september
The Self-Edit Package
(Bones, Map, & Concise)
w/holly starley & special guest Marya Hornbacher
As writers, we have an idea, a draft, a story. Fantastic! It's what we do next that matters. Editing isn't just grammar. It's mining for meaning and the art of ensuring meaning and the play of language work in concert. This 3-part series (take all three or just one, for one register separately) shares the tools and strategies of a professional editor in a three-stage system (develop, refine, polish) and shows you how to step back and see your own work through fresh eyes so you can apply those tools. Bring a work in progress or work with the drafts we'll develop in session.
Tuesdays 3–6 pm PDT / 6–9 pm EDT / 8–11 am AEST (Wednesday)
9/9, 9/16, 9/23
SELF-EDIT 1
(Get the Bones Right)
w/holly starley
As writers, knowing how to develop our own work isn't just essential, it's freeing! Learn strategies for seeing your own early drafts through the eyes of a developmental editor. Then use the tools of a professional editor to transform the bones of your work BEFORE you flesh them out. Bring a work-in-progress or work with the draft we'll develop in session.
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Tuesday 3–6 pm PDT / 6–9 pm EDT / (Wednesday) 8–11 am AEST
9/9
Breaking The News
w/Paul Corman-roberts
Sometimes, to get over the news, we have to break the news ourselves. In this generative writing workshop, we will review the more bizarre aspects of recent current events, and from there, develop writing exercises that help as chroniclers of our times to better speak back to, or for the times.
Thursdays 5:30 - 7 PM PST
9/11, 9/18, 10/9, 10/23
Play Hard, Write Hard
w/holly starley
Feeling stuck in a rut? Blank page messing with you? Want to create a piece like nothing you’ve ever written before? To remember the wild fun of creation? Try play! One weekend, two hours each day: Let loose. Experiment with form and structure. Frolick with genre and style. Open doors you didn’t even know were there! Discover how play can lead to seriously good work.
Friday, 9/12, 4–6 pm PDT / 7–9 pm EDT
Saturday & Sunday, 9/13, 9/14 11 am–1 pm PDT / 2–4 pm EDT
Play Hard, Write Hard (Down Under edition)
w/holly starley
Feeling stuck in a rut? Blank page messing with you? Want to create a piece like nothing you’ve ever written before? To remember the wild fun of creation? Try play! One weekend, two hours each day: Let loose. Experiment with form and structure. Frolick with genre and style. Open doors you didn’t even know were there! Discover how play can lead to seriously good work.
Saturday & Sunday, 9/13. 9/14, 7–9 am AWST / 9–11 am AEST / 11 am–1 pm NZST Monday, 9/15, 12–2 pm AWST / 2–4 pm AEST / 4 pm–6 pm NZST
Self-EDit 3
(Map Your Curiosity)
w/holly starley
Annie Dillard says structural mysteries can seize our work if we don’t carve out structure. One tool I’ve applied to every developmental editing project I’ve had works wonders for shaping up structure. Let’s practice applying that tool to early drafts (plus explore how that may be just the way to appease the inner critic). Bring a work in progress or work with drafts we’ll develop in session.
Tuesday, 9/16, 3–6 pm PDT / 6–9 pm EDT / 8-11 am AEST (Wednesday)
Caravan Craft Campfire: Setting
w/The Caravan Team
The monthly Craft Campfire (formerly Lit Lab) is just what it says: Gather around our virtual fire and explore craft! Think low-stress, high-impact. Think getting your hands warmed up and then getting them dirty. Each month, one topic on writing, publishing. A short presentation and Q&A. Then we roll up our sleeves and dig into prompts that let us experiment with the month's topic. This is not a workshop. It’s a no-pressure zone. It’s tapping into collective creative energy. It’s honing our chops and exercising our skills together!
Wednesday, 9/17, 3–5 pm PDT / 6–8 pm EDT / 8–10 am AEST (Thursday)
Writing for Urgent Times
w/marya hornbacher
Every writer notices the existential question nipping at their heels - ‘Why write?’ - now and then. In times of global unrest, that question can feel more urgent than ever - and it should. But as Jeannette Winterson points out, “The inexhaustible energy of art is transfusion for a worn-out world.” This bootcamp will bring us together for a weekend to discuss that question in a community of writers and clarify our own mission and purpose in what and how we write from and for a troubled world.
Friday, 9/19, 4–6 pm PDT / 7–9 pm EDT
Saturday & Sunday, 9/20–9/21, 11 am–1 pm PDT / 2–4 pm EDT
Crash Course in World Building
w/marya hornbacher
Every written work occupies some imagined space where the reader is invited to spend some time: the world of the story itself, whether that story is fantastical or entirely true. Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and writing for stage and screen all ask the reader to imagine themselves into another world; as writers, it’s our task to make that world the vivid space where the story can best be told. This course guides attendees in building the fully realized world of their work from the ground up.
