writers groups in chicago

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The Chicago Writers Association

The Chicago Writers Association is a creative community of Chicagoland writers established in 2003 and federally registered as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 2008. We span many genres, styles and levels of experience. Our purpose is to share information, experiences, and encouragement with those of us for whom written expression is an integral part of life.

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Writing Tips Oasis - A website dedicated to helping writers to write and publish books.

7 Top Writing Groups in Chicago

By Kevin Chan

Do you need help in finding writing groups in Chicago? We’ve summarized 7 for you in the list below.

1. The Chicago Writers Circle

The Chicago Writers Circle is a writing group located in Chicago. Writers of all genres, including professionals, amateurs and aspiring writers, are welcome to join the writing group’s regular meetings. Group leader David Woods helps manage The Chicago Writers Circle and several other co-organizers.

Writing meetings happen every day at 9 in the morning. Join some of the 6,000+ members of The Chicago Writers Circle to start the day off with a stretch of time dedicated to writing before getting back to the busyness of the rest of the day. Participants can look forward to getting advice from other writers, building relationships and advancing their own pieces of writing.

Speak to The Chicago Writers Circle!

2. Edge Writers Workshop

Located in Chicago, Edge Writers Workshop is a writing group led by group organizer Samuel Durr. Writers of all genres and backgrounds are welcome to join Edge Writers Workshop’s writing meetings, which take place every two weeks. Writing meetings are usually held in person at local venues in the Edgewater area of Chicago, but have been moved online for the time being to make it more accessible and comfortable for all participants.

Meetings start out with a quick writing activity and move into critique sessions. Interested participants are more than welcome to join Edge Writers Workshop’s next discussions, where they can get an idea first-hand of what goes on at Edge Writers Workshop’s writing group meetings.

Learn more about Edge Writers Workshop!

3. Independent Writers of Chicago (IWOC)

Independent Writers of Chicago (IWOC) is a writing group in Chicago. Today, Independent Writers of Chicago has over 1,200 members of local writers. Independent Writers of Chicago is led by president Laura Stigler. Writers will benefit from some of the special features Independent Writers of Chicago offers members, including work and networking opportunities and presentations by writers and publishing professionals.

Independent Writers of Chicago meetings are held on the second Tuesday of every month. Writers will be able to gain knowledge on different topics, including writing about other people, learning to grow a following and community, and legal tips for writers. Independent Writers of Chicago meetings are held online and in person; information regarding specific events can be found on their Meetup.com webpage.

Contact Independent Writers of Chicago!

4. Shut Up & Write! Chicago

Shut Up & Write is a writing group that is represented nationwide by many chapters, including one in Chicago. Shut Up & Write! Chicago members will be able to connect with some of the 800+ writers who make up Shut Up & Write! Chicago. Writers working on books, blog articles, essays, dissertations or poetry are welcome to join Shut Up & Write! Chicago at one of their future meetings.

Shut Up & Write! Chicago’s group meetings are regularly held every other week on Monday evenings, along with additional meetings on different days of the week. Meetings are organized with short introductions, an hour-long period of personal, focused writing, followed by free time for networking with other writers or additional writing.

For more information about Shut Up & Write! Chicago, check out their Meetup.com webpage .

5. Accio Beer! Writers of Fantasy / Sci-Fi / Fiction Critique Group

Accio Beer! Writers of Fantasy / Sci-Fi / Fiction Critique Group is a writing group that welcomes writers of all backgrounds and genders who are passionate about writing about fantasy and science fiction. The writing group is led by organizer Cody Frovarp and his co-organizers. Interested participants are encouraged to join the waitlist if there are no spots for the writing group you wish to join.

Accio Beer! Writers of Fantasy / Sci-Fi / Fiction Critique Group runs a number of ongoing meetings during the week, some of which meet in person and others online. Writers are encouraged to share their work-in-progress and can benefit from the positive criticism and encouragement they will receive from other participants.

Connect with Accio Beer!

6. You Know You Can Write Chicago

Based in Chicago, You Know You Can Write Chicago is a writing group established by group organizer Patrick Waldron. In addition to his commitment to running, You Know You Can Write Chicago, Patrick himself has studied writing for over 20 years and organizes online meetings for writers.

You Know You Can Write Chicago meetings are held online on Zoom and cover topics like creating a beat sheet, outlines and writing scenes. Meetings are held on Fridays and Sundays every week. Patrick leads the group through different writing exercises, discussions and analyses of different texts. Join You Know You Can Write Chicago and build relationships with other writers, ideas, and inspiration for your writing.

Check out You Know You Can Write Chicago.

7. Just Write Chicago

Just Write Chicago is a writing group serving writers in Chicago. Today, the writing group has over 5,000 active members who are a part of this collective of writers who simply write. There are no special events to attend or membership fees to pay for interested writers.

Just Write Chicago organizes writing groups in different areas across Chicago on most days of the week. The purpose of this writing group is to be a supportive community of writers who welcome writers of all experience levels looking for professional companionship along this solitary journey. Writers who are passionate about any number of different genres, from fiction to non-fiction.

Find out more about Just Write Chicago.

Chicago Writing Conferences, Retreats and Writing Groups

Chicago writing conferences.

Let’s Just Write! An Uncommon Writers Conference

Northwestern Summer Writers’ Conference

Writing Groups

Chicago Dramatists

Chicago-North Chapter of Romance Writers of America

https://chicagonorthrwa.org/

Chicago Screenwriters Network

https://www.chicagoscreenwriters.org/

Chicago Women in Publishing

https://www.cwip.org/

Chicago Writers Association

https://www.chicagowrites.org/resources

DuPage Writing Group

https://dupagewriters.wordpress.com/

Evanston Writers Workshop

http://www.evanstonwritersworkshop.org/

For Love of Writing (FLOW)

https://flowauthors.com/

Horror Writers Association Chicago Chapter (a.k.a. Chicago Horror Writers)

http://www.hwachicago.org/

Illinois State Poetry Society

http://www.illinoispoets.org/

Independent Writers of Chicago

https://iwoc.wildapricot.org/

Meetup (Community building platform that lists writing groups among others.)

https://www.meetup.com/cities/us/il/chicago/writing/

Midwest Writers Association

http://www.midwestwriters.com/

Naperville Writers Group

https://napervillewritersgroup.org/

Off Campus Writers Workshop

https://ocwwinfo7333.wildapricot.org/

Poets and Patrons

https://www.poetsandpatrons.net/

Sisters in Crime Chicago Chapter

https://www.sincchicago.com/index.html

Teen Writers and Artists Project

https://www.twaap.org/

The Chicago Poetry Center

https://www.poetrycenter.org/

The Illinois Woman’s Press Association

https://www.iwpa.org/

The Society of Midland Authors

https://midlandauthors.com/

The Writers’ Loft

http://www.thewritersloft.com/

Windy City Chapter of Romance Writers of America

http://www.windycityrwa.org/

Write by Night

https://www.writebynight.net/illinois/

Writer’s Studio at the University of Chicago

https://grahamschool.uchicago.edu/academic-programs/liberal-arts/writers-studio

Young Chicago Authors

https://youngchicagoauthors.org/

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The Writing Place

Resources for writers in the chicago-area, greater chicago plays host to numerous events, workshops, services, and spaces for writers of all types. below is an annotated list of some of our favorites..

