storytelling

If you could bottle the ability to become fluent, every language student would buy it, pop the cork, and *voilà* they would have instant conversation skills.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way.

A textbook can teach you grammar rules and vocabulary lists.

But real conversation?

Real conversations are messy, unpredictable, and full of surprises.

In the real world, people don’t speak in neat little dialogue boxes.

They jump topics. They interrupt. They tell half a story, laugh, gesture, use slang, and expect you to understand.

That’s where stories come in.

As an ESL teacher, I’ve learned that the fastest way to become fluent is through everyday storytelling.

Not polished, fairy-tale stories, but real stories.

Stories about snakes in the yard, sleepless nights, noisy dogs. burnt toast setting off the smoke alarm, shoes that mysteriously disappear when you’re already late, traffic that turns a five-minute trip into a saga, and the dreaded visit to the dentist where you pray the drill doesn’t find its way to your soul.

These are the stories I bring into my conversation classes.

Why?

Because bantering about these topics in English is the key to mastering fluency.

Stories give us context.

They add emotion, humor, and the little details that make language stick.

In real conversations, we don’t use memorized phrases.

A snakeskin draped across the garden wall isn’t just “snake” and “wall.” It’s horror, surprise, disgust, and the decision to maybe move to another country.

That’s real conversation.

That’s fluency.

When I ask my students to tell me about the scariest bug they ever found in their kitchen, or the time traffic made them late for an important appointment, or how they deal with their noisy neighbors, we’re not just swapping stories, we’re practicing the rhythm of real English conversation.

We’re learning how to describe a sequence of events, how to express frustration, and how to add a punchline.

Most importantly, we’re learning how to listen and respond naturally to someone else’s story.

That’s something a textbook just can’t do.

Fluency isn’t about perfect grammar and long vocabulary lists.

It’s about genuine human connection.

If you can laugh, complain, tell a story, and be understood by others, you’re going to win at conversation in English.

Join a Grand Slam Communication Conversation Workshop to improve your conversation skills and, ultimately, to improve your bottom line.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

About Me
Want help turning your travel experience into a great story? join a grand slam writing workshop!

HOW TO PAINT A PICTURE WITH WORDS

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You Can Do It! Write Better Travel Memoirs

Write Better Travel Memoirs
Write Better Travel Memoirs

Travel Journal vs. Travel Memoir: What’s the Difference?

What’s the difference between a travel journal and a travel memoir?

A travel journal is a logbook. Time, miles, expenses, weather, names, dates – it’s all there. Journals are useful because they capture the facts you’d otherwise forget. But they’re private, factual, and, yeah, boring. They’re necessary to record the facts, but they’re not anything worth sharing.

A travel memoir, on the other hand, is where the story comes alive. It’s not about recording every step, it’s about choosing the memorable steps and bringing them to life.

A journal notes the details.

A memoir transforms those details into a compelling story.

Memoir writing evokes the senses – what you saw, heard, touched, tasted, and felt. It’s storytelling, not bookkeeping. A travel memoir, like any other story, must have compelling characters in a specific setting who experience conflict through rising action, a turning point, and, ultimately, a satisfying resolution.

The next time you travel, don’t just keep a journal. Take one vivid moment and craft it into a story worth sharing.

Your travel memories deserve more than a journal, they deserve a memoir.

Ready to move beyond lists and start telling stories that captivate?

Join a Grand Slam Communication Writing Workshop and learn how to transform your travel experiences into stories worth remembering.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

About Me
Want help turning your travel experience into a great story? join a grand slam writing workshop!

This post might include affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a small commission from the seller at no cost to you.

HOW TO CULTIVATE YOUR FUNNY STORY IDEAS

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