Mondays, 2–4 pm PT/5-7 ET
9/22, 9/29, 10/6, 10/13
Self-Edit 3
(Be Stunningly Concise!)
w/holly starley
Does killing those darlings hurt? If you were told: Shave 200 words, cut this back to half, lose xx paragraphs, would your breath catch? Cutting work you’ve labored over can be hard. And it can take a work from pretty dang good to stunning. Learn not just to cut but also to love it! Bring a work in progress or work with the drafts we’ll develop in session. Leave with less—in the best way.
Tuesday, 9/23, 3–6 pm PDT / 6–9 pm EDT / 8-11 am AEST (Wednesday)
Breaking The News
(drop in)
w/Paul Corman-roberts
Sometimes, to get over the news, we have to break the news ourselves. In this generative writing workshop, we will review the more bizarre aspects of recent current events, and from there, develop writing exercises that help as chroniclers of our times to better speak back to, or for the times.
Thursday, 9/25, 5:30–7 PM PST
october
Braid It! Writing as Weaving (U.S. &
European/uk versions)
w/holly starley
Love a good braided essay or story? How it can weave topics that don’t seem linked? Connect memories from disparate times or places? Make a beautiful tapestry? In this intensive, we explore how braided essays are created and what makes them work. Then we get into the practice and, with some guided prompts, draft some of our own.
U.S. Version: Wednesday, 10/8, 3–6 pm PDT / 6–9 pm EDT / 8–11 am (Thursday) AEST
European/UK Version: Wednesday, 10/8, 4–7 pm BST / 5–8 pm CEST (8–11 am PDT / 11 am–2 pm EDT)
Breaking The News
(drop in)
w/Paul Corman-roberts
Sometimes, to get over the news, we have to break the news ourselves. In this generative writing workshop, we will review the more bizarre aspects of recent current events, and from there, develop writing exercises that help as chroniclers of our times to better speak back to, or for the times.
Thursday, 10/9, 5:30–7 PM PST
August
september
Be Your Own (Best First) Editor
w/holly starley
“To write is to edit,” as Hemingway said. To edit is to know how to look at your own work with fresh eyes, what questions to ask of it, how to prompt yourself to go deeper, secure the structure, and then get clearer and more concise and a bit stranger. In this three-part series, we explore the art of editing and apply it to our own work. Bring a work in progress or work with drafts we’ll develop in session.
Tuesdays 3–5 pm PDT / 6–8 pm EDT / (Wednesdays) 6–8 am AWST / 9–11 am AEDT / 11 am–1 pm NZDT
10/14, 10/21, 10/28
Caravan Craft Campfire: The Divine Detail
w/caravan team
Gather round our virtual fire and explore “the divine detail”! Low-stress, high-impact, we start with a short presentation and Q&A on how close attention to often overlooked "small" elements is key for all genres. Then we dig in and experiment with detail-work. Not a workshop, this is a no-pressure salon, tapping into collective creative energy, honing our chops, and exercising our skills!
Thursday, 10/16, 3–5 pm PDT / 6–8 pm EDT / Friday, 9–11 am AEDT
3 Gifts for You,
3 for Your Reader
w/holly starley
We write to connect. We want our readers to leave with something, leave hoping to read everything we write. In this generative workshop / weekend bootcamp, we cover practical ways we can give both ourselves and our readers gifts through our writing.
Friday, 10/17, 4–6 pm PDT / 7–9 pm EDT
Saturday & Sunday, 10/18 & 10/19, 11 am–1 pm PDT / 2–4 pm EDT
So You Want to Write a Memoir
Deep-Dive in Personal Narrative (6 wk)
w/Marya Hornbacher
You’ve got a true story to tell, and you think ‘well, I guess I should write a memoir.’ But there are a host of forms that true stories can take. This class takes an expansive look at the wide array of approaches to and possibilities for personal narrative and the first-person voice. Through readings, generative writing, and discussion, participants will have the opportunity to explore a range of personal narrative genres and forms, clarify their sense of audience, purpose, and goals, and chart a well-designed course to telling that story in the form that fits.
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Wednesdays, 4–6 pm PT / 7–9 pm ET
10/15, 10/22, 10,29, 11/5, 11/12, 11/19
No, You Are Not a Mad Genius: Mental Wellbeing for Creative Folks
w/marya hornbacher
Let's face it - the creative process can be pretty emotional, and working in creative fields has a lot of highs and lows. This weekend intensive isn't therapy or a support group - rather, it's a practical approach to integrating creative work into a balanced day-to-day life. We'll tackle some core practices of self-care, pinpoint our go-to habits, and resource strategies for responding to common issues in creative life, from distractions to anxiety to disappointment to dry spells and beyond.
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Friday, 10/24, 4–6 pm PDT / 7–9 pm EDT
Saturday & Sunday, 10/25 & 10/26, 11 am–1 pm PDT / 2–4 pm EDT
Breaking The News
(drop in)
w/Paul Corman-roberts
Sometimes, to get over the news, we have to break the news ourselves. In this generative writing workshop, we will review the more bizarre aspects of recent current events, and from there, develop writing exercises that help as chroniclers of our times to better speak back to, or for the times.
