You must use YOUR name on the checkout form, because your name is on the credit card you are using to make the purchase. However, you can put the gift recipient's name and email address in the spaces further down on the checkout form that ask for: "Name of Student, if Different from Person Paying" and "Email of Student, if Different from Person Paying." That way we will know who the gift certificate is for, for our records. But the automated purchase confirmation and receipt emails will go only to you, the purchaser.

We don't send printed or emailed gift certificates. You will need to present the gift to your recipient in the form of a card, note or verbal communication.

Gift recipients can then simply call the Writing Salon, give us their name (we keep a records of gift certificates that have been purchased), and tell us which workshop they want to take. If they want to take a longer class, they can simply pay the additional amount. Please remember, gift certificates are good for only one year from date of purchase.

"But my favorite was the one I did about a new reading program for kindergartners; the kids pulled me right into the class, and I learned more that one day than I ever learned in kindergarten. That's one of the things I love most about magazine writing — it's a constant learning process. It gives you a license to probe into the world. It's also the most accessible way to break into professional writing. Even when you have no publishing credits, if you come up with the right idea, and pitch it to the right editor at the right time, you can get the assignment."

This down-to-basics introduction to the world of magazine writing will cover: How to get ideas, determine your market, and write query letters that editors will read. "We'll go over the rules of the game (and when to break them)," Cary says. "We'll talk about getting rejected (and how to handle it), as well as getting accepted (and how to handle THAT!). We'll also discuss the ins and outs of dealing with editors, how to be a professional, and how to use one article to get an assignment for another one." This workshop will give you a keener understanding of the world of magazine writing, and tips on how to get started (or, if you've already started, to take yourself to the next level).

Cary Pepper has been a freelance writer for 30 years. He has published dozens of articles in such publications as The New York Times, TV Guide, Premiere, Advertising Age, Town and Country, and Mad. He is also an award-winning playwright whose work has been produced throughout the U.S. and in Europe. He has taught writing at Media Alliance, the San Francisco Art Institute, and privately.

"If ghosts and witches, lost loves and conflict were good enough for Homer, Shakespeare, and Dante," says Nick Mamatas, "they're good enough for me. A genre is like a toolbox—good writers go beyond formula and use the tools of their trade to build and make real what nobody else could imagine."

Whether you're ready to be the next Nora Roberts, or simply have a great idea for an urban fantasy series, we'll get your ideas into shape—eliminate the clichés, perfect the voice of your characters, and create gripping plots—with an eye toward submission and publication. In addition to workshopping of stories or novel chapters, we'll explore the current marketplace for both short fiction and novels, and practice skills that writers need regardless of genres in which they write.

"Genre doesn't mean generic," Nick says. "This is not a place to learn the secret handshake or a class where you'll learn the basic outline for a by-the-numbers story. Instead, we're writing to add to the great traditions of stories we already love."

Nick Mamatas is the author of three novels: Under My Roof (Counterpoint), Move Under Ground (Prime Books), and the forthcoming Sensation (PM Press). He's also published over sixty short stories in genre magazines, literary journals, and anthologies, some of which were recently collected in You Might Sleep... (Prime Books). His fiction has been nominated for both the Bram Stoker and International Horror Guild awards, and as editor of the online magazine Clarkesworld Nick has been nominated for the World Fantasy award and science fiction's Hugo award. He currently teaches online at Western Connecticut State University, edits science fiction and fantasy for VIZ Media, and is awaiting the release of his next anthology, Haunted Legends (Tor Books), co-edited with Ellen Datlow.

The Round Robin is based on the same premise,” says instructor Jane Underwood. “The more you use your writing muscles, the more you will tone and strengthen them. The primary focus is PRACTICE. Every day you will practice your writing, in the same way that a piano student practices the piano or a swimmer swims laps.”

This class is structured around a carefully facilitated exchange of daily emailed writings (based on prompts provided by Jane) among all class members, plus two in-class meetings.