If you are aware of other Chicago-area resources you’d like us to highlight, email us at [email protected] .

Literary Organizations & Writers’ Workshops

Chicago dramatists  .

Through workshops, residencies, and classes, Chicago Dramatists assist aspiring playwrights and producers to develop and hone their craft. And for those who just love going to the theatre, their  Saturday Reading Series  is open to the public.

The Chicago Writers Association

The Chicago Writers Association is made up of both published and amateur writers of all types and is open to anyone who wishes to join. Members can participate in the CWA’s annual speakers bureau, enter the association’s Book of the Year contest, and may be published in the  Write City e-zine  or  Windy City Writer’s blog . Members are also able to interact in the CWA’s e-group to share publishing and marketing materials or in one of its critique groups.

Evanston Writers Workshop

The Evanston Writers Workshop sponsors events and workshops for a diverse array of writers. Their workshops include prompt and critique workshops, as well as an annual “In the Trenches” conference, where attendees can learn quickly about the ins and outs of writing and publishing in various genres and arenas. Members in the Evanston Writers Workshop receive priority admission to conferences and events, as well as promotion and marketing of their writing and other literary events.

Guild Literary Complex

The Guild Literary Complex sponsors writing programs featuring diverse writers and subjects. Past events have included bilingual poetry nights and marathon readings of Illinois-native Gwendolyn Brooks’ work. They solicit open submissions for their Annual Prose Award in both fiction and non-fiction categories, and sponsor several other contests throughout the year.

The Newberry Library

This world-renowned research library is open to the public. And, in addition to its extensive historic and literary resources, the Library also sponsors  writing workshops and series  on topics as diverse as memoir writing or writing childrens’ books.

The Poetry Center of Chicago

The Poetry Centerof Chicago is one of the nation’s largest promoters of poetry through readings, workshops, residencies, and arts education. Their  workshop series  are competitively priced, and aspiring poets can also work with the organization as volunteers or interns.

Story Studio Chicago

With locations in both Chicago and Winnetka, Story Studio offers classes in both creative and business writing. Additionally, they offer one-day workshops and write-ins to accommodate the schedules and needs of writers of all types. Check their current list of  classes and events  (some free) to sign up.

Writing Meetups and Work Spaces

Colab evanston.

Located on Chicago avenue near the Main El, CoLab Evanston provides shared workspace for individuals and groups. Full-time, part-time, and “floater” memberships are available, all of which come with discounts to on-site networking events.

Just Write Chicago

Just Write Chicago is a meetup group of writers who meet in several locales around the city several days a week to write together. With a focus on the writing process, not its product, they work together to inspire and motivate regular writing. There are currently over 1000 writers in the group, it costs nothing to join, and you can RSVP to attend a meetup whenever the time and place is convenient for your schedule.

The Writers Workspace

Located between Edgewater and Rogers Park, The Writers WorkSpace provides writers with a comfortable environment where they can write away from the distractions of their home or office. Both part- and full-time memberships are available.

Courses & Certificate Programs

The graham school.

The University of Chicago’s Graham School of Continuing Liberal and Professional Studies offers certificate programs in creative writing, as well as professional development courses in writing and speaking for business professionals. They also offer several open-enrollment creative writing courses that don’t require advance application or registration to participate.

Oakton Community College

For international students hoping to improve their English writing and speaking, Oakton Community College offers both credit and non-credit ESL courses on their Skokie campuses. Many courses meet in the evening to accommodate students who have other responsibilities during the day.

Editing and Proofreading Services

Mb writing and editorial services.

Run by a Medill grad, this editing service has extensive experience copy editing doctoral dissertations and other academic work.

“A professional writer is an amateur who didn’t quit.”

Jerry Cleaver’s

The Writers’ Loft

Chicago’s longest running and most successful writing workshop Featuring Mary Carter , Loft graduate & NY Times bestselling author

If you live in or near Albuquerque New Mexico and are interested in future in-person workshops email: [email protected] I've been teaching this wonderful workshop since 2011 in New York City, North Carolina, and Chicago. I've met amazing people, I've helped a few achieve their goals of finishing and even helped a few get published. I'm also in the fortunate position of being a working novelist and I need to take the Spring and Summer to work on a new project. I will be suspending this workshop until the Fall of 2021. A few things are in play that may alter the future of the workshop and I should have all the info I need by August of 2021. Please check back to this site for more details then. In the mean-time I'd recommend a copy of Immediate Fiction by Jerry Cleaver and just keep writing! If you want to be put on a waiting list for future workshops please email me at [email protected] . Cheers, Mary Carter aka Carlene O'Connor New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Coach/Owner The Writers Loft Chicago

You want to write but you have no time.

When you do find time, you just can't drag yourself to the desk.

If you do get going, your writing starts strong, but becomes such a mess you don't know whether to keep working or dump it all and start something new.

You write lots of bits and pieces, but none of them fit together into a meaningful whole.

You have training (workshops, college courses, or even a degree in creative writing) but little or nothing you write gets published.

You haven't taken a class because you're not sure where to turn or what to do first. One thing you do know is you want to get the right start so you don't waste a lot of time working on things that don't matter.

GET SOLUTIONS to these and any other writing problems.

Jerry in China

Jerry’s book, Immediate Fiction , is the bestselling writing book in China. Here’s the banner they used on his book tour to Beijing and Shanghai where he gave student seminars at the five major universities plus special professional writers and writing professors conferences and writing teachers' workshops.

Only one workshop (originated in Chicago) has mentored 40+ novels and 5 nonfiction titles into print by major publishers — plus an Emmy winner.

"Simply brilliant. Brilliantly simple." Donal Harding, winner of Paris Afton Bonds Screenplay Award

"I recommend it to everyone who writes." Linda Lael Miller, NY Times bestselling author, 12 million+ books in print

"Simply the best workshop ever." Nicole Hollander, nationally syndicated cartoonist, creator of Sylvia

"Proves there is method to this madness." Tim Kazurinsky, Saturday Night Live writer, screenwriter

"Better than all my writing classes combined." Donald Catherall, Back from the Brink (Bantam)

"The best storyman ever." Jane Leder, Brothers and Sisters (St. Martins), Dead Serious (Atheneum)

"A powerful motivator." Laura Caldwell, Burning the Map and A Clean Slate (Red Dress Ink)

"Demystifies the story process." Michele Fitzsimmons, winner of Illinois Arts Council Award

Taught by NY Times bestselling author Mary Carter, The Writers’ Loft gives writers of all levels the crucial skills that make every story and every writer a success. Learn everything you need to unlock your imagination and bring your ideas to life on the page, stage, or screen.

MORE THAN A WORKSHOP, The Writers’ Loft is a writer's community. It's a place for you to be with other writers, have your work presented, and get the support, guidance, and coaching you need to write successfully in all genres and all media, including novels, short stories, screenplays, stage plays, biography, memoir, nonfiction. Plus you get insider help and advice on how to market your work and how to make those all-important connections to agents, editors, and publishers.

