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• 12 Techniques to Improve Your Dialogue: Character Development Edition (Kristie Smeltzer)

  • When
    June 23, 2026
  •  
    6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
  • Location
    Online — Instructor will provide Zoom link
  • Spaces left
    6

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  This class has been rescheduled. This class will meet from 6:00-8:00 PM Eastern Time on Zoom for 4 weeks: Tuesdays, June 23, June 30, July 7, and July 14. 

  Note: This class is a new iteration of a previous offering, focusing on character development specifically. Previous participants are welcome to join, and the material will be new.  

  Description:

  Dialogue is an exceptionally useful tool to develop characters. People’s words show us what’s in their heads and hearts and articulate their perspectives on the world. A unique perspective is often what draws us to a character, whether we like them or not. We often hear that we need to cultivate our ear for dialogue but sometimes what we really need are practical methods for how to improve our skills. If that resonates, join us to learn twelve specific dialogue techniques to develop characters that you can use in your writing practice right away.

  This four-week Zoom class will cover three character developing dialogue techniques per class session, and participants will apply them to their work in real time. Each session will have a theme, such as “How Emotion Influences Speech.” We’ll discuss specific techniques that convey character emotion information in authentic and engaging ways—that sidestep the dreaded monologue. Then participants will revise previously drafted work or write new conversations to practice implementing the skills.

  This class is a good fit for fiction and creative nonfiction writers. Some techniques will lend themselves more easily to writing fiction due to the greater creative license available to those writing purely fictional people/events. 

  About the Instructor:

  

  Kristie Smeltzer's fiction has been published by Scribes*MICRO*Fiction, MonkeyBicycle, Atticus Review, and others. She is currently working on several novels. She earned her MFA in creative writing at the University of Central Florida. Kristie has taught at WriterHouse since 2016, and her students have gone on to publish their work in literary magazines, with small presses, and through large publishing houses. She also helps others tell their stories as a developmental editor and writing coach. Learn more at www.kristiesmeltzer.com.

  
  

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• Romance 101

  • When
    June 27, 2026
  •  
    1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
  • Location
    Zoom
  • Spaces left
    9

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  This seminar will meet online on June 27 from 1:00-4:00 PM

  Description:

  Love is in the air, and in a LOT of fiction. Romance novels draw droves of passionate fans to the genre, and these readers have some specific tropes and norms they care about. Romantic subplots are the most common type of subplot across genres such as fantasy, thriller, literary fiction–you name it. 
  

  Join this seminar to get the basics of how to write romance effectively. We’ll cover common tropes, reader expectations, spice levels, handling consent, and developing romantic tension.  

  About the Instructor:

  Kristie Smeltzer's fiction has been published by Scribes*MICRO*Fiction, MonkeyBicycle, Atticus Review, and others. She is currently working on several novels. She earned her MFA in creative writing at the University of Central Florida. Kristie has taught at WriterHouse since 2016, and her students have gone on to publish their work in literary magazines, with small presses, and through large publishing houses. She also helps others tell their stories as a developmental editor and writing coach. Learn more at www.kristiesmeltzer.com. 
  

  
  

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• Drafts and Revisions: How Poems Are Made (Margaret Mackinnon)

  • When
    July 25, 2026
  •  
    1:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Location
    WriterHouse
  • Spaces left
    5

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  This seminar will meet in person at WriterHouse for one session on Saturday, July 25 from 1:00 to 5:00 PM.

  Description:

  Anyone who writes seriously soon learns that revision is a central part of the process. A poem can be revised by making only small changes, but some revisions are more dramatic. Marianne Moore, who continued to revise her poems even after they had been published, famously cut “Poetry” from thirty lines to three. Ezra Pound took Eliot’s original draft of “The Waste Land” and helped create a Modernist collage.  Sonia Sanchez urges poets to “revise purposefully and constantly and playfully.” In this one-day seminar, we will look at a range of specific approaches and strategies other writers have used in revising their work. Seminar members will also be invited to share their own “before” and “after” poems to highlight their experiences with revision. Finally, we will focus on poems by members of the group that are still in the process of being revised.  
  

  About the Instructor:

  Margaret Mackinnon is the author of two collections of poetry, The Invented Child (Silverfish Review Press 2013), winner of the 2014 Literary Award in Poetry from the Library of Virginia, and Afternoon in Cartago (Ashland Poetry Press 2022), winner of the Richard Snyder Memorial Publication Prize. Her work has appeared in The Hampden-Sydney Poetry Review, Image, Poetry, Blackbird, and other journals. She attended Vassar College and the University of North Carolina, and she received her MFA in poetry from the University of Florida. She lives with her family in Richmond.