Thursday, 10/23, 5:30–7 PM PST
october
november
Bones, Curiosity & Concise (the Self-Edit package)
w/holly starley
As writers, we have an idea, a draft, a story. Fantastic! What next? “Get the Bones Right” introduces a key development strategy. “Map Your Curiosity” shares a tool I’ve applied to every developmental editing project I’ve worked on. “Be Concise” focuses on shaving—a skill (and a joy) that brings the best of our work into stark relief. Practice shaping starts into polished works. Take all three or take any as a stand-alone.
Tuesdays 3–6 pm PDT / 6–9 pm EDT / Wednesdays, 7–10 am AWST / 10 am–1 pm AEDT / 12–3 pm NZDT
11/4, 11/11, 11/16
Caravan Craft Campfire: Dialogue
w/The caravan team
Gather round our virtual fire and explore “dialogue”! Low-stress, high-impact, we start with a short presentation and Q&A on he said, she said, they said, and how to make it sound right. Then we dig in and experiment with dialogue. Not a workshop, this is a no-pressure salon, tapping into collective creative energy, honing our chops, and exercising our skills!
Thursday, 11/6, 3–5 pm PDT / 6–8 pm EDT / 8–10 am AEST (Thursday)
Poetry without borders
w/paul corman-roberts
Poetry Without Borders serves as an introduction to both old school and modern forms of poetry, as students practice building a modest portfolio around form structure but with an eye towards "breaking the rules" as well, so newly written works maintain a creative and autonomous edge, while still being accessible. Open to all poetry genres including narrative, lyric, langpo and experimental.​​
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Thursdays​​​, 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm PST / 8:30 pm – 10:30 pm EST
11/13, 11/20, 12/4, 12/11
From the Road:
Writing on Travel
w/Marya, Holly & Special guest, karen babine
Join veteran travel writers Marya & Holly to hone your skills, sharpen your focus, and amplify your voice. “The road,” as we define it, is wide: Think your own travel or that of others. Think past or present. Think inner journeys and outer quests. Featuring special guest, award-winning author of The Allure of Elsewhere and professor Karen Babine.
Friday, 11/14, 4–6 pm PDT / 6–8 pm EDT
Saturday & Sunday, 11/15 & 11/16, 11 am–1 pm PDT / 2–4 pm EDT
Poetry without borders
w/paul corman-roberts
Poetry Without Borders serves as an introduction to both old school and modern forms of poetry, as students practice building a modest portfolio around form structure but with an eye towards "breaking the rules" as well, so newly written works maintain a creative and autonomous edge, while still being accessible. Open to all poetry genres including narrative, lyric, langpo and experimental.​​
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Thursday​​​, 11/20, 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm PST / 8:30 pm – 10:30 pm EST
Do the Damn Thing: Create (and Stick to) Your Creative Agenda
w/marya hornbacher
Everybody has a great idea. But most of us could use some help creating a strategy for turning it into a finished work. Through real-time exercises, discussion, time management tips, and practice in strategically planning large- and small-scale artistic projects, this course guides participants in developing an effective, achievable strategy for completing their creative work.
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Mondays, 2–4 pm PDT / 5–7 pm EDT
11/24, 12/1, 12/8, 12/15
december
Poetry without borders
w/paul corman-roberts
Poetry Without Borders serves as an introduction to both old school and modern forms of poetry, as students practice building a modest portfolio around form structure but with an eye towards "breaking the rules" as well, so newly written works maintain a creative and autonomous edge, while still being accessible. Open to all poetry genres including narrative, lyric, langpo and experimental.​​
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Thursday​​​, 12/4, 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm PST / 8:30 pm – 10:30 pm EST
Fast Forward to the Point—What’s the Story in Your Story?
w/marya hornbacher
Ever found yourself listening to a story that seems to be taking a very long time to go nowhere at all - or telling one? What do people mean when they say someone is ‘a born storyteller’? Do you know the difference between anecdote and story? Let’s tackle these interconnected questions and sharpen our own sense of what makes a story move, what makes it matter, and how our own treasure trove of tales can be polished, sharpened, and made to shine.
Friday, 12/5, 4–6 pm PDT / 7–9 pm EDT
Saturday & Sunday, 12/6 & 12/7, 11 am–1 pm PDT / 2–4 pm EDT
Poetry without borders
w/paul corman-roberts
Poetry Without Borders serves as an introduction to both old school and modern forms of poetry, as students practice building a modest portfolio around form structure but with an eye towards "breaking the rules" as well, so newly written works maintain a creative and autonomous edge, while still being accessible. Open to all poetry genres including narrative, lyric, langpo and experimental.​​
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Thursday​​​, 12/11, 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm PST / 8:30 pm – 10:30 pm EST