Jerry Cleaver created The Writers’ Loft 20 years ago. It’s been turning out published authors ever since.

Jerry cleaver.

Teacher of Professional Fiction at Northwestern University for ten years.

Teacher of special seminars for Writer's Digest, published articles in the Writer's Digest Magazine, and featured in the Writer's Digest Yearbook.

Creator of the worldwide "Write Your Novel Now" online course (students in Alaska, New Zealand, Turkey, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, Ireland, England, Canada, India).

Creator and leader of the Fiction Writing for Lawyers seminar series.

Very sadly, Jerry is no longer with us. He is greatly missed by his family, friends and students. (Read more here .)

At the request of Jerry and his family, writer and teacher Mary Carter has come to Chicago to carry on his work at the Writers’ Loft.

Author — published in various magazines, and ghostwritten for several books.

Mary Carter

I followed Jerry Cleaver’s unique course when I was writing my first novel, She'll Take It (Kensington Books). It was published in 2006 and since then I have published over 22 titles and have become a USA Today bestselling author under my pen name Carlene O'Connor. My work has been translated into 7 languages, and my anthologized novellas were New York Times bestsellers for several weeks in a row. You can read more about me at  marycarterbooks.com or carleneoconnor.net

I received personal training from Jerry in his Writers’ Loft workshop methods, and since then I have been leading successful workshops in New York and Wilmington, North Carolina. Jerry continued to train, coach and mentor me the whole time.

I am honored and thrilled to be chosen as the only person other than Jerry ever to teach at the Writers’ Loft. I feel a special responsibility to Jerry — and to Writers’ Loft students.

I follow Jerry's methods closely because I know from my own experience as a writer that they work. And I know from my experience as a teacher that they can work for you. That's why I strive to match the dedication, enthusiasm, empathy and insight that Jerry showed me — and every student.

Here's the thing — you can try The Writers’ Loft workshop with me for free. Just come to the first class and see what you think. You don't pay anything unless you return for the next class. So why not? To sign up, email me at [email protected] . Sessions fill up fast!

"After being stuck for years, I am now 150 pages into my first draft. Mary created just the right atmosphere." Martin Gavin, President of NYC's StarCom

"Mary Carter is a gifted writer and incredibly talented coach/mentor/instructor." Megan Cunningham, CEO/Founder of Magnet Media, Inc

"Mary efficiently revived my writing career." Craig Dixon, author of "Notes by a Nomad" and "Shorts"

Six 2 1/2 hour workshop sessions, plus all the help you need outside of class.

Each session meets from 7:00 PM to 9:30 PM. Each class consists of three things:

Specific story techniques presented and explored through examples and discussion.

Presentation of writing with feedback and coaching using Jerry's innovative feedback techniques. Mary reads your writing to the class, anonymously, so no one is put on the spot or forced to present their own writing.

In-class writing. The last half hour is committed to writing, using your own idea or one of the dramatic setups provided.

Each class ends with this half hour of writing to put you into the process of writing, get you loosened up, and create some momentum that will carry over to the outside. One Writers’ Loft student took a class exercise and expanded it into a novel ( The Leaving Summer by Donal Harding) that was published by William Morrow. Another student entered 21 pages of her in-class writing in the Illinois Arts Council Awards and won $7,000.

Sample the Course

A good story cannot be denied. Like falling in love, it's irresistible. It touches your heart before it reaches your head. You're drawn in — whether you want to be or not. And you're not asking yourself, "Is it good?" or "Is it real?" because you're part of the story, living and feeling it with the characters. That's the kind of story you'll learn to write in The Writers’ Loft. The craft and techniques you'll learn are those used by all great writers.

Fine. But how does it work?

A Touch of Craft

Here's an example that will give you a feel for the most critical story ingredient of them all. It's the single force that will turn any idea into a dramatic story every time. Without it no story, no matter how beautifully written, can succeed. I can do this in a couple of ways. I can give you a definition, a concept, a model. But, stories aren't ideas. They're not concepts or definitions. They're experience. So, rather than tell you how a story works, I'm going to show you—show you by giving you a little story to see how much of an experience I can cause you to have. Here's the story:

My wife and I have a friend named Larry who just went through a horrendous divorce. My wife ran into him at the mall. He looked terrible—sad and despondent. He sounded even worse than he looked, so she invited him over for dinner to try to cheer him up.

Larry's an old friend, so we know what he likes. My wife cooked his favorite food and I bought a bottle of his favorite scotch. We had a nice dinner and let Larry know we would be there for him whenever he needed us. He could call anytime night or day. No matter what, we would be there to help him through this. Larry felt better. We felt better. He went home happy. We went to bed happy. It was a great night, all around, for everybody. That's the end of the story.

How was it? Moving? Compelling? Dramatic? Did you identify? Were you gripped? Did you have the kind of experience you want from a story?

The answer, of course, is NO. You did not have an experience. You did not connect. You did not identify. You could not. The reason you could not was: I purposely gave you a dead story. So, the effect was boredom and maybe irritation. The cause was a dead story. I presented you with an experience that left you cold, with a mistake. Why? Because mistakes are what we start with.

We make mistakes, constantly. First drafts are loaded with them. Hemingway said, "The first draft is shit." If Hemingway's first drafts were shit, you shouldn't be expecting any better from yourself. Expecting too much is the surest way to get discouraged and blocked. The other reason I started with a mistake is: We learn more from our mistakes than our successes—not from the mistakes themselves, but from fixing them. Experiencing perfect writing will not teach you what you need to know. If it did, all you would have to do is read great writers and you'd be a great writer. I know people who read great literature all the time but can't write worth a damn.

Fine. So where do we go from here? Well, if I'm right, if I know what I'm doing, I should be able to show you how to turn this mistake into an involving story. But, before I do, consider...

Next: Making It Happen

Making it happen.

What's needed to turn this dead story into something with some energy, some drama? Detail, dialogue, emotion? Well, I could give you reams of detail and keep it as dull as it is. Dialogue? I could have them talking all night and far into the next day and you would be even more bored than you were. Emotion? Well, it has emotion. We're happy, satisfied, fulfilled. How much more do you want of happy, happy, happy?

Before I give you my answer, why don't you work on one of your own. See what you can do to give this dead story some energy. Think about what you could do, or you can actually write it out. You can write the whole thing out or you can just jot down some general ideas about how it should go—plan it out without doing it word for word.

Here's another version of the same story. See if I can get you more involved. In this version...

I've got a touch of bronchitis or flu the day Larry is coming for dinner. I'm not feeling great, so I stay home to rest up so I won't let Larry down.

Now, the flu is a minor detail, but I want you to decide whether you want it in or out. You don't have to have a reason—just a feeling. A few people usually go for the flu, but not many. Remember, this is not flu we're talking about. This is story and in story, everything counts. Nothing is along for the ride. So, the flu is in.

Larry comes over. We have a few drinks. He and my wife are both smokers. Before we get to dinner, they run out of cigarettes. "I'll go get them," I say. "I want to get out of this haze and clear my lungs."

Smokers is the next element. Yes or no? A few more go for it than the flu.

OK, so I head out for the corner store to get their smokes. It's a nice walk. I get their cigarettes and head back, but instead of walking up the front walk, I decide to take the shortcut down the alley.

