What Makes a Critic?
Much has changed in the world of letters since 1890, when Oscar Wilde famously wrote that "the critic has to educate the public; the artist has to educate the critic." These days, when Goodreads reviews and social media takedowns outnumber dwindling…
Flash Fiction America
There's an art to writing a (very) short story, one that includes a captivating opening, a dynamic middle, and a surprising ending—often using fewer words than we're including in this session description. We're fortunate that several contributors…
Craft Chats: A Child’s Perspective
As Sadie Jones has written, "Writing is a leap of faith, and never more so than when writing childhood." It's undeniable that we were all once children, but that doesn’t mean it's child's play for writers to center the voice and perspective…
We Were Once a Family: Journalists Investigating Child Welfare
On March 26, 2018, an SUV carrying two married white women and their six adopted Black children was found at the bottom of a 100-foot cliff in Mendocino County. Officials quickly ruled the incident a murder-suicide, which was shocking enough—but…
The Art of Brevity: A Flash Fiction Writing Workshop
If you've dreamed of writing fiction but don't know where to start, may we make a suggestion? Start with a (very) short story! NaNoWriMo executive director Grant Faulkner (author of The Art of Brevity) and author and educator Kim Culbertson…
LitCamp Presents: Unreliable Narrator
Fifteen writers read no-more-than-3-minute pieces written especially for the festival on our theme...Unreliable Narrator: Stories about con artists, liars, and people we just don't trust. Hosted by LitCamp founder Janis Cooke Newman and storyteller…
Craft Chats: Writing Literary Humor
They say it's easier to make people cry than to make them laugh—in this session, we'll put that theory to the test with three authors who effectively deploy humor in their recent and forthcoming novels. In this craft-focused session led by…
Building a Literary Community
Inspired by romantic images of lonely geniuses in secluded garrets, writers might feel compelled to toil away in isolation, but here’s a provocative idea: what if, by connecting with other writers, you could not only support their work but…
Publishing: Who Calls the Shots?
Publishing might be notoriously resistant to change, but innovative business models, fresh ways of thinking, and new leadership might (finally?) be shifting the course of this crusty old behemoth. How have self-publishing and hybrid publishing…
The Art of Translation
To translate an author’s work—staying faithful to their vision, style, and message, in a language not their own—is to assume an awesome responsibility: one that hasn’t always gotten its just due as an art form. Four of today’s most…