Round Robin’ers aim to do three things: 1) write regularly, 2) enjoy and explore the process of writing freely and playfully (discovering what you have to say in the act of saying it), and 3) “partner” on a rotating basis with classmates. (“Partnering” will be explained at the first meeting.)

“We might talk about some basic elements of craft during class meetings,” says Jane, “but the main focus of this class will not be discussions of craft. The focus will be on finding the inspiration, motivation and self-discipline to keep writing and to keep generating raw material that you may eventually choose to rewrite, revise, and publish. It will also be about learning to recognize and appreciate the strength of your natural voice, before you have a chance to snuff it out by revising your work too hastily.”

Writers in all genres and at all levels of experience have participated in this class, and we have many Round Robin returnees who take the class year-round.

NOTE: Attendance at the first meeting is mandatory for newcomers and strongly encouraged for returning participants. Attendance at the final meeting is also strongly advised for ALL participants. In addition, every class member must commit to full participation on a daily basis.

Jane Underwood, founder of The Writing Salon, has been a writer, editor and teacher more than 30 years. Her poetry, prose, erotica, articles and essays have appeared in print and online periodicals (SF Chronicle, The Sun, Five Fingers Review, Quarterly West, Western Humanities Review, Libido, babycenter.com, Conversely.com, Salon.com), anthologies (The Ecstatic Moment, Yellow Silk, Ripe Fruit, Best Women’s Erotica, Nesting: It’s a Chick Thing), and on stage (Lilith Theater). She holds a masters degree in creative writing, has taught many creative writing classes, ranging from introductory classes to erotica writing to personal essay writing. She has been leading “Round Robin” groups for six years.

“What I want you to get out of this workshop,” says instructor Chris DeLorenzo, “is a sense of how your voice comes across as one-of-a-kind, and how writing can be fun and experimental. Only then can you learn to let go of self-conscious writing—writing that sounds the way you think it’s supposed to sound.”

The exercises in this class focus on producing writing with concrete details, description and dialogue, along with a healthy dose of playfulness to balance the serious stuff.

“You’ll be given permission to write anything you want,” says Chris, “in order to discover the how effortless and fun it can be to create from the internal ‘dream space’ of the imagination. You’ll also get a chance to more deeply explore the question: ‘What do I want to say as a writer?’”

Based on the Amherst Writers and Artists method, Chris’s workshop encourages a sense of safety and mutual trust among participants. “Many classes and workshops are about having someone else define and critique your work,” says Chris, “whereas my workshops are about allowing you to do that for yourself, by reflecting on the positive feedback (as opposed to critiques) that you get from me and your classmates.”

Chris DeLorenzo has an MA in creative writing and is a certified Amherst Writers and Artists method (AWA) facilitator. He teaches writing at the University of San Francisco and has published poetry, prose and personal essays in numerous publications. He has also written two novels, Certain Sacred Places and All That Remains.

“What I want you to get out of this workshop,” says instructor Chris DeLorenzo, “is a sense of how your voice comes across as one-of-a-kind, and how writing can be fun and experimental. Only then can you learn to let go of self-conscious writing—writing that sounds the way you think it’s supposed to sound.”

The exercises in this class focus on producing writing with concrete details, description and dialogue, along with a healthy dose of playfulness to balance the serious stuff.

“You’ll be given permission to write anything you want,” says Chris, “in order to discover the how effortless and fun it can be to create from the internal ‘dream space’ of the imagination. You’ll also get a chance to more deeply explore the question: ‘What do I want to say as a writer?’”

Based on the Amherst Writers and Artists method, Chris’s workshop encourages a sense of safety and mutual trust among participants. “Many classes and workshops are about having someone else define and critique your work,” says Chris, “whereas my workshops are about allowing you to do that for yourself, by reflecting on the positive feedback (as opposed to critiques) that you get from me and your classmates.”