OK, next item: Alley in or out? Pretty much everybody goes for the alley. Why? The answer to that is at the very heart of successful storytelling. It's not alley, not flu, not smokers. It's story.

So, I'm walking down the alley, relaxing, breathing fresh air, looking at the yards. Now, our kitchen sticks out from the back of the house and has a window in which I can see Larry and my wife. As I come through the yard, I see they're having a rather intense conversation. My wife is especially lively. I haven't seen her that bubbly in months.

OK, what's on your mind right now? What are you thinking? Let me guess. You're thinking, hanky-panky, fooling around, touching, embracing, kissing, etc. Right? Not only are you thinking it, but you're wanting it. Oh, yes. Not only do you give me the flu, make me walk down the alley, but you throw my marriage into crisis by making my wife unfaithful. Maybe not in reality, but in story, we prefer cheating to loyalty—always. We want chemistry, passion, fireworks! You don't go to the amusement park to ride the merry-go-round. You go to ride the roller coaster.

Next: The Active Ingredient

< previous

The Active Ingredient

I knew what you were thinking, not because I read your mind, but because I know how people work and how stories work. I led you there—with story. I gave you an experience that hooked you in. Something you can learn to do every time by mastering the story craft.

Fine, so far, but where do we go from here? We left me standing there, watching my wife talking to Larry. What's next? Well, I've raised your expectations, so I have to give you what you want—or something better. Let's go with the kiss.

My wife says something. Larry laughs, opening his arms. They embrace and have a nice long kiss.

What now? She kisses Larry. End of story. Yes? No? Why not? I'm sure you know in your heart, it's not over. Your heart is a good guide. It might be enough for an obvious example like this—might be. But when it's not obvious, when it gets subtle and tricky, when you get lost, it's never enough. To be a successful storyteller, you have to know in story terms, why it's not over. So, what has to happen to complete this story, to give it a bang-up ending? How about this:

I figure, "Heck with it. What do I care? Everybody cheats. Look at Clinton." Then I go in, we have a nice dinner, pledge our friendship to Larry, and wind up good friends just like before.

A satisfying ending? Maybe the characters are satisfied, but we are not and no reader will be either. All right. If this story is going to hold someone, I have to care, to feel betrayed, and go in and do something about it. Stories are about doing, always. It could go like this:

"Hi, guys," I say happily as I come in. "Here's the smokes."

They thank me and both light up. Larry pours himself some scotch.

"How'd it go while I was gone?" I say, flopping into a kitchen chair.

"Fine," my wife says.

"How about you, Lar? Enjoy yourself in my absence?"

He glances at my wife. "I did," he says.

"Good. I was worried you might get lonely. But when I saw you through the window, I could see you didn't need me to entertain you."

"Well," Larry says. "We both missed you and we're glad you're back."

"That's right, honey," my wife says. "It's not the same without you."

"Of course not," I say. "Say, hand me the butcher knife, darling."

"Butcher knife, what for?"

"No reason. I just feel like holding it."

"Don't be silly," she says.

"No, really. Indulge me."

"Will you stop," she says.

"Stop what? You don't trust me with a knife? What is this: No sharp objects for the lunatic?"

"Very funny," she says.

Larry stares at me, smiling weakly.

"Afraid I'll hurt myself — slit my wrists — or my throat? What do you think, Lar? Can I be trusted with a knife in my own kitchen with my best friend and my loyal wife?"

"Of course, you can," Larry says flatly, then downs his scotch.

"Damn right. Hear that, angel? Larry trusts me. He trusts you. We all trust each other. So pass me the knife, sweets."

Next: The Crucial Difference

The crucial difference.

LIFEBLOOD OF EVERY STORY — AND EVERY WRITER

All right, let's stop here. The story's not over yet. It can go in many directions. Each writer will do it his or her own way. But no matter which way it goes it must fulfill the basic story requirements or it will fail.

For now, the question is: what's the difference between this last version and the first? Can you see it? It's not details. It's not dialogue. It's not emotion. I left it out when I raised this question earlier so you could experience it first. The first version — happy, happy, happy — left us cold. The last — trouble, trouble, trouble — got to us. What does that tell us?

It tells us that you must have conflict to create an engaging, compelling story. Conflict. We all know what conflict is, right? Your wife calls you an insensitive slob. You get run off the expressway on the way to work. Your boss tells you you'd better get your work up to par or you'll be out of a job. Your mother disinherits you.

Well, guess what, none of those is conflict, our kind of conflict — dramatic conflict. Oh, those examples are troubling, disturbing, upsetting, but none of them is what's needed to set a story in motion. They're false conflict. Trying to create a story from false conflict is like dragging a dead horse around a racetrack: You might get to the finish line, but you'll never win a race.

Even though every writing teacher and every writing book will tell you that conflict is the necessary ingredient, it remains the single, most misunderstood, most deceptive part of all storytelling. It's the reason why writers write as many duds as hits and why there are so many feeble stories limping around.

Conflict is deceptive because: All conflict is trouble but all trouble is not conflict. What we think of as conflict in everyday experience — disagreements, arguments, insults, shouting matches, even fistfights — are not dramatic conflict. They can be turned into dramatic conflict — anything can, once you know how — but dramatic conflict is a different creature entirely. Dramatic conflict is made up of several elements. Get one wrong, and no matter how brilliantly you write, your story will fall flat.

Because it is the source of everything that happens in story, understanding, creating, and using dramatic conflict is at the heart of The Writers’ Loft.

Conflict is critical but how your story is presented on the page is also critical. That brings us to our last example.

Next: You Can Do This

Experience vs. ideas.

If I said, Francesca was uncomfortable in her marriage especially when it came to sex, it might get your attention, but only because you'd want to know more. If that statement, that idea, were as far as it went, it wouldn't be very satisfying because it's an idea about her marriage and not the experience of it. If I wanted to give you the experience of her and her marriage, I would have to put it in Francesca's personal terms, give you her specific experience, which is what every successful story must do. Here's how one of my students did it:

Sex had never been Francesca's forte. In fact, she had to admit to her rather drab reflection in the bathroom mirror as she stood brushing her teeth, sex wasn't even her mediumte — if there were such a word. No. She paused in her brushing, listening for the sound of Jack's snoring, hoping for the snoring, waiting for the snoring.

No snoring.

Francesca began brushing again. No. The fact was she wasn't good at sex at all. Never had been. And, as she looked again at her reflection — gray hair mixed freely with the brown, lines fanning out from the corners of her eyes, the sag underneath her chin-she realized now that she was 43, she was never going to get good at it. She spit in the sink and listened again for the sound of snoring. In vain.

It wasn't that she wanted to be this way.

And hadn't she enjoyed Jack — his kisses, the warm feel of his body in bed, the simple touch of his hand with the swirled scar from the time he went over the handle bars of his bike at 12 and landed with a stick piercing his palm?

Yes, she had enjoyed Jack, at one time at least. But that had been, what? A year ago? Two? Maybe two and a half.

Maybe she just needed to adjust her attitude.

"Hey, what's going on in there? Did you drown yourself?" Jack called.

Yes, adjust her attitude — be positive. Maybe sex would be…nice for a change.

