“We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master.”
– Ernest Hemingway
Whether you’re a beginner, pro, or somewhere in between, we have the class for you.
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Screenwriting Boot Camp“The best way to learn anything is to DO it,” says instructor Kate Montgomery. “In this daylong boot camp, you’ll get the chance to throw yourself into the mix, to pick up screenwriting basics and apply them right away...more
Instructor: Kate Montgomery
September 221 Saturday10:00am - 4:00pm
San Francisco, CA -
Spiritual Writing RetreatAutumn is a season that has always stirred creative and restless spirits. In this daylong writing retreat, we will create spiritual writing that puts us in conversation with our individual experiences of the divine and ineffable...more
Instructor: Nate Klug
September 221 Saturday10:00am - 4:00pm
Berkeley, CA -
Daily Write Round RobinJane Underwood had a unique vision when she developed the Round Robin class. By combining several elements—partnering, repetition, practice, feedback, and dedication—she created not just a writing course, but an actual community, one that has continued and grown for over a decade....more
Instructor: Kathy Garlick
September 23 - November 188 WeeksAll Day
Online -
Backstory: An Underutilized Tool for Thinking about Character and Conflict“Numerous students have told me that they don’t feel comfortable writing backstory or have been told to avoid backstory,” says instructor Lori Ostlund. “My general philosophy is to utilize all tools, and backstory is one more tool to help writers make sense of their characters and give meaning to the plot...more
Instructor: Lori Ostlund
September 23 - October 215 Sundays10:30am - 1:00pm
San Francisco, CA -
Spinning Straw into Gold: Nonfiction WorkshopThis workshop is for nonfiction writers who wish to shape, sculpt, structure, deepen and develop work already in progress...more
Instructor: Kerry Muir
September 23 - December 026 Sundays2:00pm - 5:00pm
Berkeley, CA -
The Craft of Creating Picture Books: Where Text and Image MeetPicture books provide one of the most exciting and innovative spaces for play in the book world today. Genres collide, stories become graphic novels, and nonfiction dances from the page in lyrical twists and twirls...more
Instructor: Laura Atkins
September 291 Saturday10:00am - 4:00pm
Berkeley, CA -
So You Think You’d Like to Write: Let’s Get Started!“Do you have the urge to write, but no clues about how to start? Or maybe you’ve been working on a piece of writing, but suddenly you’re stuck? Well, this one-day workshop is all about getting started...more
Instructor: Katharine Harer
September 291 Saturday10:00am - 4:00pm
San Francisco, CA -
Memoir Master ClassThe focus of the workshop is to encourage and guide experienced writers in creating, revising, and potentially publishing short, stand-alone works of memoir...more
Instructor: Kathleen McClung
September 30 - December 026 Sundays2:00pm - 5:00pm
San Francisco, CA -
Fantastical Fiction: An Introduction to Writing Fantasy, Science Fiction, Horror, and Crime“Zombies. Vampires. Aliens. Heroes and villains and criminals. Worlds of wonder and dark alleys full of terrors. If these elements catch fire in your imagination, you’re in good company,” says instructor Jay Ridler...more
Instructor: Jay Ridler
October 061 Saturday10:00am - 4:00pm
Berkeley, CA -
Creative Writing Workshop: The Process Is EverythingThis online creative writing workshop will enable class members to deepen reflection on their own work, receive focused feedback from classmates and instructor, and inspire development toward class members’ finest hopes for their writing projects...more
Instructor: Kathy Garlick
October 07 - November 186 WeeksAll Day
Online -
The Screenwriters Workshop“In this 6-week online workshop, you’ll be setting goals and sharing work with other screenwriters, and this combination can really help you get more done,” says instructor Kerry Muir...more
Instructor: Kerry Muir
October 07 - November 186 WeeksAll Day
Online -
Write-a-Thon: Get Primed, Get Prompted, Get WritingWrite-a-Thon is designed to get you stringing words together in a supportive group of other writers while facilitator Daniel Ari offers gentle guidance and a variety of prompts and exercises...more
Instructor: Daniel Ari
October 07 - December 093 Sundays6:00pm - 8:00pm
Berkeley, CA -
The Elusive Art of Comedy Writing“It’s one thing to tell a funny story to your friends over drinks, but to be funny on the page is an art unto itself,” says comedy writer Kate Montgomery. “Comedy is fragile and demanding. With drama, you can get away with so much. With comedy, one extra word can ruin the laugh...more
Instructor: Kate Montgomery
October 131 Saturday10:00am - 4:00pm
Berkeley, CA -
Revision Boot Camp: Fresh Approaches to Developing Your DraftsYou had the impulse, you wrote the first draft in a rush of raw creativity, and maybe you even worked on a second (or third) draft, but you know it’s not finished. What next...more
Instructor: Heather June Gibbons
October 131 Saturday10:00am - 4:00pm
San Francisco, CA -
Through the Looking Glass: Applying the Cinematographer’s Lens to Written NarrativesWhat movies have served as touchstones, guideposts, or talismans in your personal and creative life? How has the cinema influenced you as a writer? In this five-week course, we’ll explore the fertile connection between cinema and written narrative...more
Instructor: Kerry Muir
October 20 - November 175 Saturdays10:30am - 1:00pm