Chris DeLorenzo has an MA in creative writing and is a certified Amherst Writers and Artists method (AWA) facilitator. He teaches writing at the University of San Francisco and has published poetry, prose and personal essays in numerous publications. He has also written a novel, Certain Sacred Places. (Tip: You may want to check out this book: Writing Alone and With Others, by Pat Schneider, founder of the Amherst Writers and Artists Method. It's not required for this class, but you might enjoy it!)

You'll do plenty of writing and reading, and have lively discussions about both the craft and the process of poetry. The weekly homework assignments (workshopped the following week) are designed to provide fresh angles of approach that can surprise, even startle, both the writer and his/her readers. "We all get stuck in ruts," Julie says, "and the class offers ways of digging ourselves out, whether we use these strategies to simply get started at writing or to revise a particularly challenging poem."

The class is suitable for a wide spectrum of people. "We've had students with an interest in poetry but no experience writing it, and others with MFA's from Iowa, and it's always been a good mix", says Julie. "The focus of the class is generative--to get everybody going and excited about doing new work, to take away strategies that can help with their current and future writing--and to have a great time while we're at it."

Julie Bruck has taught at several Canadian universities, and was a resident faculty member at The Robert Frost Place. She has an MFA from Warren Wilson, fellowships from The MacDowell Colony and the Canada Council, and has published two collections, The Woman Downstairs (1993) and The End of Travel (1999). A third book is in the works. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, Ploughshares, and Ms. New poems are forthcoming in The New Yorker and The Malahat Review. A Montreal native, she has lived in San Francisco for eleven years.

They want to write, or they tinker with two-pages and never get around to completing the piece, or they have ideas rollicking through their brains that haven’t, as of yet, made it to the page. But they all come to class with one common goal: they want to write a compelling story.

In this workshop-intensive course, every student will bring in stories (at least two) for their peers to discuss, critique, and deconstruct, in positive, nurturing ways. Everyone is here to learn, to improve, and the workshop environment is key for a writer to understand all aspects of story-telling. “Writers need readers,” says instructor Joshua Mohr. “We need other eyes to help us identify our story’s strengths. But just as important as praise is hearing what readers are not responding to. This is how we grow, hone a style and voice, and in the end, publish.”

The class will also emphasize revision tactics: how to take a flawed draft and renovate it. “Each student will complete an entire revision,” says Josh, “and will finish the course with a broader understanding of the hard work necessary to take a sloppy, first draft and turn it into literature.”

NOTE: Many students who have taken Junse Kim’s 5-week “Intro to Fiction” class will take this class next, and some people enroll in this class more than once because it’s a great way to keep the momentum going. Another “keep going” option is Josh’s “Fiction Continuation” workshop, which meets once a month for six months, instead of once a week for 9 weeks.

Josh Mohr is the author of the novel Some Things that Meant the World to Me. His second novel, Termite Parade, is due out in June 2010. He has an MFA from the University of San Francisco, and also teaches through UC Berkeley’s ASUC studios and a local halfway house, and has also published numerous short stories, including one, “Dressing the Dead” that was featured in the New Short Fiction Series’ emerging American writers show in Los Angeles.

Here's what I suggest you do: Just get your buts to class! That's it! Once you're here, I'll help you achieve the following goals: 1) to start (or get back to) your writing, 2) to experiment with new ways to approach and vary that writing, 3) to write with more ease, and 4) to write with a better ear for hearing and appreciating your innate writer's voice (yes, you do have one; it already exists).

This class will focus primarily on in-class writing. It will, in fact, be an in-class writing extravaganza. The aim will be for you to generate fresh new material that you can later shape and mold into finished pieces — fiction or nonfiction, poetry or prose. It doesn't matter what genre you're interested in. It doesn't even matter if you don't yet know what genre you're interested in. What matters is that you will write, and that you will learn by doing so.

At every class, I will give you an assortment of timed writing exercises and jumpstarts that will help you explore the world of creative writing. You'll have the opportunity (option) to share "snippets" of what you've written. The purpose of sharing will not be to get advice or critiques from me or other class members on how to improve your writing. Rather, it will be to find out what we appreciated about what you wrote, just as you wrote it.