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• Ink & Income: Mastering the Lifecycle of a Book, Module 3 - Launch & Promotion (Andi Cumbo)

  • Start
    September 09, 2026
  •  
  • End
    October 14, 2026
  •  
  • Schedule
    6 sessions
  • Location
    WriterHouse
  • Spaces left
    9

  Register

  This class will meet in person at WriterHouse for 6 sessions (Sept. 9, Sept. 16, Sept. 23, Sept. 30, Oct. 7, Oct. 14) on Wednesdays, from 10:00 AM-12:30 PM. 

  This course is designed as a series of four distinct modules following the chronological lifecycle of a book. Students may register for the full 20-week intensive or select/combine individual modules on Foundations, Production, Launch Strategy, or Sustainability.

  Description:

  You have typed "The End," but for the professional writer, the work is just beginning. Ink & Income is a comprehensive roadmap designed to bridge the gap between literary craft and sustainable business. Guided by hybrid author and editor Andi Cumbo, this course walks students through the complete lifecycle of a book—from the initial decision between traditional and independent publishing to the complex machinery of book launches, marketing, and financial management. Whether you are a debut writer holding your first manuscript or an established author looking to professionalize your career, this course offers the practical tools to turn your art into a business. 

  Module 3: Launch & Promotion (6 Weeks)
  Focus: Getting the book into readers' hands.

  Weeks 1–2: The Launch Strategy
  

  • • Planning the launch window, organizing launch teams (street teams), ARC distribution, and working with retailers.

    • Guest Spotlight: Flannery Buchanan (Working with Bookstores) & Dave Hirschman (Live Events).

  Weeks 3–6: Ongoing Marketing
  

  • • Moving beyond the launch. Strategies for social media engagement, an introduction to advertising, and public appearances.

    • Guest Spotlight: Marijean Oldham (Marketing) & Jeffrey Lofton (Public Speaking).

  About the Instructor:

  Andi Cumbo is a former creative writing professor, a professional editor, and a publisher who is the author of over 30 books that each incorporate real-life places, people, and events in their pages.  She writes cozy mysteries, romantic comedies, YA fantasy, and creative nonfiction and holds and MFA in Creative Nonfiction from Antioch University. She has taught at Santa Clara University, Stevenson University, and George Mason University. When she’s not writing, she and her young son name his toys odd things like “Blech-agh-bah” and try to figure out Lego Fortnite together. She lives in Charlottesville.

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• Ink & Income: Mastering the Lifecycle of a Book, Module 4 - Sustainability & The Long Game (Andi Cumbo)

  • Start
    October 21, 2026
  •  
  • End
    November 11, 2026
  •  
  • Schedule
    4 sessions
  • Location
    WriterHouse
  • Spaces left
    10

  Register

  This class will meet in person at WriterHouse for 4 sessions (Oct. 21, Oct. 28, Nov. 4, Nov. 11) on Wednesdays, from 10:00 AM-12:30 PM. 

  This course is designed as a series of four distinct modules following the chronological lifecycle of a book. Students may register for the full 20-week intensive or select/combine individual modules on Foundations, Production, Launch Strategy, or Sustainability.

  Description:

  You have typed "The End," but for the professional writer, the work is just beginning. Ink & Income is a comprehensive roadmap designed to bridge the gap between literary craft and sustainable business. Guided by hybrid author and editor Andi Cumbo, this course walks students through the complete lifecycle of a book—from the initial decision between traditional and independent publishing to the complex machinery of book launches, marketing, and financial management. Whether you are a debut writer holding your first manuscript or an established author looking to professionalize your career, this course offers the practical tools to turn your art into a business. 

  Module 4: Sustainability & The Long Game (4 Weeks)
  Focus: Keeping the business—and the author—healthy.

  Weeks 1–2: Financial Maintenance
  

  • • Understanding royalties, tracking expenses, profit & loss (P&L) statements, and tax basics for authors.

    • Guest Spotlight: Jen Poteet (Multiple Lines of Income).

  Weeks 3–4: Career Longevity
  

  • • Preventing creative burnout, managing time, and planning the "next book" while marketing the current one.

    • Guest Spotlight: Anne Carley (Creative Balance).

  About the Instructor:

  Andi Cumbo is a former creative writing professor, a professional editor, and a publisher who is the author of over 30 books that each incorporate real-life places, people, and events in their pages.  She writes cozy mysteries, romantic comedies, YA fantasy, and creative nonfiction and holds and MFA in Creative Nonfiction from Antioch University. She has taught at Santa Clara University, Stevenson University, and George Mason University. When she’s not writing, she and her young son name his toys odd things like “Blech-agh-bah” and try to figure out Lego Fortnite together. She lives in Charlottesville.

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