Workshops

The Ongoing Poetry Workshop with Gary Copeland Lilley

Dates: Wednesdays, January 17th - March 6th
Time: 5:30pm to 8:00pm
Cost: $250
Limited to: 8 Participants
Where: Online

A weekly poetry workshop open to writers of any skill level or genre, a gathering of writers coming together in a supportive environment to work on the development and refining of our personal aesthetics. Yes, free to do your poetic thing with a focus on the crafting of poems, and on not judging poets. That is exactly the attitude this ongoing workshop has always maintained, while working the literary elements we use to create poems: gaining an understanding of poetry’s major operating modes, discovering ways to build the sharper images, enhance the poem’s musicality, and to convey those subtle meanings and significant statements uncovered in the poetic process. Each week, bring 9 copies of a poem in progress. Simply put, this workshop rocks as much as you want it to.

Gary Copeland Lilley is the author of eight books of poetry, the most recent being The Bushman's Medicine Show, from Lost Horse Press (2017), and a chapbook, The Hog Killing, from Blue Horse Press (2018). He is originally from North Carolina and now lives in the Pacific Northwest. He has received the Washington DC Commission on the Arts Fellowship for Poetry. He is published in numerous anthologies and journals, including Best American Poetry 2014, Willow Springs, The Swamp, Waxwing, the Taos International Journal of Poetry, and the African American Review. He is the Artistic Curator of the Port Townsend Writers Conference and a Cave Canem Fellow.

Behind the Curtain: Fiction with Erica Bauermeister

Dates: Wednesdays, January 24th - February 7th
Time: 2:00pm to 4:00pm
Cost: $200
Limited to: 10 Participants
Where: Imprint Bookstore

When we write fiction, we’re often so focused on characters and scenes that it’s easy to overlook the importance of structure, point of view, and style. But these three components are the unseen powerhouses of fiction, affecting your readers at a subliminal level - and the right choices can make a story sing. In this three-week course we will go behind the curtain and learn how to use them to your best advantage.

Erica Bauermeister is the NYT bestselling author of 5 novels, including No Two Persons, The Scent Keeper, and The School of Essential Ingredients. She has a PhD in literature from the U.W. and has taught there, as well as Antioch and numerous conferences and workshops. She lives in Port Townsend in the house that is the subject of her memoir House Lessons: Renovating a Life.

The First Draft Club: Memoir with Kathryn Hunt

Dates: Fridays, January 26th - February 16th
Time: 2:00pm to 4:30pm
Cost: $275
Limited to: 10 Participants
Where: Imprint Bookstore

This four-week generative workshop will explore the art and craft of memoir. Those with a manuscript underway and those just beginning and wanting to deepen your commitment to your writing are all welcome. We’ll focus on writing drafts and revisions of your memoir in the workshop and in between our meetings. I’ll send you excerpts from a couple of my favorite memoirs in mid-January and we’ll talk about what you can glean for your own work. I’ll offer feedback to your drafts if you’d like. The workshop will address questions of voice, veracity, and structure and help you identify the heart of your story - the pulse and urgency that make us want to write. This workshop aims to create a safe, supportive atmosphere that fosters a community of writers on the Olympic Peninsula and beyond.

Kathryn Hunt makes her home on the coast of the Salish Sea, on the ancestral lands of the S’Klallam, Chemakum, and Suquamish. Her poems have appeared in Orion, Radar, Terrain, and the Missouri Review, among other journals. Her second collection of poems Seed Wheel was published by Lost Horse Press in 2021; she is also the author of two chapbooks, The Country I Come From (2022) and She Who Walks the Earth (2023). She’s recently completed a memoir, Last Chance Motel, a mother-daughter story. kathrynhunt.net

Picture Book Writing with Patrick Jennings

Dates: Tuesdays, January 30th - February 13th
Time: 1:00pm to 3:00pm
Cost: $150
Limited to: 4 Participants
Where: Online

In this three-week workshop we will explore the singular art form that is the picture book for children. We not only will critique your manuscript, but also look at examples of the form, and discuss finding and working with illustrators, art directors, agents, and editors.

Patrick Jennings is the author of 25 books for young readers—published by Scholastic, Random House, HarperCollins, et al—including Guinea Dog, We Can't All Be Rattlesnakes, and Odd, Weird & Little. He is the recipient of the Washington State Book Award, Booklist Editor's Choice Award, Smithsonian Magazine Notable Book for Children, New York Public Library Best Book, and was a finalist for the PEN Center USA Literary Award finalist and the PNW Booksellers Association Award. Patrick has been a presenter at schools and libraries in the US and abroad for over twenty years.