"Did you flush yourself down the toilet?" Jack called again. "I sure hope not 'cause big daddy is out here waiting for you."

Positive attitude. Francesca smiled to the mirror, flicked off the bathroom lights, and stepped into the bedroom.

"There you are," he said, looking up from the Outdoor Sportsman magazine he had in his hand.

"Here I am." Francesca kept smiling. He had already pushed all the covers down to the foot of the bed — the way she hated — and was lying on top of the top sheet in nothing but his boxers and round-framed glasses.

"Big daddy's ready for some fun." He smiled and wiggled his thin hips on the bed.

"I've told you I don't like it when you say that."

"Say what?" he grinned.

"What?" He patted the side of the bed next to him.

"Big daddy," Francesca said through her teeth. "It's really not a turn on." She walked around his scattered clothes — shirt, pants, half curled-up belt — on the floor.

"Big daddy," he said, smiling.

by A. C. Paterson

There you have it. Which hits home, the idea or the experience? (Notice also that there's conflict throughout.) Being able to create an experience in this way is another of the several essential tools you must master to succeed as a writer. All of them are at the heart of The Writers’ Loft.

You Can Do This

That's the most important thing to keep in mind. Storytelling is an acquired skill and not an inborn talent. You don't have to be brilliant or write a brilliant story. You just have to master enough craft to tell a good enough story. Plenty of writers of average intelligence are making lots of money writing mediocre stories. Look around. They're not hard to find. Unlike the other arts (music, painting, dance, etc.) where you must have an inborn ability, to be a successful storyteller, you have what you need already. You don't have to know how to play the piano or paint a portrait to get along in the world, but you'd better understand yourself, how people work, how the world works if you're going to make it in this life. In fact, if you've survived this long, you have at least 10 novels in you. You have a full set of emotions and plenty of dramatic, painful, and exciting experience to draw on. That doesn't mean you have to write about yourself. Even if you're creating Martians, it all comes from your imagination. They're your Martians and your Martians are unlike all others.

You have what you need already, but you must learn how to use it. That means developing the skills to get in touch with your imagination and to bring it to life on the page. So, it's not what you have, but learning how to use it. All you need is the desire. The Writers’ Loft gives you everything else.

Classes are now forming. To register or for more information please email me at [email protected] or call 206.618.3747.

You Also Get

Audio files that cover the critical elements of storytelling. Play them as you ride in your car or on your phone or iPod. The more you listen the more you learn. A great way to perfect your skills and technique while you're doing other things.

STORY HELP LINE. Call any time for help with any writing problem. Get the help you need when you need it. No need to wait until the next class. Call any time for personal help with any and every writing problem whether it's trouble with your story or yourself. Don't sit there and suffer. Remember no writing problem is too big to conquer and no problem is too small to disable you. This is Mary's specialty. Call any time and let Mary get you back on the track.

PERSONAL CONFERENCES. Unlimited personal conferences. Personalized help tailored to your needs of the moment and the future. Help finding your subject, setting your goals, and dealing with any other writing problems.

OUTSIDE WRITING HELP. Get feedback and coaching with outside writing. If you already have a story, you will get the coaching and guidance you need to get it into shape and off to market.

The first class is free. Any time you miss a class you are able to attend that class the next time it is presented.

FULL MARKETING STRATEGY. Taking one Writers’ Loft workshop entitles you to full marketing help and guidance - even if you're no longer in the workshop. Whenever you have a novel, short story, screenplay, or stage play ready, Mary will give you everything you need to market your work and help you short cut the submission process and get your story a serious read by agents, editors, and publishers.

How You Learn, What You Learn, and More

What You Learn

STORY CRAFT AND TECHNIQUE. Plot, character, dramatic momentum. The source of all drama. The few dramatic forces that will turn any idea into a compelling story.

THE CREATIVE PROCESS. Overcoming doubt, fear, and panic. Techniques to overcome resistance, stop fighting yourself, and get the flow going the moment you sit down.

SELF-COACHING AND SELF-EDITING. Learn to stop torturing yourself when it doesn't come out the way you wanted. Learn to trust your own emotional radar to find that dramatic potential that's always in your work and learn how to use it to bring your story to life on the page every time.

REWRITING TECHNIQUES. Turning drudgery into excitement and inspiration. Rewriting is the best part. Once you know how, rewriting becomes re-exciting.

THE ESSENCE OF CHARACTER. What's needed to bring characters to life in all their depth and complexity. How to make the deepest, most personal connection to your characters.

SHORT STORY TO NOVEL, STAGE PLAY OR SCREENPLAY. How to turn any short story or story idea into the longer form without stressing, straining, or padding. Plus the easiest (and hardest) kind of novel to write and the easiest (and hardest) kind of novel to sell. What makes literature literature (exactly what it takes to write literary fiction.) How to write a bestseller. And how to write down-and-dirty, commercial fiction with the least pain and most pleasure in the least amount of time if that's your goal.

UNIVERSAL PLOT FORMS. Aristotle, quoted in nearly every writing book and by every writing teacher, said there were six fundamental plots. Learn what even Aristotle didn't know — but Shakespeare did and so did Tolstoy, Steinbeck, Fitzgerald and many, many others. Learn how simple and easy it is to create compelling plots.

ORIGINALITY. What is it? Do you have it? (In a word: Yes. It's already there inside you. All you need are the tools to uncover it.) You're full of original ideas. You'll see how originality, this often intimidating concern, is easily achieved when you learn how to unlock your imagination and turn it loose on the page.

WORK METHODS. How to approach your story idea. (Should you outline, know the end first, write straight through before revising, have a plan, just jump in and go, write from a premise, have a theme in mind, etc). What you need to know before you start and what you don't.

MANAGING TIME. Where to find it (yes, it's there) and how to use it. Learn how you can write the first draft of a novel in just minutes a day in one year, regardless of your busy schedule and have fun doing it.

POINT OF VIEW. The ins and outs of this often confused and poorly explained story dimension made simple.

DEAD-WEIGHT. Learn the things that sound good but only serve to confuse, impede, or even disable you. Advice and misconceptions that many writers hold dear and struggle against that you need to be aware of and ignore.

Next: How You Learn

How you learn.

LECTURE AND DISCUSSION. In the first part of each workshop session, a specific technique is presented using concrete, clear-cut examples so you can see and apply these techniques directly to your writing. This approach demystifies the process, eliminates the guesswork, and puts the pleasure and satisfaction back in.

IN-CLASS WRITING. We end each session by writing for the last half-hour. Putting words on the page is what it's all about so we end by putting you in the process to get you loosened up and create some momentum that will carry over to the outside. This is your time to write anything you want, but a number of dramatic, provocative scene and story setups are given each time to help you get going if you need them.

WORKSHOP OF THE WRITING. It's not just feedback. The single, best way to master the story craft. Special techniques for actually practicing your craft and developing your skills and your ideas while considering some one else's work even though you're not putting words on the page. You will not be required or pressured to present your own work. All writing is presented by Jerry and is presented anonymously so the members can be relaxed and focus on the craft. Emphasis is on your own immediate, spontaneous response, which is where every story lives or dies. Like falling in love, you shouldn't have to be mulling it over or asking yourself, Is it working? Again, it's all about learning to trust your emotional radar and use it to turn any idea into a dramatic, compelling story.

