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March Workshops
Snappy Chapters in Non-Fiction & Memoir
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INSTRUCTOR: Sean Morrissey
TIME: Saturday, March 1, 9:30 am-12:30 pm CST/CDT PRICE: Early bird price: $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Sunday, February 23. After Sunday, February 23: $55 for members, $70 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Writespace, 1907 Sabine Street, #125, Houston, TX 77007 (map). LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 There's a rhythm to plot, there are rhythms to sentences--but what about chapters? The specifics of how to draw your reader into devouring "just a few more pages" depend upon your ability as a writer to begin and end chapters with just the right hint of intrigue and drama. In this workshop we will examine successful examples of snappy chapters in creative non-fiction, memoir, and non-fiction, through the lessons of chapter construction are useful for all genres. From textbooks to autofiction, emotional outpourings to just-the-facts histories, authors can make anything exciting with the right tools! Sean Morrissey Carroll is an author in Houston, Texas, programming director for Writespace Writing Center, and co-host of Writers Lunch. He’s been a bookseller, photography teacher, butcher, cartoonist, waiter, art critic, crepemaker, vintage fashion grader and sign painter. Published in Art in America, Artforum.com, Bullshit Literary, Defunkt Magazine, Houston Press, and Gulf Coast magazine, Sean’s story “Future Floods of Houston” was nominated for a PEN/Dau Award. |
Photo by Ryan Graybill on Unsplash
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Writing from the Power of the Senses: Chocolate
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NSTRUCTOR: Andreana Binder TIME: Saturday, March 1, 4:30 - 7:30 p.m. CST PRICE: Early bird price: $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Sunday, February 23. After Sunday, February 23: $55 for members, $70 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Writespace, 1907 Sabine Street, #125, Houston, TX 77007 (map) LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 Poetry-centered but not exclusively so. In this workshop we will use the five senses with a theme centered around types of chocolate I will provide, like white, semi sweet, and dark. Feeling stuck on an existing project? Feeling writer's block, or that you would love to write more, but you don’t know where to begin? In this workshop, we will explore writing with exercises inspired by one or more of the five senses: taste, scent, touch, sight, and sound. We’ll experiment with prompts based on fragrance, as well as visual and auditory prompts, to generate ideas for both new and ongoing projects. We’ll also explore how the senses are deeply linked with memory—for example, how scent can bring us back to a specific place, moment, or feeling—and how writing with the five senses helps us create concrete details that engage readers. Writers of all levels are welcome. All you need to bring is a willingness to enjoy your writing experience and your favorite writing tools (paper and pen or laptop). Andreana Binder is a corporate writer by trade, with a love for the arts and education. Andreana has taught courses in Composition & Rhetoric, Technical Communications, Early American Literature, as well as Creative Writing at Lone Star College and Houston Community College. Binder has a bachelor’s in Poetry from the University of Houston and a Masters in Creative Writing-Poetry from Antioch University. As a graduate student, Andreana was co-creator and editor for The Sylvan Echo Online Literary Journal. . Despite having studied poetry, Andreana cannot resist writing nonfiction essays and dabbling in short fiction. Her poetry has been published in Temenos and Fawlt Magazine, as well as creative nonfiction essays in Pebble Lake Review and N/A Lit Journal. |
Photo by Tetiana Bykovets on Unsplash
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Mystery-building in a Novel
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INSTRUCTOR: Shannon Winton
TIME: Sunday, March 2, 1-4 pm CST/CDT PRICE: Early bird price: $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Monday, February 24. After Monday, February 24: $55 for members, $70 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Writespace, 1907 Sabine Street, #125, Houston, TX 77007 (map). LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 From romance to science fiction to westerns, mysteries can be set in any location at any point in time, and a good mystery will excite your reader like nothing else. However, how to write a mystery can be a mystery in itself. Regardless of whether your protagonist is an amateur sleuth, secret agent, or hardboiled detective, their story needs to hit specific plot beats. This workshop will break down the elements that compose a mystery plot, expound on how to build believable puzzles for your detective(s) to solve, and identify audience expectations for the most popular mystery sub-genres so you can have your own aha moments as you create your story. In-class practice will include identifying key plot elements in award-winning detective fiction. In the generative portion of our class, we’ll use a mystery-building beat sheet to help you outline your next mystery story. Shannon Winton is a whodunit mastermind who also loves zombies and old-world monsters. She’s been a professional editor for over a decade and teaches workshops for the Editorial Freelancers Association to help new editors learn their trade. Shannon has a penchant for educating writers and likes to provide feedback that helps her authors grow and understand their genre better. |
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Law & Society in Speculative Fiction
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INSTRUCTOR: Christopher D. Lewis
