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“Two years ago, I attempted my first NaNoWriMo. With no previous writing experience, I pounded out a 60k word rough (very rough!) draft. A few months later I signed up for a class at WriterHouse. I learned so much, so quickly. Over the following months I took more classes and and refined my manuscript. A year later I submitted it to PitchWars, a highly competitive, international competition. Out of nearly 3000 applicants, 160 were chosen (including me!) to work one-on-one with a published author followed by a showcase with literary agents. I know the only reason I was able to go from a newbie writer to having interest from top literary agents in 18 months was because of the lessons I learned at WriterHouse. So thank you, WriterHouse! “–Emily Thiede, WriterHouse student and member
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FEATURED EVENTS
September 2018
Plot. Stakes. Tension
Instructor: Crystal Hana Kim $60 Members | $65 Nonmembers Saturday, 9/22/18 | 9:30 AM - 1:30 PM These three terms are often used interchangeably when we talk about the craft of writing. How are these three terms different and how do they work together to keep the reader interested? In this seminar, we will discuss how to effectively create and maintain dramatic tension in fiction by closely reading a short story together. We will then examine our own characters to…
Find out more »October 2018
2018 Words and Wine Celebration
Art Gallery at Indoor Biotechnologies, 700 Harris Street (across from WriterHouse) Tickets: $50 per person Sponsorship*: Best Seller ($250), Pulitzer ($500), and Nobel ($1,000) It's time for Words and Wine, the signature annual fundraiser for WriterHouse, an organization whose mission is to promote the creation and appreciation of literature and to encourage the development of writers at all levels by providing affordable, secure workspace and meeting space, high quality writing instruction, and literary events for the public. Join us for…
Find out more »You Can Control Time
Instructor: Amanda Korman $60 Members | $65 Nonmembers Saturday, 10/13/18 | 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM Time is an important instrument in your fiction-writing toolbox. In this four-hour seminar, we will learn about the many ways you can play with the speed at which things happen in your stories and novels. We’ll read examples of authors making ample, even wild use of the possibilities, and we’ll do some writing and experimenting of our own. About the Instructor: Amanda Korman is…
Find out more »Reading & Signing by Doug Lawson
Visit New Dominion Bookshop for a reading with short story writers Chaya Bhuvaneswar (White Dancing Elephants) and Doug Lawson (Bigfoots in Paradise). A signing will follow. This event is co-sponsored by WriterHouse and is free and open to the public. Doug will also be teaching a half-day seminar on Crafting Irresistible Characters at WriterHouse on Saturday, October 27.
Find out more »Capricious, Courageous, Captivating: Crafting Irresistible Characters (Only 1 slot left!)
Instructor: Doug Lawson $60 Members | $65 Nonmembers Saturday, 10/27/18 | 1:00 PM - 4:30 PM What is it that makes a character truly, madly, deeply memorable—so uniquely gripping that they can’t be forgotten, so quirky that you can’t help but love them, hate them, want to take them home with you and cook them dinner? In this seminar, we’ll look at some examples of great characters from stories in different mediums (stories, novels, movies, TV) and see if we…
Find out more »November 2018
First Fridays Art Opening, “World Horizons” with Judy McLeod
Horizons “Water, water, everywhere …..” in the many-colored oceans, in the many-colored skies, in the lakes and rivers, the flora, the fauna, and in ourselves. Water is the essential force and the natural resource that constitutes and connects everything we know on Planet Earth, life. My good fortune took me, for several years, sailing around the world, my ship a small vessel in the vastness of the oceans of Planet Earth. This tiny speck of Planet Earth is huge and…
Find out more »Reading & Signing by Donna Isaac
Teacher/ poet Donna Isaac will read from her 2018 poetry book, Footfalls (Pocahontas Press), which celebrates her formative homes in Appalachian regions and touches on folk, bluegrass, and mountain music especially as collected by John and Allan Lomax. Refreshments will be served, and Donna will sign books after the reading. Donna grew up in several Virginia areas as well as in North Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia. She holds a B.A. in English from James Madison University, an M.A. in English…
Find out more »Fall Class Reading and Open House
Join us for food and fun as we celebrate the writing created during the 2018 fall term. Fiction, nonfiction, and poetry will be represented. The event is free and open to the public and refreshments will be served. Bring friends!
Find out more »January 2019
Revision Essentials (only 3 spots left!)
Instructor: Amanda Korman $60 Members | $65 Nonmembers Saturday, 1/26/19 | 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM “Several delusions weaken the writer’s resolve to throw away work. If he has read his pages too often, those pages will have a necessary quality, the ring of the inevitable, like poetry known by heart; they will perfectly answer their own familiar rhythms. He will retain them. He may retain those pages if they possess some virtues, such as power in themselves, though they…
Find out more »February 2019
First Fridays Art Opening, “Photos in Fiber” with Jill Kerttula
Join us for food, wine, and lively conversation as we celebrate the artwork of Jill Kerttula. Her exhibition, "Photos in Fiber," is free and open to the public. Jill Kerttula’s art quilts are a culmination of years of professional art experience, combined with her avocations of sewing and photography. Kerttula was a professional graphic designer and art director; she taught college level art and design classes; as an art major, she had specialized in printmaking; and she also spent several…
Find out more »WRITERHOUSE NEWS
2019 Write On! Summer Camps Are Here!
Creative Writing Camp for Kids Session I: Monday-Friday, July 8 - July 12, 2019 | 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.Session II: Monday-Friday, July 22 - July 26, 2019 | 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. SESSION ONE CAMPS: Grades 6-8: Writing...
A Valentine for WriterHouse
Member Blog Entry by Cora Schenberg Today, February 14, I’m sending a Valentine to WriterHouse. For those who hate sappy Valentines, have no fear: Writers know there’s nothing sappy about writing. It’s a messy, risky practice. I’m at work on a memoir that...
When Publishers Fail to Market Your Book
This post appeared in the August 1, 2018 edition of the WriterHouse Newsletter. Jane is teaching Getting Your Book Published: A Year-Long Master Class during the fall 2018 term. As may have heard, not all books are adequately marketed by publishers, who may rely...