STORY HELP LINE. Mary is a full time writer and workshop leader. She's around all the time, which means you can call any time and get the help you need without waiting until the next class. Getting the help when you need it is a great catalyst in developing your skills.

PERSONAL CONFERENCES In-person conferences about any and all writing problems. Get help with picking ideas, setting goals, scheduling, etc, to make sure you're not working against yourself and setting yourself up for failure with unrealistic expectations.

Next: Do You Have What It Takes?

Do you have what it takes.

What does it take to be a successful writer? Two things: motivation + story craft. I know you've heard about talent and of course it does exist but you don't need it to be successful, even very successful, in this art. Unlike the other arts (music, painting, dance, etc.) where you must have a special inborn talent to succeed, no special talent is needed to be a successful writer. How can that be? That's because the very skills you need to get along in the world are exactly what you need to be a successful storyteller. You don't have to know how to play the guitar or paint a landscape to survive, but you must know how people work, how you work, and how the world works. If you didn't, you wouldn't have made it this far. And because you've made it this far, you've got at least ten novels in you. You may not feel it. But trust me, they're there.

They're there because you have a full set of emotions, plenty of dramatic and exciting experience, and a rich imagination. Getting in touch with what you have is what The Writers’ Loft workshops are all about. Your emotions, your experience, your imagination, and the desire to write are all you need to create successful novels, short stories, screenplays, stage plays, biographies, memoirs, and nonfiction - plus one more critical skill. Story craft and technique. That's what you get at The Writers’ Loft in the quickest, easiest, most enjoyable way possible.

Now I'm not knocking talent. It does exist and if you have it, it's a bonus. But talent alone, talent without craft, will never do the job. I've had many talented, gifted writers who don't take the time to master the story craft and because they don't, they never bring their ideas to life on the page and they never get published. Beautiful writing will not save a dead story. A beautiful corpse is still a dead body. No matter how pretty you make it, it's never going rise up and do something exciting.

And of course talent comes into play if you're trying to win a Pulitzer Prize or the National Book Award. But few writers win those prizes - just as few actors ever win an Oscar but still go on to make fortunes in the movies.

Also, you may have noticed when you read novels or go to movies, there are plenty of average writers writing mediocre stories and making lots of money doing it. The competition isn't that tough. You can do it. You have what you need already. Come to the Writers Loft and get the skills to unlock your imagination and bring your ideas to life on the page, stage, or screen.

Next: Philosophy

It's not just a philosophy but a method — a method that works. A method that has produced many successful, prize-winning writers. At the heart of this method is the understanding that there is no such thing as a bad idea. Every idea has potential and dramatic possibilities. How can that be true? It's true because any and every idea can be shaped, reshaped, added to, subtracted from until it becomes dramatic and compelling.

If you don't believe me, Sample the Course for a demonstration of exactly how it's done. Also, to survive (to do your best work and have a good time doing it), you must cultivate a state of mind in which you're always looking for the possibilities and potential in your writing and not beating yourself up because it didn't come out the way you wanted. You must address the weaknesses, but the question must always be "What do I have and what can it become" "How do I make this work?"

In Printers' Row, just south of the Loop.

Important update: due to the current covid-19 pandemic all classes will be held over zoom meeting.

New Address. The Writers Loft is now located in Printers Row in downtown Chicago.

The Pope Building 633 South Plymouth Court #1002 (10th Floor) Chicago, 60605

Close to all train lines at Harold Washington Library stop at State/Van Buren and close to the Harrison Red line stop. Also close to the Metra. Parking lot across the street or metered street parking. Ask Mary for more details.

And guess what? It really does meet in a loft!

The Writers Loft has moved out of Chicago, but don’t fret, I will be starting Zoom workshops!

See yellow box for next date and email [email protected] to register. First class free to try, for those continuing the tuition is $575. Six consecutive weeks.

Can’t wait?

The Writers Loft Workshop—Solo

Do The Writers Loft program solo through pre-recorded videos Take as long as you want through it up to one year Zoom meetings as necessary to check-in and answer questions Unlimited e-mail contact Assignments with critique 10-page critique at the end Same cost of $575—1st workshop is free

Story problem consult via Zoom—The “Writers Couch” $95 40 min Zoom, let’s talk it out

10-page critique $95

Query letter critique $15

The best measure of a workshop is the success of its students.

Loft Successes: more than 40 novels*, 5 nonfiction titles*, plus an Emmy winner *All major publishers. Self publishing doesn’t count at the Loft.

How do you judge a workshop?

You may have never had a workshop and may have little or no idea what to look for. Or you may have had a workshop or two or even a bunch and still not be sure what you need and what works. Or you may feel you know what you need, but how can you tell if that's what you'll get from any particular workshop?

What is the best way to choose? What's the best measure of a workshop's effectiveness?

If your goal is to be a successful writer, then only one thing matters: Results. Learning the right skills to get you there as quickly and as painlessly as possible. And that can only be measured by the accomplishments of the students who have studied at that workshop.

Here is what a few of those who have studied at The Writers’ Loft have to say:

I recommend it to everyone who writes." Linda Lael Miller, author of eight New York Times bestsellers. Over 12 million books in print.

"The best there is." Michael Harvey, Emmy winner, writer for Academy Award nominated documentary Eyewitness , novelist.

"Without Jerry I never would have published at all." Josh Landsman, playwright, author of Frank Talk About Matters Big and Small (Organic Theatre, Chicago).

"A powerful motivator." Laura Caldwell, author of Burning the Map and A Clean Slate (Red Dress Ink), The Year of Living Famously (November, 2004), Look Closely (June, 2005).

"Simply brilliant. Brilliantly simple." Donal Harding, author of The Leaving Summer (Wm Morrow) and winner of the Paris Afton Bonds Screenplay Award.

"The best storyman ever." Jane Leder, author of Brothers and Sisters (St. Martins - nonfiction) and Dead Serious (Atheneum - nonfiction - rated one of the top ten books of the year by The National Library Board).

"Demystifies the story process." Michele Fitzsimmons, winner of $7,000 Illinois Arts Council Award for 21 pages of The Writers’ Loft in-class writing.

"Better than all my English and writing classes combined." Donald Catherall, author of Back from the Brink (Bantam).

"Simply the best workshop ever." Nicole Hollander, nationally syndicated cartoonist, creator of Sylvia .

Here are some endorsements from those who have the expertise to know:

"Plainly gifted." C. Michael Curtis, senior editor of The Atlantic Monthly .

"A true story master." Bernard Sabath, Broadway playwright, author of The Boys in Autumn , starring George C. Scott and John Cullum.

"Proves there is method to this madness." Tim Kazurinsky, Saturday Night Live writer and performer, screenwriter for About Last Night (Tri Star), For Keeps (Tri Star), and The Cherokee Kid , HBO special.

"Stretches your limits." Bob Condor, Columnist, Chicago Tribune .

We meet on Zoom. The cost for the entire course is $575.  You can put it on a charge card if you want.  If you charge it, you can spread the payments out over five months.  Five payments bring it down to $115 a month.  If you were to take a course like this at Northwestern or another university, the cost would be over $6,000.