Crafting Flash Fiction: A Generative Workshop with Lauren Davis

Dates: Thursdays, February 1st - 29th
Time: 11:00am to 12:30pm
Cost: $150
Limited to: 10 participants
Where: Imprint Bookstore

Can you get to the Bang! in your story in under 1,000 words? How about 500? What about one sentence? Brevity, restraint, and surprise—the guiding principles of flash fiction—are skills that writers of any genre will grow from. Davis will go over the craft elements of flash fiction, and then she will provide a handful of writing prompts to get your pen moving. The workshop will be focused on generating new work, therefore making it appropriate for writers of all levels of experience. (Please note that we will not be workshopping drafts.) The workshop will also explore historical and contemporary examples of flash fiction, including writings by Aesop, Langston Hughes, Kathy Fish, and Mandira Pattnaik. Come discover the world of flash, where the only rule is length.

Learning Outcomes:

1) Investigate the history and contemporary landscape of flash fiction
2) Identify the elements of the flash fiction genre
3) Create first drafts of original flash fiction stories

Lauren Davis is the author of the forthcoming short story collection The Milk of Dead Mothers (YesYes Books), the poetry collection Home Beneath the Church (Fernwood Press) and the Eric Hoffer Grand Prize short-listed When I Drowned (Kelsay Books), and the chapbooks Each Wild Thing’s Consent (Poetry Wolf Press) and The Missing Ones (Winter Texts). She holds an MFA from the Bennington College Writing Seminars. She is a former Editor in Residence at The Puritan’s Town Crier, and she is the winner of the Landing Zone Magazine’s Flash Fiction Contest. Her work has appeared in numerous literary publications and anthologies including Prairie Schooner, Spillway, Poet Lore, Ibbetson Street, Ninth Letter and elsewhere. Davis lives with her husband and two black cats on the Olympic Peninsula in a Victorian seaport community.

Landing A Literary Agent with Nicole Comforto

Dates: Fridays, February 2nd - 16th
Time: 11:00am to 1:00pm
Cost: $110
Limited to: 10 participants
Where: Imprint Bookstore

Are you querying literary agents, or hoping to soon? These days, finding an agent is harder than ever — and no one should have to do it alone! In this workshop, we’ll work on crafting a query letter that grabs an agent’s attention among thousands of others, talk about what those elusive agents want and how to find them, and build a supportive community to sustain you through the process.

Writers of all genres are welcome! This workshop will focus on the query letter and querying strategy, two essential tools for every querying writer. For those needing help with other materials (manuscript, proposal, and/or synopsis, depending on the genre) we’ll also discuss outside resources and strategies for polishing your work to ensure it’s ready.

Nicole Comforto is an award-winning comedy writer and New York Times Modern Love essayist. Her first novel, co-written with her husband, was a finalist in the 2022 Launch Pad Prose competition and top ten comedy manuscript on Coverfly. She has presented at the Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) 2023 annual conference, mentored querying authors through the Women’s Fiction Writers Association, and been featured on several podcasts.

Essay Consultation with Samantha Ladwig

Essays due Monday, February 12th. Individual meetings the week of February 26th
Cost: $125
Limited to 12 Participants
Where: Imprint Bookstore and Online

Looking for guidance on a complete or in-progress essay? This essay consultation offers just that. I will provide comments throughout your draft (up to 8 pages of a single essay), a letter of feedback on the overall work, and a one-on-one half hour meeting, either in person at Imprint Bookstore or online via Zoom, to discuss my notes as well as help with where and how to pitch your piece for publication.

Please note that this is not a group workshop. Essays are to be submitted by end of day on Monday, February 12th. Works need to be double spaced, in 12 pt. Times New Roman font, and with 1" margins. I will reach out to you shortly after to schedule our individual meeting, which will take place sometime during the week of February 26th.

Samantha Ladwig is a writer, instructor, and co-owner of Imprint Bookstore in Port Townsend, Washington. Her work has been published by New York magazine's The Cut and Vulture, Literary Hub, Vice, Real Simple, Bustle, Crimereads, and others. She is also a regular book reviewer for BUST magazine and former reader for The Masters Review. Samantha holds an MA in Archives and Records Management - with a focus on moving image archives - from Western Washington University. Prior to owning a bookstore, she worked as a film cataloger at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.

WORKSHOPS