CREATIVE WRITING WORKSHOPS
READ ME:
- As of June 2020, all Writespace workshops are only available online. See individual workshop listings for details.
- Tickets must be purchased online.
- Please read our workshop policies before registering.
- Can't attend without a scholarship? Apply here.
- Need tech support for your class? Check out our Tech Support page. If your question isn't answered, contact us.
January Workshops & Events
Creativity is Creativity is Creativity: Working Creatives Discuss Creative Thinking
|
PANELISTS: Karleen Koen (M), Dr. Tony Medina, Kay Sarver, Adam Castaneda, Kendra Preston Leonard, Karen Celestan
TIME: Saturday, January 23rd, 4:00 - 5:30 PM, with short reception to follow PRICE: $10 - $50 (pay what you can) LOCATION: Online via Zoom What does it mean to be creative? Is creativity earned? Does it have to be worked at? How important is it in your writing? Five working creatives--a musician, a dancer, a poet, a non-fiction writer, and a visual artist--gather to talk about their process, their triumphs, their struggles, and the ways that they use creativity and it uses them. Famed author Margaret Atwood says the biggest misconception about creativity is to think only geniuses have it. At Writespace, we completely agree. Join us to listen and be inspired about your own. Moderator: NY Times bestselling author Karleen Koen About the Panelists
|
|
Bad Drafts, Small Goals: Creating a Writing Practice
|
INSTRUCTOR: Jessica Cole
TIME: Starts Sunday, January 24th and runs through Sunday, March 7th. This is an asynchronous class without pre-scheduled class meetings. PRICE: Early-Bird until Tuesday, January 19th: $210 for members, $240 for non-members. After Tuesday, January 19th: $240 for members, $270 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. If you would like to pay in installments, please contact us. LOCATION: Online via Google Classroom. CAP: 12 Whether you’ve never taken a writing class before and want a safe and engaging space to begin, are hoping to jumpstart a stalled writing practice (in any genre), or simply want to be part of an incubator in order to generate as many words as possible in a short time (the writing version of a HIIT exercise session), this class is for you. We’ll create a daily writing practice (much easier than it sounds, we promise you) in order to avoid the pitfalls of perfectionism. Each week's lesson will include a craft lesson, reading examples, writing prompts, and feedback and reflection. A note about asynchronous classes: Participants should plan to commit three hours per week to reading, posting, and responding to assignments in the online classroom. Asynchronous workshops offer built-in flexibility and are ideal for writers with busy schedules, as the times participants visit the classroom are determined solely by their own availability. Participants will be invited to enter the online classroom and will receive instructions the day the workshop begins. |
|
Poetry 1: The Journey of Poetry
|
INSTRUCTOR: Justin Jannise
TIME: Six Wednesdays, January 27th - March 3rd, 6:00 - 9:00 PM PRICE: Early-Bird until Thursday, January 22nd: $210 for members, $240 for non-members. After Thursday, January 22nd: $240 for members, $270 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. If you would like to pay in installments, please contact us. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 12 A poem can elevate and capture a specific experience--an image, memory, or sensation--so profoundly, that its power can seem mysterious. It can connect people across thousands of years and miles, kindling an intimacy even deeper than the intimacy they share with people they see each day. So how do we create that magic for ourselves? This course is designed to nurture you along a poetic journey through close readings of poems, generative writing assignments, and lively discussion. We’ll talk image and idea, line and sentence, sense and nonsense. We will conclude by discussing revision strategies and opportunities for publication. No prior experience with poetry writing is required, but advanced poets are also welcome. |
|
Time Management for Writers
|
INSTRUCTOR: Ynes Freeman
TIME: Saturday, January 30th, 9:30 AM - 12:30 PM PRICE: Early-Bird until Monday, Jan. 18th: $45 for members, $60 for non-members. After Monday, Jan. 18th: $55 for members, $70 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 15 They say the best way to get writing done is BIC: Butt in Chair. But many of us have so many obligations in our lives, we often feel too exhausted, drained, and devoid of creativity at the end of the day to even attempt to put a pen to paper. As such, we dream of the day that we can sit down and do nothing but write. But that’s not to say those who leave their jobs or retire have easier writing lives. In fact, the opposite is often true! They struggle with structuring their practice and put pressure on themselves to meet certain word count goals, then lose motivation when they don’t reach them. The reason for this is that it’s not the amount of time we have for writing, it’s the way we manage that time. In this course, we’ll explore time management techniques for writers from all walks of life. Beginning the workshop with a self-inventory of where our time goes, we’ll discover how to lean into our strengths and implement strategies and tactics to hone our time management skills. |
|
February Workshops & Events