The right coaching and guidance is critical to your writing success. So, come try it and see. You have nothing to lose and much to gain.

To try the first class for free, email [email protected] or call Mary Carter at 206.618.3747.

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The Researched Memoir with Melissa Febos

In four weekly sessions, bestselling memoirist and essayist Melissa Febos will lead participants through the stages of writing a researched memoir from conception to publication.

July Write Club with Jennifer Coffeen

This month-long online class will concentrate on accountability and goal setting for writers of all levels with lower stakes and more focus on getting words on the page.

Magic as Emotional Translation with Hajrije Kolimja

What can magic offer in narratives that strict realism cannot? In this class, we’ll be looking at the utility of magic in fiction writing—particularly investigating how it helps us translate experiences of extreme emotion and the multiplicitous identities of which they are a part.

SINGLE SESSION

PJ Seminar: Founded in Truth, Realized By Imagination – A Master Class on Poetic Craft in Fiction with JoAnna Novak

This master class will focus on poetic elements like imagery, figurative language, repetition, and others, investigating how these writers incorporate them into narratives.

PJ Seminar: Revision: The Sequel! with Peter Ho Davies

In this class we’ll draw the act of revision into the light, calling on examples from life, literature and pop culture, as well as offering a range of strategies for how to re-see re-vision.

PJ Seminar: Pulling from Power and Powerlessness in YA to Unravel Plot with Natalia Sylvester

In this generative class, we'll explore YA stories through the lens of power and the seeming contradictions of adolescence: its fearlessness and vulnerability, fragility and strength, independence and powerlessness.

MASTER CLASSES

PJ Seminar: Too Hot to Cut: How to Write Sex Scenes with Purpose with Isle McElroy

In this class, we will deepen our understanding of how sex scenes work to develop character, heighten tension, and advance plot in fiction. Students will also complete short craft exercises.

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SAVE THE DATE for our 7th Annual StoryStudio Writers Festival! November 2nd & 3rd, 2024 in-person at Center on Halsted.  

Curated by Artistic Director Rebecca Makkai, the two day Festival will offer classes, panels, & social events to help writers develop their craft and create a supportive community. 

For those ready for feedback, the Festival offers one-on-one Manuscript Reviews from award-winning authors and StoryStudio instructors.

2023 KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Rumaan Alam

Rumaan Alam is the author of the novels Rich and Pretty, That Kind of Mother , and Leave the World Behind , a National Book Award Finalist. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, New York Magazine, The New Yorker, New York Review of Books, Bookforum , and The New Republic . He studied writing at Oberlin College and lives in New York with his family.

Rumaan’s Keynote Speech will be titled “Pleasure.” Catch him at the Festival on Saturday, November 4.

Past Keynote Speakers have included: Garth Greenwell T Kira Madden Luis Alberto Urrea

2023 Festival Pricing

Regular Registration – $350

Full Schedule, Sessions Descriptions, and Instructor Bios are coming soon!

2023 TICKET INCLUDES:

• Breakout Sessions ( writers can choose between 2 or 3 classes for each session, depending on your genre and skill level) 
• Brown Bag Class Samplers (bring your lunch and join us for a class!)
• Featured classes with invited authors 
• Master Class with our Keynote author
• Keynote Speech & Book Signing
• Office Hours with StoryStudio Instructors
• Coffee & Writer Socials 
• Friday Night Kick-Off Party 
• Saturday Cocktail Party 

Manuscript Reviews ($65) Sign up for a 20 minute meeting with a StoryStudio author and instructor. This one-on-one meeting includes verbal feedback on up to 5 pages of your manuscript. All sessions will take place during the Festival weekend. 

Agent & Editor Meetings: Save the Date! Mark your calendars for Pub Crawl: an Online Publishing Intensive in February 2024. We’ll be offering classes and events centered on the publishing world all month long, including the opportunity to virtually meet and query agents and editors.

Note: After registration you’ll receive a follow-up email confirming your place at the Festival and any add-on sessions you have requested.

Due to the nature of the event, we will not be able to refund your purchase after October 27. Prior to October 27, refunds will be given minus a 25% cancellation fee.

Yes! We’ll send out a form to sign up to help us with space accommodations, but you can decide the day of.

We respect everyone’s level of comfort and precaution with COVID. At this time, masking is not required, but masks are absolutely welcome at the Festival. If you become sick with COVID or another illness prior to or during the Festival, we must follow our cancellation policy stated above.

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PAST FESTIVALS

StoryStudio Writers Festival is an ideal venue for honing your craft of writing by learning from writers who have achieved a level of success. It is a well-orchestrated compilation of professionals, educators, and peers who share new and proven insights and provide case studies on the best ways to move your work forward.

Kudos to StoryStudio for creating a casual yet extremely informative event where all kinds of writers can hang out together while learning how to improve our craft and better manage the affliction of being a writer!

Writers Festival is a great way to meet other aspiring writers, as well as experienced writers, to hear from agents, editors, and poets, to gain insight about the publishing process, tips on writing, and pointers on seeking an agent. Highly recommended; stimulating, supportive, and fun!

I didn’t just get new ideas and information this weekend. I got a chance to feel more like I’m part of the Chicago writing community.

This year’s StoryStudio Writers Festival was worth every minute and every penny. The sessions offered were useful for writers at any stage in their career–from beginning to advanced. I am definitely going next year! 

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Illinois Resources for Writers

Here you’ll find a collection of resources for writers in Illinois, from conferences to local critique groups to literary magazines. If you’re looking for writing groups near you, writing workshops near you, creative writing classes near you, or simply a place to hang out with writers or submit your work, these are some Illinois writing organizations you might want to check out:

WriteByNight

For more than a decade, WriteByNight has helped writers in Illinois and beyond achieve their literary goals. And we want you to be next! Claim your free consultation  to learn about WBN’s customizable  one-on-one writers’ services , including:

Book Coaching :  If you’re writing a book and want some help along the way.

Manuscript Critique : If you’ve written a book and want a beta read, critique, or writing workshop.

Editing/Proofreading : If you’ve written a book and want someone to polish it for you.

Publication Assistance : If you’ve written a book and want help finding an agent or publisher.

Chicago Writers Association

Volunteer, not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting the 4 C’s of writing: creativity, commerce, craft and community.

Downers Grove Writers Workshop

A writing group founded in 1980, Downers Grove Writers Workshop meets twice a month at the Downers Grove Library. Open to all levels of writers working in all genres.

Heartland Writers Guild

A not-for-profit multi-genre organization devoted to helping its members market their writing.

Lawyers for the Creative Arts

Provides pro bono legal assistance to writers and other artists in Illinois. Also offers educational resources.

Naperville Writers Group

The Naperville Writers Group offers writers the opportunity to develop craft and receive thoughtful, positive, and useful critiques. Members come from throughout the Chicago area and range from published, award-winning writers to those who write only for pleasure.

Sanctuary Poets

Founded by Chasity Gunn, Elgin Poet Laureate Emerita, Sanctuary Poets meets on the first Saturday of each month for workshops, book discussions, and writing lessons. The group is open to anyone who enjoys or is curious about poetry.