Every now and then, I will talk about craft. Sometimes I'll do this when explaining why I gave a particular exercise. Other times I'll do it when someone shares something that creates an opening for me to talk about a specific aspect of writing. But the main focus of this class won't be on what I tell you about writing; it will be on you, doing your in-class writes.

Please bring the following to class: 1) Paper and a pen, or a laptop with a fully charged battery (electrical outlets are limited), 2) A willingness to explore, experiment, discover, create, and share.

Jane Underwood, founder and director of the Writing Salon, has been a writer, editor and teacher for more than 30 years (and also leads the popular "Daily Write Round Robin" class). Her poetry, prose, erotica, articles and essays have appeared in numerous print and online periodicals, anthologies, and on stage. She has a masters in creative writing, and is also an avid photographer, with a special affection for urban trees, fallen leaves, and quirky San Francisco stairways.

It’s the equivalent of, say, an aspiring carpenter who has committed to building a beautiful house, yet doesn’t know how to hammer in a nail or saw a piece of wood.”

In this class, you’ll develop concrete skills and narrative techniques through fun writing exercises designed to help you master your craft. At the end of five weeks, you’ll have a better grip on how to use these techniques (for developing character, setting and plot) as tools for building your story. The class will also analyze other narrative genres, from movie scenes to comic books, to analyze storytelling skills you can apply to your fiction writing.

NOTE: We used to advise people to take this class BEFORE taking the 9-week Fiction Workshop. However, we’ve discovered that some people have found it just as valuable to take the 9-week Fiction Workshop first, and this one second! In fact, Junse has had quite a few MFA creative writing graduates who take this “intro” class, even though they aren’t beginners. So it’s really up to you. We don’t have any strict rules about it.

Junse Kim, like many Writing Salon students, didn’t begin to pursue a writing life until well after graduating from college. Before ever taking a writing class, he worked as a concert promoter, Peace Corps volunteer, managerial consultant, scriptwriter, nonprofit fundraiser, and “full-time” temp. He has since received a Pushcart Prize (for his short story Yangban), a Faulkner Award, and the Philip Roth Residence in Creative Writing at Bucknell University. His fiction and creative nonfiction have been published in the Ontario Review, ZYZZYVA, and Cimarron Review, as well as two anthologies: Pushcart Prize XXVII and Echoes Upon Echoes: New Korean American Writing.

Both the distant past and the not-so-long ago can be mined, remembered and re-created skillfully in writing. This class is a guide to the mining and refining process. “The gold of memoir,” says instructor Kathleen McClung, “combines the gifts of a novelist—vivid characters and settings, lively and suspenseful narration—with a poet’s introspection and close attention to language.

“In this class we’ll focus on finding and shaping evocative stories from our own lives, stories that build from our specific and unique life events and move toward resonant, universal themes. Through readings, discussions, and writing exercises, we’ll explore the basic elements of memoir: selecting key moments and passages, scene-setting and dialogue, using fresh sensory detail, reflecting and musing on the meanings of our experiences so that our work “speaks” to readers. We will find and fine-tune our own distinctive writing voices, essential for this genre.

Class participants will have opportunities to try their hand at writing and sharing short memoir pieces and will be guided in giving and receiving encouraging, constructive feedback for ways to develop/deepen the writing. Readings will include excerpts from Judith Barrington’s Writing the Memoir and Tristine Rainer’s Your Life as Story, as well as work by a variety of contemporary memoirists.”

Kathleen McClung has mentored hundreds of writers at Skyline College, the Writing Salon, and other colleges, and she has taught/advised student teachers in the credential program at Mills College. She has also edited books at small presses including UCSF Nursing Press, Food First Books, and Westview Press. Her memoir, fiction, and poetry have been published in Spirituality & Health, The Rambler, Hawaii Pacific Review, Poetry Northwest, Tiny Lights, Hot Flashes, off our backs and elsewhere, and her work has received awards from the Soul-Making Literary Competition, Memoirs Ink., San Francisco Bay Guardian, Writers Digest, the National Society of Arts & Letters, and the Academy of American Poets.