Personal Essay 1: The Essay as Self Help
|
INSTRUCTOR: Dorian Rolston
TIME: Three Thursdays, February 4th, 11th, and 18th, 6:00 - 9:00 PM PRICE: Early-Bird until Saturday, Jan. 30th: $120 for members, $140 for non-members. After Monday, Feb. 8th: $140 for members, $160 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 15 "The Essay as Self-Help" is a course on essay writing for those of us who suspect it may do some good, not just for our readers but for ourselves. Montaigne invented personal essay as an attempt to write his way out of a depression, and today, writing as a form of self might help us weather the challenges of these turbulent times. By asking ourselves the important questions, like "What brings me joy?" (Ross Gay) and "How do I hold my grief?" (Joan Didion) and "What happens if I die?" (Simon Gray), we may not find any definitive answers. But in the process, hopefully, we arrive at a place with a little more spaciousness around the question, a little more lightness of being. "I have no more made my book," Montaigne concludes, feeling a little lighter than when he started, "than my book has made me." |
|
LGBTQ+ Workshop
|
INSTRUCTOR: Justin Jannise
TIME: Saturday, February 6th, 1:00 - 4:00 PM PRICE: Early-Bird until Monday, January 31st: $45 for members, $60 for non-members. After Monday, January 31st: $55 for members, $70 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 15 Queer literature has grown wildly in recent years, right alongside a public awakening to the increasingly various possibilities of gender identity and sexual preference. And yet communal creative spaces where LGBTQIA+ people can safely meet, interact, and share ideas seem more vulnerable than ever. With this workshop, we aim to foster a safe and welcoming rapport among LGBTQIA+ writers where they can discuss ideas critical to queer identity. We’ll not only read the work of writers who identify as LGBTQIA+ (including our own), but we’ll also consider how queerness interacts with the wider literary community. In addition, we’ll set aside time for discussion and group feedback on our different projects—both new and ongoing! All literary genres are welcome. Expect to come away with new work, new understanding, and new friends. This workshop is open to any writer who identifies as LGBTQIA+ regardless of the subject matter they intend to address. |
|
Technical Writing: Creating a User Guide
|
INSTRUCTOR: Andreana Binder
TIME: Starts February 6th and runs until February 27th, with scheduled Zoom calls on Saturday, February 6th, February 20th, and February 27th, from 2:30 - 4:00 PM CT. PRICE: Early-Bird until Monday, February 1st: $120 for members, $140 for non-members. After Monday, February 1st: $140 for members, $160 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Google Classroom and Zoom CAP: Limited to 15 Writers Looking for remote work in these difficult times? Join established technical writer Andreana Binder as she introduces students to the ins and outs of technical writing as a career. In this course, she’ll provide an overview of technical writing as a career path and guide students in the creation of a sample user guide. A user guide is a common “deliverable” that technical writers create and publish for customers across industries, particularly technology. And when seeking out a career in technical writing, a quality user guide writing sample can make all the difference! Using a blend of in-person Zoom meetings, hands-on assignments, and individualized feedback, the course will provide students with the perfect tool for jumpstarting a tech writing side hustle. |
|
Just Begin: A Workshop to Boost Creativity
|
INSTRUCTOR: Karleen Koen
TIME: Saturday, February 6th, 5:00 - 7:00 PM PRICE: Early-Bird until Monday, January 31st: $20 for members, $25 for non-members. After Monday, January 31st: $25 for members, $30 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 30 Is creativity important to writing? Join author and teacher Karleen Koen for a 2-hour workshop that focuses on creativity: Whose? Yours, wherever it’s wandered off to. Yours--but, oh no, you never had any to begin with. Yes, that creativity. This dip into what feeds the deep level of self from which creativity springs will begin or renew a lifelong relationship with both wildness and that which is most soothing, the paradox that is creativity. We’ll discuss the importance of creativity to different kinds of writing, as will definitions of creativity. Questions, personal reflection, discussion, and exercises written and physical make up this class. There will be writing done in class, so please make sure it doesn’t disconnect Zoom if you use your computer to write. Tool Box:
|
|
The Ins and Outs of Great Sex Scenes
|
INSTRUCTOR: Marian Szczepanski
TIME: Saturday, February 13th, 9:30 AM - 12:30 PM PRICE: Early-Bird until Monday, Feb. 8th: $45 for members, $60 for non-members. After Monday, Feb. 8th: $55 for members, $70 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 15 Sex builds character—and, in the process, makes for compelling fiction. Writing good fictional sex means knowing and using the building blocks of fiction to create sex scenes that deepen character and increase tension. After all, when are characters more vulnerable and riper for scrutiny and development than during intimate interactions? This class will examine well-crafted sex scenes in both conventional and speculative fiction. We’ll discuss how such scenes function to power a narrative—from hormonal teenage fumbling to subtle body language and verbal seduction. Our discussion will explore such craft considerations as characterization, setting, dialogue and point-of-view, as well as the impact of family/personal baggage, illness/physical challenges and societal norms/taboos on love-making. The class will focus on novel excerpts by established writers ranging from the contemporary (Lorrie Moore, Ian McEwan, Charles Baxter, Wally Lamb) to the classic (Flaubert and, yes, even Tolstoy). |
