I took a creative writing class in college. The chief benefit was reading my story aloud to a room of peers and a professor who is herself a renowned novelist

I took a creative writing class in college. The chief benefit was reading my story aloud to a room of peers and a professor who is herself a renowned novelist (Joyce Carol Oates) and having them tell me my story wasn't crap and I should try writing another one. That's what I got out of my class, the encouragement to keep at it. Doing everything alone and on your own means you don't always get the feedback you need to do your best work.