“The artful memoir isn’t easy to knock off,” says Kathleen McClung. “We need skill and nuance in narrating and musing on past events and feelings to make a cohesive whole. Memoirs that matter, that truly move readers, call for soul-searching and for mastery of essential literary elements—an engaging voice, vivid scenes and characters, a careful blend of action and reflection, a unifying thread/theme.”

This class is designed to engage and support writers in the challenge of telling their truest stories with language that shimmers on the page. Kathleen will provide readings, writing exercises, and constructive group critiques. She will advise on the memoirist’s rights and responsibilities and the paradox of preserving solitude and nourishing community.

Between classes, participants will exchange pages with workshop partners and check-in once with Kathleen. By the end of the class, memoirists will have a wider repertoire of techniques, new colleagues and connections, more richly layered writing, and more resilience for future projects.

Kathleen McClung has mentored hundreds of writers at Skyline College, the Writing Salon, and other colleges, and she has taught/advised student teachers in the credential program at Mills College. She has also edited books at small presses including UCSF Nursing Press, Food First Books, and Westview Press. Her memoir, fiction, and poetry have been published in Spirituality & Health, The Rambler, Hawaii Pacific Review, Poetry Northwest, Tiny Lights, Hot Flashes, off our backs and elsewhere, and her work has received awards from the Soul-Making Literary Competition, Memoirs Ink., San Francisco Bay Guardian, Writers Digest, the National Society of Arts & Letters, and the Academy of American Poets.

“It’s one of the few mediums where the writer is in charge of the story; it’s your vision and your voice. Okay, true story: A couple of years ago I wrote a one act play which was produced in a tiny seventy seven seat black box theater. One night Dustin Hoffman happened to come to the show (What? Huh?). He saw it, loved it and hired me to write a film with him. That experience reinforced the belief that theater is the best showcase for a new voice. Plus? It’s a blast. And getting your play in front of an audience is completely attainable – write a play, rent a room and invite people. It really is that easy. Okay, well you do actually have to write your play…but I can help with that.”

This workshop is designed to give writers an introduction to the tools and the support they need to begin writing a new play, or dust off an old one and give it new life. Patricia says: ”This fun and focused workshop will help you figure out what your play is really about, who the characters are and why you (and your audience) should be spending time with them.” Through a combination of lecture and writing exercises, you'll be reminded of how good it feels to write. “My own writing," says Patricia, "came out of my days of doing improv at the Groundlings and The Second City – “Yes, and…” became my mantra and remains how I approach the process of sitting down to write. It’s an amazingly effective tool to help you get out of your head and get the words onto the page.”

The workshop will help you set a time line for finishing your play and then help you to find its place in the world. "We'll look at the nuts and bolts: how to adapt your play for film or television, how to submit, how to find a literary agent, formatting, as well as the larger questions regarding form, themes and dialogue. Whether it’s a one-act, a full-length, a one-person show or a musical, this workshop will kindle or rekindle your passion for storytelling and live theater.

Patricia Cotter is a working, Emmy Award winning, Groundling Theater and Second City Alum. She has taught improv at the LA based Groundling Theater, and has written for Dustin Hoffman's Punch Productions, Twentieth Century Fox Television, and Disney Theatrical.

During this day of sensory exploration, we’ll explore ways to come up with juicy images and details — descriptions that dance and breathe, scenes that taste and smell, characters that sing and shout, stories that are soft as the nape of a baby’s neck…or hard as a tack.

Whether you write fiction or poetry, screenplays or essays, memoirs or magazine pieces, you’ve got to master the craft of creating visceral scenes, palpable descriptions, and sensory worlds that seem so real, your readers will forget that they aren’t! This is BASIC creative writing 101 for beginners — and 1001 for pros who need a reminder. This is how you get your words not only into your readers’ minds but also into their hearts. The icing on the cake is that knowing how to do this makes the process of writing a whole lot more fun!