|
Stories from your Hometown: Writing Local
|
INSTRUCTOR: Kendra Preston Leonard
TIME: Starts Saturday, February 13th and runs until Saturday, March 6th, with scheduled Zoom classes on three Saturdays, February 13th, 20th, and 27th, from 1:00 - 3:30 PM CT. PRICE: Early-Bird until Monday, Feb. 8th: $120 for members, $140 for non-members. After Monday, Feb. 8th: $140 for members, $160 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom and Google Classroom CAP: 15 Have you ever wanted to write about the stories from your hometown or another specific place you’ve been to or lived in? The history of that Art Deco building and the people who lived in it, or maybe how your city coped during World War I? Maybe you want to dig into local history to add detail to a story you’ve already begun, or want to make sure your characters are using the right kinds of slang. In this workshop, we’ll investigate tools and techniques for writing about local history, whether from a non-fiction, fiction, or poetic point of view. You’ll learn how to use free online resources to find information from newspapers, census records, and other documents, as well as small museums, local historical societies, and other places. We’ll talk about creating characters that are in keeping with their localities, including how they speak, interact with others, and participate in local customs. This workshop is open to students from anywhere, writing about any place! All workshop participants will be invited to read their work at the Writing Local showcase, streamed live on Writespace’s Facebook page! |
|
Dipping into the Artist’s Way
|
INSTRUCTOR: Karleen Koen (First four weeks only)
TIME: Thirteen Saturdays, February 20th, 27th, March 6th, 13th, 20th, 27th, SKIP April 3rd, April 10th, 17th, 24th, May 1st, 8th, 15th, 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM CT PRICE: Early-Bird until Monday, Feb. 15th: $285 for members, $325 for non-members. After Monday, Feb. 15th: $325 for members, $365 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. If you would like to pay in installments, please contact us. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 24 Everyone is creative, but not everyone believes it. Julia Cameron's book The Artist’s Way opens the door to exploring this expressive, imaginative, vital part of yourself with a series of exercises, questions, and small steps that fulfill their promise to open you to your creativity. “We hunger for what might be called creative living—an expanded sense of creativity in our business lives, in sharing with our children, our spouse, our friends,” she writes in her groundbreaking book. In this course, you will experience all of that. The first four weeks with The Artist’s Way includes journaling, conversation, and class participation. Participants will engage in a series of small, creative acts that open them to the vast world of their imagination. At the end of the fourth week, Karleen Koen will no longer facilitate the class but leave it to walk on its own, with Writespace continuing to offer Zoom space for the duration of the thirteen-week program. Friendships with others and friendship with one’s self are among the prizes this course offers. Text: The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron, new or used. Participants will need to purchase a copy of the book on their own. Important commitments to understand: You will write morning pages every day, complete an artist’s date every week, and do the work of each chapter. As much as is possible, please. Tool Box for each class:
About the facilitator: Karleen Koen had either been in or facilitated Artist’s Way classes since 1994. |
|
How Characters Drive Stories
|
INSTRUCTOR: Angélique Jamail
TIME: Saturday, February 20th, 9:30 AM - 12:30 PM CT PRICE: Early-Bird until Monday, February 15th: $45 for members, $60 for non-members. After Monday, February 15th: $55 for members, $70 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 15 Have you ever written a story that just didn’t quite connect with its readers? Or have you ever finally found its resonance only once you were already three or four drafts in? One good way to captivate your readers from the outset is to begin with compelling characters. In this generative workshop, we’ll use tools from popular culture, narrative craft, and literary analysis to kickstart (or revamp!) your story with characters that seem so real. Come see why character drives plot, no matter the genre, far more than the other way around. Be sure to bring your preferred writing utensils (journal and pen, laptop, legal pad and box of sharpened pencils, etc.), a description of your favorite character from a book or movie, and an eagerness to look at character from a variety of angles. You can expect instruction, discussion, writing time, and the opportunity to share (if you wish) what you create in this class. |
