Compared to other courses in the creative writing specialization, I felt that this one needs some improvement. The video lectures just didn't have enough meat to them. For example, in other courses in the specialization, there will be links to optional readings or videos, leading to a deeper understanding of the concepts. Some readings, for example, would be welcome to give example of great (or even not so great) characterization.

I did come away with some good books/stories for reading, but would have like them to be included in the course the way it is in the Setting and Description module. I found the videos did not always lead up to the assignment, and I think the assignments could have been more clearly laid out. I still came away learning, but it did not feel very structured. To be fair, character is a sort of amorphous subject to begin with.

While I did gain some expertise from the course I thought the lessons were brief and lacked enough examples. Also, much of the peer feedback I received was unhelpful. Fifty percent of my feedback was, "Good" or "Yes". Without instructor feedback, peer feedback becomes very important. Good/yes were not the answers requested by the feedback questions. Feedback was meant to be a few sentences.

If the week 4 was not there, i would have a 2 or even a 1 for this class.

Until week 4, there was very little connection between what we were watching and what we were asked to write assignments. And the assignments were also confusing and overly restrictive. There didnt seem to be any sense in why we were asked to write those.

Some of the assignments are a little odd. They need a revisal by the instructor based on student feedback. I suspect the teacher made this course and moved on to other things without checking back on it's success or failure. The teacher is a really great writer, but her teaching and communication style is pretty abstract.

The videos provided some great information, but the assignments often seemed unrelated to the weekly videos. Although I figured I had plenty to learn so I forced myself to do the best I could with the assignments, I often wasn't clear what the assignment was trying to teach me.

The lectures were informative, but the end-of-week assignments were VERY poorly explained, generally had little to do with the week's lectures, and to add insult to injury had grading criteria that did not correspond with the points that were laid out in the instructions.

The first assignment was a lot of fun but the other three were a little confusing, as evidenced by the ever-recurring questions on the forum. The videos were usually really interesting though. Amy has a very pleasant voice but seems to rely on her notes a little too much.

Good course but let down by a lack of required readings and the awful peer review system. Amy Bloom is also often seemingly intentionally ambiguous in her assignment specifications which is extremely frustrating. Nonetheless, there's a lot of valuable information here.

Not by far as good as the first module (Craft of Plot). This course seemed less planned and structured. The videos were mostly interviews that sort of touched upon the subjects but hardly ever got into detail. The assignments were often vague and harder to understand.

I found the assignment instructions to be quite confusing. Some of the questions asked for the peer-to-peer reviews were very unclear. I didn't feel the course, overall, offered the same level of content and knowledge that the Craft of Plot offered.

I think Judy Bloom is a brilliant writer. She is also an engaging instructor but I found it difficult at time to discern what the salient points or "take-aways" were from the lectures. I also found the assignment to be less than clear.

I've got the chance to practice writing and I've learned some interesting insights, but I think the instructor didn't put too much effort into this course. All there is to it are 'shop talks' and too little structure.

I felt like the teaching was fairly abstract, and I had a difficult time figuring out how I was supposed to apply certain lessons. Overall, I did pick up several helpful hints, so the course was worth it.

I found most of the assignments very confusing and difficult to complete. It is a real challenge and forces you to really think, think hard and hope for the best. If you take the course, good luck.

The course was very interesting and shed light on the specifics on character development. However, the questions in most peer-graded assignments were some times not suitable for the assignment.

I found the lectures were not providing enough details and practical informations on how to build a credible character. There should be more references to famous novels.

The information provided is great, but there's so many "shop talks" aka interviews with other Coursera instructors that it misses out on so many possible true lessons.

Some of the assignments are really confusing, with non to little actionable steps to take. This course can be way more streamlined. Enjoyed it nonetheless

The assignments are hard to understand and not well explained. They are also completely irrelevant to the lessons of the week.

Has been a great course but I would have loved more readings and a little bit more formal rules to sketch our own characters.

Good information in the videos. The assignments were difficult and didn't seem related to the material from the lectures.

I liked a lot of what was said. I wish I had some more concrete advice for building character - if such a thing exists.

Great material but students grading other student's work becomes a problem if they can prohibit another from passing.

Good course, but assignment instructions were difficult to understand at times and no examples were given.