Berkeley, CA -
Make It New: Poetry Revision Workshop“Revising gives us an opportunity to see our work in a new light,” says instructor Brian Tierney. “Sometimes you take a poem off its tracks and discover a whole different route; sometimes you need to fix the wheel, or the engine, or the headlight...more
Instructor: Brian Tierney
October 21 - November 185 Sundays10:30am - 1:00pm
Berkeley, CA -
Your Story, Your Life: Intro to Memoir & Personal Essays“By writing memoir and personal essays, we give form to our histories and make something of meaning and beauty that is uniquely ours,” says instructor Katharine Harer. “I love this genre because you can be yourself, complete with your idiosyncrasies, strong opinions, flashes of wisdom and crazy moments...more
Instructor: Katharine Harer
October 22 - November 195 Mondays7:00pm - 9:30pm
San Francisco, CA -
The Short Story LaboratoryEnjoy two and a half hours of creation and feedback each week with The Short Story Laboratory, a beginner class that teaches the basics of composing short stories and flash fiction in a fun and fast way...more
Instructor: Jay Ridler
October 24 - November 285 Wednesdays7:00pm - 9:30pm
Berkeley, CA -
Fiction Workshop: Enrich Your DraftsYou’ve spent hours alone wrestling with your fiction and now you’re craving some constructive, insightful feedback from a supportive group of fellow writers. It’s time to dip your toe into the workshop...more
Instructor: Steve Mitchel
October 24 - November 285 Wednesdays7:00pm - 9:30pm
San Francisco, CA -
Making Poetry out of Our Lives: A Poetry Workshop“Reading and writing poetry have long been occasions for self-exploration,” says instructor Brian Tierney. “Poems uncover and recover; they engage memory and personal history, bringing them back to life with new meanings and new understandings...more
Instructor: Brian Tierney
October 25 - November 295 Thursdays7:00pm - 9:30pm
San Francisco, CA -
Rethinking Setting: Writing from the Inside and the Outside of a Place“Writers often think of setting as simply the place and time in which events occur,” says instructor Lori Ostlund. “But in this class we will focus on setting as a way to shape and reveal a character,” says co-instructor Anne Raeff...more
Instructor: Anne Raeff, Lori Ostlund
October 271 Saturday10:00am - 4:00pm
San Francisco, CA -
Navigating Point of View: 5 Weeks of “Moving in Close” on 3rd Person-CloseOne of the first decisions we must make as we begin a new story is about what point of view (POV) we will narrate from. Do we want the intimacy (and restrictions) of 1st person? The perceived credibility (and distance) of 3rd person? Or the flexibility (and navigation issues) of 3rd person-close...more
Instructor: Lori Ostlund
October 28 - December 025 Sundays10:30am - 1:00pm
San Francisco, CA -
Intro to Creative Writing: Fun with the Fundamentals“Everyone is talented, original and has something important to say,” states Brenda Ueland at the beginning of her celebrated book, If You Want to Write. “I happen to agree with Ueland,” says Elaine Beale. “And when I teach at The Writing Salon, I see her assertion proved again and again...more
Instructor: Elaine Beale
October 29 - December 035 Mondays7:00pm - 9:30pm
Berkeley, CA -
Journaling: Turn Your Life into Art“I still have that navy blue hardback journal that my mom gave me for Christmas when I was ten,” says instructor Ben Jackson. “After writing my first few entries, I was hooked...more
Instructor: Ben Jackson
November 01 - December 065 Thursdays7:00pm - 9:30pm
Berkeley, CA -
On Point: Crafting a Short-Form Point of View Piece“What drives many of us to write is the simple human need to express ourselves,” says instructor David Jacobson. “There may be no better way to meet that need than by presenting a point of view...more
Instructor: David Jacobson
November 031 Saturday10:00am - 4:00pm
San Francisco, CA -
Memoir Writing: Mine & Refine Your MemoriesIn 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...more
Instructor: Kathleen McClung
November 10 - December 155 Saturdays10:30am - 1:00pm
San Francisco, CA -
Daily Write Holiday Round RobinJane Underwood had a unique vision when she developed the Round Robin class. By combining several elements—partnering, repetition, practice, feedback, and dedication—she created not just a writing course, but an actual community, one that has continued and grown for over a decade....more
Instructor: Kathy Garlick
November 25 - December 163 WeeksAll Day
Online -
Let Unity Do the Work: A Poetry Workshop“The journey of developing craft is not a linear process,” says instructor Tongo Eisen-Martin, “but rather a process of expanding your powers of perception and relaxing into your singular voice on the page...more
Instructor: Tongo Eisen-Martin
November 26 - December 103 Mondays7:00pm - 9:30pm
San Francisco, CA -
Writing (and Sending) Pitches That SellThis 3-week class will lead students through the process of creating a killer pitch, from generating and developing story ideas to choosing the right publications to approach...more
Instructor: Mark Wallace
November 27 - December 113 Tuesdays7:00pm - 9:30pm
San Francisco, CA -
Writing about the Body: Getting Under the Skin“The best writing is physical, visceral, makes us feel that we are living a story rather than reading one on the page,” says instructor Alison Luterman. “As Anton Chekhov said, ‘Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass...more
Instructor: Alison Luterman
November 27 - December 113 Tuesdays7:00pm - 9:30pm
Berkeley, CA