|
Giving Voice to The Arab-American Experience
|
INSTRUCTOR: Amal Kassir
TIME: Saturday, February 27th, 9:30 AM - 12:30 PM CT PRICE: Early-Bird until Monday, Feb. 22nd: $45 for members, $60 for non-members. After Monday, Feb. 22nd: $55 for members, $70 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 15 Writespace is dedicated to celebrating Houston’s diversity. We hope each quarter of 2021 to provide classes that help writers who may not always feel heard find their voice in the written word. In the first quarter of 2021, Amal Kassir, an award-winning spoken word poet, will teach others how to express their experience through the magic of the written word. In this three-hour workshop, Amal will look at Middle Eastern diaspora poets in the world and compare them to modern poets of Arabia, and teach participants how to evaluate and critique the Arab American voice in mainstream media. Participants will reflect on some major trends and movements in Middle Eastern literature and tap into how to write about their own experiences. |
|
Be The Change: Crafting Your Social Justice Essay
|
INSTRUCTOR: Catherine Vance
TIME: Two Sundays, February 28th and March 7th, 2:00 - 5:00 PM PRICE: Early-Bird until Tuesday, Feb. 23rd: $85 for members, $100 for non-members. After Tuesday,Feb. 23rd: $100 for members, $115 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom LEVEL: All Levels CAP: Limited to 15 Writers Do you have an experience that changed how you view the world? Maybe it is experiencing an injustice, like being the victim of racial profiling? Maybe you did something awful that you now regret, like bullying a transgender kid in high school. Maybe it’s transformational, like a year in the Peace Corp. You want to write about that experience to help others see the world through your lens, but you don’t know how to begin. This class can help. Social justice writing is nonfiction, but to do it well, you must think like a fiction writer. There are characters to portray, plot and drama to create, and point of view to consider. There is emotion in social justice writing, but there is also logic, and the presentation of concrete information. How do you mesh feelings with the facts? In the first 3-hour session, we will analyze the craft of professional social justice storytellers such as TaNehisi Coates (Between the World and Me) and Barbara Ehrenreich (Nickel and Dimed) to see how they affect readers’ thinking about issues. We will also go through some exercises designed to help you focus your own story on the three key pieces of crafting a social justice memoir: Anecdote (the little story), Introspection (how it affected you), and Connection (creating meaning for the reader). In the second 3-hour session participants will workshop each other’s pieces. You should walk away ready to polish your memoir or essay to completion and inspired by your classmates’ stories and passion for changing the world. |
|
March Workshops & Events
Speculative Fiction 1
|
INSTRUCTOR: Charlotte Wyatt
TIME: Four Mondays, March 1st, 8th, 15th, and 22nd, 6:00 - 9:00 PM PRICE: Early-Bird until Wednesday, Feb. 24th: $150 for members, $180 for non-members. After Tuesday,Feb. 24th: $180 for members, $210 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 15 Do you take your fiction with a side of aliens, superheroes, dragons, or witches? Then this is the workshop for you! This workshop will provide an overview of the SFF genre. Together we will consider those elements of writing which are crucial to crafting compelling speculative stories, such as building our own worlds, extrapolating the fantastic from the real, and creating compelling non-human characters. With a blend of writing exercises and in-class discussion, you will walk away from class with a better understanding of this exciting, imaginative genre. |
|
Nonfiction for Mass Media
|
INSTRUCTOR: Pat Baldwin
TIME: Four Thursdays, March 4th, 11th, 18th, 25th, 7:00 - 8:30 PM PRICE: Early-Bird until Saturday, February 27th: $85 for members, $100 for non-members. After Saturday, February 27th: $100 for members, $115 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 15 Whether you want to write for magazines, newspapers, websites, blogs or another form of nonfiction, you should have two goals: Get it right; get it read. Sounds simple, but in today’s cluttered media environment, these goals take skill, structure and strategy. This four-week workshop will provide information and writing challenges that you can approach from whatever your individual level of experience. In regard to skill, readable writing requires making readers “see” with the use of savory descriptions that don’t sacrifice the truth. Writing for the reader involves writing artfully with sensory sentences. Writers will learn to replace abstract words and phrases with descriptive details that draw readers into narrative prose. Students also will learn that details aren’t randomly chosen. They are consciously selected. Skillful nonfiction writers don’t sit down to blank computer screens. They rely on specific writing structures that provide workable organizations for narrative flow. After all, discipline in structure leads to greater creativity in writing. As for strategy, the workshop will explore how to target a specific audience for creative success. Participants will explore various techniques to enable them to develop their writing competence. The class will use examples and exercises to help participants understand how to combine the artistry of literary writing with marketplace requirements. |