TIME: Wednesday, March 5, 6-9 pm CST/CDT PRICE: Early bird price: $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Thursday, February 27. After Thursday, February 27: $55 for members, $70 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Writespace, 1907 Sabine Street, #125, Houston, TX 77007 (map) LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 The nuts and bolts, nitty gritty of worldbuilding can take all sorts of forms. What color is the grass? What's the life cycle of a Huffleump? And most of it can be made up on the fly if it has no bearing on the plot--but law and society are different animals. Often in speculative fiction, from military sci-fi to epic fantasy, the structure of a society can hold a lot of sway over a plot's progression. Join us at the workshop to learn how to integrate your worldbuilding with your plot to enhance your story. With interactive feedback from law professional. Christopher Lewis topics will include economic and political structures, characteristics and quirks of historical judicial systems, and how a plot can influence worldbuilding, as well as the reverse. Licensed for 23 years, Christopher D. Lewis is a Bankruptcy and Tax Law lawyer in Houston Texas who attended University of Houston Law Center. He also specializes in estate, probate, and health law. In his spare time Lewis writes speculative fiction and serves on the board of Writespace Writing Center. |
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Writing is Like Running
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INSTRUCTOR: Sean Morrissey Carroll
TIME: Saturday, March 8, 1-4 p.m. CST PRICE: Early bird price: $65 for members, $80 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Sunday, March 2. After Sunday, March 2: $75 for members, $90 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here LOCATION: Writespace Studio, 1907 Sabine Street Suite #125, Houston TX 77007 LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 This workshop will examine writing through the lens of running, and you don't have to be a runner to enjoy it. From ups and down to setbacks and personal triumphs, the life of an author can mirror the trevails of a runner in many ways. With generative prompts and interactive elements based on readings from Murakami's book, we will look at how authors can set themselves up for the marathon of publishing a book rather than a series of sprints that will leave you exhausted. Every attendee will receive a copy of What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, from Haruki Murakami, the author of The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and Norwegian Wood, from Brazos Bookstore! In 1982, having sold his jazz bar to devote himself to writing, Murakami began running to keep fit. A year later, he’d completed a solo course from Athens to Marathon, and now, after dozens of such races, not to mention triathlons and a dozen critically acclaimed books, he reflects upon the influence the sport has had on his life and—even more important—on his writing. Equal parts training log, travelogue, and reminiscence, this revealing memoir covers his four-month preparation for the 2005 New York City Marathon and takes us to places ranging from Tokyo’s Jingu Gaien gardens, where he once shared the course with an Olympian, to the Charles River in Boston among young women who outpace him. Through this marvelous lens of sport emerges a panorama of memories and insights: the eureka moment when he decided to become a writer, his greatest triumphs and disappointments, his passion for vintage LPs, and the experience, after fifty, of seeing his race times improve and then fall back. Sean Morrissey Carroll is an author in Houston, Texas, programming director for Writespace Writing Center, and co-host of Writers Lunch. He’s been a bookseller, photography teacher, butcher, cartoonist, waiter, art critic, crepemaker, vintage fashion grader and sign painter. Published in Art in America, Artforum.com, Bullshit Literary, Defunkt Magazine, Houston Press, Punt Volat, Nebo, Space City Underground, and Gulf Coast magazine, Sean’s story “Future Floods of Houston” was nominated for a PEN/Dau Award. |
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Getting Poetry Published
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INSTRUCTOR: Melissa Huckabay
TIME: Saturday, March 8, 4:30-7:30 pm CST/CDT PRICE: Early bird price: $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Sunday, March 2. After Sunday, March 2: $55 for members, $70 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Writespace, 1907 Sabine Street, #125, Houston, TX 77007 (map). LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 We all want to get our work out into the world, to feel that we've contributed to society with our artistic endeavors (and maybe make a little money along the way) but the steps from writing to publishing can be opaque and confusing! Whether you are submitting individual poems to journals or chapbooks to presses, there are invisible hoops to jump through and landmines to avoid along the way. Fret not! Join us at this workshop for a trip through the life cycle of a poem from genesis to ending up in a readers' hands. Led by poet Melissa Huckabay, we will explore avenues a poem can travel successfully to find its home (or homes!) on the printed page. Melissa McEver Huckabay is a graduate of the MFA Creative Writing Program at Texas State University, an adjunct college instructor, and an experienced writer in a wide range of fields.. She also has taught English Language Arts and creative writing at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. Melissa’s creative work has appeared in SWWIM, Thimble, Poetry South, Sweet: A Literary Confection, and elsewhere, and her short fiction has won the Spider’s Web Flash Fiction Prize from Spider Road Press. She was a 2023 Contributor to the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference and recently nominated for a Pushcart Prize. |
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Journey of Poetry
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INSTRUCTOR: Cindy Childress