Jane Underwood, founder and director of the Writing Salon, has been a writer, editor and teacher for more than 30 years (and also leads the popular “Daily Write Round Robin” here at the Writing Salon). Her poetry, prose, erotica, articles and essays have appeared in numerous print and online periodicals (SF Chronicle, The Sun, babycenter.com, Five Fingers Review, Western Humanities Review, HOW(ever), Salon.com), anthologies (The Ecstatic Moment, Yellow Silk, Ripe Fruit, Best Women’s Erotica), as well as on stage (Lilith Theater). She has a masters in creative writing, and is also an avid photographer, with a special affection for fallen leaves, decaying walls and quirky San Francisco stairways.

maybe you shy away from talking about it with your co-workers, neighbors or brother-in-law (you know the way he rolls his eyes and calls you a dreamer). So come to this workshop instead, where you’ll meet other people who are doing what you’re doing, or want to do. "We’ll talk about your idea, how to make sure it has enough weight to carry a novel," say Karen Bjorneby. "We’ll talk about your character and make sure she’s so compelling we all can’t wait to find out what she’ll do next. . . what changes is she going to go through along the way? We’ll talk about plot; how are you going to make enough things happen? Or how are you going to keep from being melodramatic? We’ll talk about structure—how do you organize this huge thing and not get overwhelmed?

"We’ll share tips on the process, on getting the pages written, on keeping going, on when to go back and revise and when to keep moving ahead. And of course we’ll be talking about the nuts and bolts of craft—making your scenes work and your voice sing."

With the help of various writing exercises, class members will work on developing written plot summaries, making sure there’s enough action and enough character development. "Our goal is to get you so close to your main character you’ll know all his secrets, hopes, fears, dreams...better than his own therapist would!" says Karen "We’ll also do writing exercises to help you connect with your setting. And we’ll share what you've written, so that you'll get feedback on your craft, your style, and on that special quality you bring to your writing that makes it uniquely yours."

Karen Bjorneby started writing by participating in workshops just like this one. She is the author of Hurricane Season: Stories from the Eye of the Storm, which received a Foreword Honorable Mention as best independent/university press short story collection of the year at Book Expo America. She has received a Pushcart Special Mention, two other Pushcart nominations, a National Magazine Award nomination, and she was named a Tennessee Williams Scholar at the Sewanee Writers’ Conference. Her fiction and poetry have appeared in nearly two dozen publications including The Threepenny Review, The North American Review, New Letters, StoryQuarterly, Confrontation, The New Orleans Review, The Nebraska Review, and The Sun. She is currently at work on her own novel and is "very familiar with the pitfalls along the way, having fallen into several of them myself."

You can do this by learning two things: 1) how to improve your storytelling abilities, and 2) how to market your work.

“I’ll lead you through the steps of writing a travel story and then targeting and querying your markets (short story anthologies, newspapers, magazines and ezines),” says instructor Lisa Alpine.

“We’ll also discuss ways to generate other travel-related sources of income, such as writing press releases and doing guidebook research. Whether you’re writing about your neighborhood or rafting down the Zambezi, you can develop specialty travel angles that open up publishing avenues beyond the Sunday Travel Section—and still pay well. So come launch your career as a travel writer!”

Lisa Alpine: Curiosity about what is beyond the curve of the horizon has fueled Lisa Alpine’s voyaging since she left home at 18 to live in Paris. She has owned an import company (Dream Weaver Imports in San Francisco), published a newspaper (The Fax in Marin County, CA), written a travel column for 12 years for the Pacific Sun, and taught dance and writing workshops around the world for two decades. She is the Global Getaways columnist for Examiner.com. Her travel essays appear in numerous anthologies, including I Should Have Stayed Home, Hyena’s Laughed at Me and Now I Know Why, and Lonely Planet’s Tales From Nowhere. She is often a guest speaker at numerous travel writer conferences, and is a member of the Wild Writing Women and Bay Area Travel Writers.