|
Beginning Fiction 1: Identifying Good Writing
|
INSTRUCTOR: Patrick Stockwell
TIME: Six Tuesdays, March 16th, 23rd, 30th, April 6th, 13th, 20th, 7:00 - 9:00 PM CT PRICE: Early-Bird until Thursday, Mar. 11th: $210 for members, $240 for non-members. After Thursday, Mar. 11th: $240 for members, $270 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. If you would like to pay in installments, please contact us. LOCATION: Online via Zoom LEVEL: All Levels CAP: Limited to 15 Writers In this six-week class designed for those who are new to writing, participants will develop an eye for prose that works: interesting dialogue, fantastic description, complex sentences, unique character details, and more. You’ll also learn to pick out instances of common writing missteps that stand in the way of a piece’s true potential. Through weekly readings, discussion, and writing assignments, students will develop a framework for understanding what sets a well-written story apart. |
|
Memoir 1
|
INSTRUCTOR: Cameron Dezen Hammon
TIME: Four Wednesdays, March 10th, 17th, 24th, 31st, 6:00 - 9:00 PM PRICE: Early-Bird until Friday, March 5th: $150 for members, $180 for non-members. After Friday, March 5th: $180 for members, $210 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 15 Do you have a story to tell and need help getting it on the page? This four-week class will help beginner and intermediate writers alike shape, structure, and make headway in writing their personal stories. Through lecture, discussion, targeted writing prompts and workshops, participants will dive into topics including crafting a narrator, voice and tone, setting, and revision. |
|
Honoring the Body: Narratives of Illness and Health
|
INSTRUCTOR: Rebecca Spears
TIME: Sunday, March 14th, 4:00 - 6:00 PM CT PRICE: Early-Bird until Tuesday, Mar. 9th: $20 for members, $25 for non-members. After Tuesday,, Mar. 9th: $25 for members, $30 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom Questions are at the heart of narratives about the body. In particular, the body narrative seeks to make meaning from the experience of illness and health. When the body undergoes change, our relationship with the body also changes. And there are so many unanswered questions. The emotional terrain of our bodies’ deterioration and restoration, loss and recovery can seem mysterious, disruptive, devastating, and unwanted. We want to know why. We want to know how. We want to know exactly what happened. We wonder if we could have changed an outcome. Whether you have been the sufferer, the caregiver, or an empathic friend and witness, your stories of physical and mental well-being may not be so easy to tell; the experiences tend to be fragmented. This two-hour seminar will show you ways to find the focus of your body narrative and how the essay might be written as a journey of self-discovery while engaging a wider audience. We will look at several successful essays and the forms that the essays can take. There will be time for activities to find the heart of your stories. You will also be introduced to journals and presses that are particularly interested in the body narrative. |
|
Memoir that Breaks the Rules
|
INSTRUCTOR: Joyce Boatright
TIME: Saturday, March 20th, 1:00 - 4:00 PM CT PRICE: Early-Bird until Monday, March 15th: $45 for members, $60 for non-members. After Monday, March 15th: $55 for members, $70 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 15 Want to write a memoir that stands out? This workshop will inspire you to play with the memoir form in creative, delightful, nontraditional ways, such as switching up point of view (who says memoir has to be in first person?), playing around with metaphor to get at your memoir’s theme, and taking some advice from Emily Dickenson: “Tell the truth but tell it slant.” We'll read excerpts from writers who have discovered fresh approaches in crafting their memoirs. Writing prompts will encourage you to experiment with voice, verb tense, and points of view to craft your own story. While sharing is encouraged, it is never required. |
|
Crafting Unconventional Narratives
|
INSTRUCTOR: Mark Haber
TIME: Saturday, March 27th, 1:00 - 4:00 PM CT PRICE: Early-Bird until Monday, March 22nd: $45 for members, $60 for non-members. After Monday, March 22nd: $55 for members, $70 for non-members. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Online via Zoom CAP: 15 Not content with traditional ways of telling a story? Hoping to resist cliche? Looking for novel ways to write a novel? Whether it’s stream of consciousness, point of view, shifts in time, or experimenting with language and form, creating an original narrative isn’t easy. We’ll look at novels that have succeeded in creating powerful narratives through unique and idiosyncratic writing styles. We’ll focus on what makes an unconventional narrative work, concentrating on the chances the author took and how they paid off. From William Faulkner to Virginia Woolf, Toni Morrison to Eimear McBride, some of the most powerful novels ever written were created by defying traditional forms of the novel and creating a work of singular style. Together, we’ll discover ways of bringing vibrant narratives to our own writing. |
|