TIME: Four Saturdays, March 15 & 22 1-4 p.m and April 12 & 26 1-4 p.m CDT PRICE: Early bird price: $210 for members, $240 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Wednesday, November 6. After Wednesday November 6: $240 for members, $270 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: 1907 Sabine St., Suite #125, Houston, TX 77007 LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 Have you ever had an idea for a poem, then got stuck on how to write it? The blank page is intimidating enough, then what you write feels more like a journal entry or a greeting card. Or maybe you’re tired of free verse and looking for fresh poetic inspiration. Poetry is a wiley craft that uses language in a way unavailable to us in everyday life. As with a song, a poem can elevate and capture a specific experience—an image, memory, or sensation—and connect with people in a powerful way. And this skill can absolutely be learned and improved with practice. Whether you’re a practiced poet or a total “newbie” who has just wondered what poetry is “about,” this workshop will provide a jump-start to get you into a writing practice. Come join us in a supportive, inspiring workshop environment in which we will explore poetic forms—from the sonnet to experimental forms—so you can learn the rules, strategically break them, and create your own rules for your poetry. We will study a broad array of contemporary poets and craft techniques, including how to use line breaks, stanzas, and sound to heighten meaning. You’ll leave this class empowered to write more poetry and trust your poetic sensibilities. Writers from marginalized communities (writers of color, writers with disabilities, writers from the queer and LGBT community) are encouraged to attend. Dr. Cindy Childress supports entrepreneurs to write books that make money and make an impact. Her clients achieve bestseller status, give TEDx Talks, win book awards, sign book deals, and more. Childress holds a Ph. D. in English from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. In addition to bespoke ghostwriting services, she leads online writing and editing classes and author coaching programs. |
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Poetry Chapbook Workshop: Building Community and Crafting Submittable Work
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INSTRUCTOR: Miranda Ramirez
TIME: Saturday, March 15, 4:30-7:30 pm CST/CDT PRICE: Early bird price: $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Sunday, March 9. After Sunday, March 9: $55 for members, $70 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Writespace, 1907 Sabine Street, #125, Houston, TX 77007 (map). LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 Join us for a dynamic poetry chapbook workshop designed to inspire creativity, foster a supportive community of writers, and guide participants in developing a cohesive short collection of poetry. This workshop focuses on refining individual poems while exploring thematic unity and structural flow within the chapbook format. Through group discussions, peer feedback, and expert guidance, participants will move their work closer to completion or create a polished, submission-ready manuscript. Open to poets of all levels, this workshop offers a collaborative environment to deepen your craft and celebrate the power of poetry. Miranda Ramírez is a multidisciplinary artist and writer born in Houston, Texas. She’s the founder and director of Defunkt Press, and co-organizer of the Houston Poetry and Arts Festival. Her work has been featured in Atticus Review, Cowboy Jamboree, Puro Chicanx: Writers of the 21st Century, and St. Lucy Books’ compendium Double Feature. |
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From Inciting Incident to Midpoint
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INSTRUCTOR: Miranda Ramirez TIME: Sunday, March 16, 4:30-7:30 pm CST/CDT PRICE: Early bird price: $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Monday, March10. After Monday, March 10: $55 for members, $70 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Zoom LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 Dive into the heart of storytelling with this focused fiction workshop. Explore the crucial moments from the inciting incident to the midpoint of your narrative, where characters and stakes take shape. Through targeted exercises, craft discussions, and constructive feedback, participants will develop compelling openings and dynamic plot progression that keep readers engaged. Ideal for writers looking to refine their story’s foundation and build momentum toward a strong narrative arc. Miranda Ramírez is a multidisciplinary artist and writer born in Houston, Texas. She’s the founder and director of Defunkt Press, and co-organizer of the Houston Poetry and Arts Festival. Her work has been featured in Atticus Review, Cowboy Jamboree, Puro Chicanx: Writers of the 21st Century, and St. Lucy Books’ compendium Double Feature. |
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The Dark Night of the Soul
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INSTRUCTOR: Zen Ase
TIME: Friday, March 21, 6-9 pm CST/CDT PRICE: Early bird price: $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Saturday, March 15. After Saturday, March 15: $55 for members, $70 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Writespace, 1907 Sabine Street, #125, Houston, TX 77007 (map). LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 There's a certain panache to getting your reader to love seeing you put your characters through hell, and a depth of knowledge that comes from being able to channel your personal development into your writing! Join us at this workshop to tap into your deepest thoughts and mold your writing to express both the pain of the human condition and the light that can pull one free from it. With poetry and prose examples as well as generative exercises to find those nooks and crannies in your soul to pull from, you'll leave this workshop with emotional and writing growth. Zen Ase spent her adult life married, raising twin sons, and teaching high school in the inner city. Teacher of the Year for AHS in 2011-2012 and 2017-2018, a Claes Nobel Educator of Distinction and a University of Chicago Distinguished Educator, Zen changed her lifeand began a healing journey. That journey led her back to poetry, journaling, and becoming a spoken word artist. By 2020, she had performed at over 50 venues, hosted, and organized over 50 live music, comedy and poetry shows including Laughz and Lyrics. Ase became the Houston organizer for 100,000 Poets for Change, and was honored with a Congressional Award for activism. Her poetry and prose can be found in over a dozen anthologies and magazines including, “ Let’s Talk about Being Human,” “Selfhood,” “Restless,” “Five 2 One magazine”, “Caravel”, and “Switchback”. |
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Building Tension with Romance
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INSTRUCTOR: Daphne Strasert
TIME: Sunday, March 23, 1-4 pm CST/CDT PRICE: Early bird price: $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Monday, March 17. After Monday, March 17: $55 for members, $70 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Zoom LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 Is a romance story really romantic without some delicious tension? The lingering glances, heated banter, and chemistry between the two love interests gives readers such a thrill of anticipation that they can't put your story down. If you're a romance writer, adding this tension that hooks the reader is at the forefront of everything you do, but how do you create this tension in a way that feels authentic? Author Daphne Strasert is here to help. In this three-hour workshop, she'll discuss techniques and ideas that can leave your characters (and your readers!) wanting more. Daphne (she/her) is an intuitive editor who has her finger on the pulse of what gets a reader’s heart pumping. A lover of both horror and romance, Daphne has a unique command of how to pull a reader in close and play on their emotions. Her degree in psychology and years of working as a slush reader for Horror Addicts have given her an exceptional foundation on developing the human elements of storytelling and craft in her editing. She excels at molding dramatic scenes to the perfect level of spice, detail, and emotional vulnerability for your ideal reader. In her spare time, Daphne writes horror with a focus on the lived experiences of women and scifi/romance with themes of toppling the patriarchy. You can find her work in On the Premises and in anthologies such as Horror Bites and Dark Divinations. |
Photo credit: unknown
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Research Principles for Memoir & Non-Fiction
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INSTRUCTOR: Alexandra Drake
TIME: Saturday, March 29, 9:30 am-12:30 pm CST/CDT PRICE: Early bird price: $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Sunday, March 23. After Sunday, March 23: $55 for members, $70 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Writespace, 1907 Sabine Street, #125, Houston, TX 77007 (map). LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 When it comes to writing memoir and non-fiction, getting the details right is essential to telling the most honest story you can. The good news: Research doesn't have to be daunting. Join Alexandra Drake for a three-hour workshop that will dive into research principles and methods and teach you how to approach any fact-based project with confidence. Alexandra Drake is a project assistant at William J. Hill Texas Artisans & Artists Archive with the Bayou Bend Collection of MFAH Houston. She has worked as a librarian for over a decade, joining the Houston Public Library in November 2015. Drake is a native Houstonian and a wearer of many hats, both literally and professionally. She graduated from the University of Houston in 2007 with a BA in English and earned her MLS from the University of North Texas in 2012. An avid sewist and crafter, she draws inspiration from all things vintage. Usually she’s a fan of nonfiction, with the occasional crossover into feminist and historical fiction, plus some dystopian novels and horror. A former creator of scavenger hunts and purveyor of rock n’ roll memorabilia, she is delighted to add Writespace instructor to her developing list of character-building careers. |
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Everything You Never Wanted to Learn About Writing Erotic Scenes
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INSTRUCTOR: Daphne StrasertTIME: Sunday, March 30, 1-4 pm CST/CDT
PRICE: Early bird price: $45 for members, $60 for nonmembers. The deadline for early bird pricing is Monday, March 24. After Monday, March 24: $55 for members, $70 for nonmembers. Become a member here. Apply for a scholarship here. LOCATION: Zoom LEVEL: All levels CAP: 15 Ready to write a steamy scene that makes your readers' toes curl? Join author Daphne Strasert for this three-hour workshop on the logistics of crafting erotic scenes that will add some enticing heat to your novel or short story. Whether you're new to writing romance and steam or you're just looking to get some new perspectives on the craft of erotica, you'll find value in Daphne's guidance throughout this workshop. Daphne Strasert (she/her) is an intuitive editor who has her finger on the pulse of what gets a reader’s heart pumping. A lover of both horror and romance, Daphne has a unique command of how to pull a reader in close and play on their emotions. Her degree in psychology and years of working as a slush reader for Horror Addicts have given her an exceptional foundation on developing the human elements of storytelling and craft in her editing. She excels at molding dramatic scenes to the perfect level of spice, detail, and emotional vulnerability. In her spare time, Daphne writes horror with a focus on the lived experiences of women and scifi/romance with themes of toppling the patriarchy. You can find her work in On the Premises and in anthologies such as Horror Bites and Dark Divinations. |
Photo credit unknown
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