Spring Fling Writers’ Conference

Every other year the Chicago-North RWA chapter organizes this weekend of writing workshops, panels, pitch sessions and more.

StoryStudio Chicago

A growing community of writers building Chicagoland’s premier center for writing and writers. Their mission is simple: teach the art and craft of writing in a positive, open and encouraging community where students can develop their unique voices.

TallGrass Writers Guild

A nonprofit providing performance and publication opportunities for more than 25 years: open mics, themed readings, and anthologies of fiction, essays, and poetry.

Help us add to this list, Illinoisians! Do you know of writing groups near you, writing workshops near you, creative writing classes near you, or an Illinois literary journal we should be aware of? Let us know here

Working with WriteByNight is one of the best decisions I've made this year. Thank you! Francois Pointeau Austin, Texas

Client Credits

WBN has helped writers publish with:

Simon & Schuster Little, Brown & Co. St. Martin’s Press Amazon Slate Threepenny Review Huffington Post

WriteByNight, LLC 235 West End Avenue, 6H New York, New York 10023

646.374.8174 [email protected]

Incite: With ten writers, in ten regions, America's elders make history

The stories of Black, Latine, Asian, Indigenous, and queer elders in America have been inadequately preserved by institutional archives, and award-winning writer Jacqueline Woodson has taken it upon herself to address the gaps in our collective memory.

Author Eve L. Ewing’s collection —narrated through interviews with 20 elders—explores Black migration to and within Chicago, from the Great Migration to the legacies of displacement within the city. Writer Jenna “J” Wortham’s collection explores first-person accounts of queer pleasure on East Coast waterfronts, as well as the ways that these locations have become a site for queer exploration, expression, resistance, and ultimately, survival. The project’s ten collections have different geographic foci, but share a common interest in migratory trajectories and identity formation.

Read more of the article here .

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Inside the rise and fall of one of the world’s most powerful writing groups

Assistant Professor of Journalism, University of Colorado Boulder

Disclosure statement

Christine Larson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

University of Colorado provides funding as a member of The Conversation US.

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The Romance Writers of America, once the world’s largest and most powerful authors’ association, filed for bankruptcy on May 30, 2024.

In its filing , the nonprofit blamed “disputes concerning diversity, equity and inclusion” for its membership declining by a jaw-dropping 80%. With just 2,000 members left, the organization finds itself unable to pay US$3 million in hotel commitments for future conferences.

I’ve spent a decade studying romance publishing , and I believe the rise and fall of the Romance Writers of America shows how quickly organizations can collapse if they don’t serve the needs of all their members.

This debacle could serve as a warning to universities, companies and other groups now abolishing and scaling back inclusion efforts.

A home for struggling writers

In my new book, “ Love in the Time of Self-Publishing: How Romance Writers Changed the Rules of Writing and Success ,” I show how a decades-long failure to redress institutional racism undermined this once-powerful group.

The Romance Writers of America was founded in 1980 by Vivian Stephens , who was then one of the industry’s only Black editors.

At the time, romance writers desperately needed an organization. The exploding new genre made millions for publishers, but romance authors themselves were mocked, maligned and mistreated .

The Romance Writers of America changed all that. It provided a professional home where isolated, struggling writers banded together, mentored each other and learned about the industry.

Over four decades, it scored major wins.

Contracts improved. Publishers who didn’t pay were audited and blacklisted. Copyright battles were waged over plagiarism .

The organization also fought to define and limit the fair use of copyrighted material. Along with other authors’ groups, it even stood up to Google – which had been scanning and making books available without authors’ permission – and Amazon , for its overly liberal audiobook return policies.

At its peak in the mid-2010s, the group had some 10,000 members worldwide.

The diversity dilemma

But not all authors benefited equally.

Back then, few editors published the work of writers of color. It’s still an issue today: A 2020 report found that just 8.1% of romance novels from major publishers are written by authors of color.

In the early 1980s, when authors desperately needed the Romance Writers of America, many writers of color kept their complaints to themselves.

But the rise of self-publishing made industry contacts less crucial. Meanwhile, social media offered a powerful megaphone. In 2018, authors of color and their supporters created the hashtag #RitaSoWhite to protest decades of racial exclusion. No Black author had ever won the Romance Writers of America’s coveted – and now no longer offered – RITA award , which was given to the best romance novels of the year in a variety of categories.

The aggrieved authors participated in detailed, extensive social media discussions about the nature of institutional racism in the publishing industry.

In response to these criticisms, many members stepped up to repair the organization. They launched diversity summits with major publishers, created internships and scholarships for marginalized authors, and instituted diversity training for RITA judges.

In 2019, Kennedy Ryan and M. Malone became the first Black authors to win a RITA .

But later that year, a spectacularly mishandled episode prompted mass resignations.

A member filed an ethics complaint against fellow member and diversity advocate Courtney Milan, after Milan called out racist tropes in another member’s book. In response, the Romance Writers of America’s board suspended Milan.

The decision shocked many members, who interpreted the penalty as retaliation for Milan’s diversity activism. Thousands walked. To replace the group’s advocacy role, many romance writers turned to the Authors Guild, whose membership grew 45% in the five years during and after the meltdown.

In filing for bankruptcy, the Romance Writers of America hopes that the financial relief will provide an opportunity to regroup. The organization continues to run programs for some 30 chapters around the country, is launching a new awards program and is advocating for artificial intelligence policies that protect authors.

Lessons from the fall

This story shows that even powerful, respected groups can unravel practically overnight when diversity, equity and inclusion efforts fall short.

Some lessons can be gleaned from this saga.

For one, the eye of social media, once opened, is unforgiving.

In countless other disputes over four decades, the Romance Writers of America resolved controversies behind closed doors – in meetings, in letters to its in-house magazine and newsletter, and on members-only discussion boards. This protected the organization’s powerful industry reputation. But it also let growing dissatisfaction fester.

Social media pulled back the curtain. And once problems were brought to light, the Twittersphere demanded immediate results. The group had to fix things quickly, with zero room for error.

There were serious missteps aside from the debacle surrounding the ethics complaint.

In 2020, the organization’s in-house magazine featured a tone-deaf cover showing a white writer reaching down to help a Black writer up a mountain. Critics pointed out that the image perpetuated the trope of the white savior . The following year, the group awarded a prize – quickly rescinded – to a book with a protagonist complicit in the genocide of Native Americans .

In each case, social media responded with accelerating, if understandable, fury. Enduring the constant scrutiny of social media, many members working to repair the organization simply gave up.

DEI at a crossroads

An independent audit of the ethics fiasco concluded that the Romance Writers of America relied on a patched-together ethics code and didn’t adequately train its board members . It noted that decisive ethics policies and adequate leadership training could prevent future disasters.

The same can be said of many diversity, equity and inclusion programs: A 2021 study by the Wharton School found that clear policies and involved, well-trained managers were critical to successful DEI initiatives.

Unfortunately, the current anti-DEI movement goes in the opposite direction.

New laws in Texas, Florida and Utah make it illegal for universities to fund DEI efforts. Some 76% of companies have no diversity or inclusion goals at all, according to a 2021 report by the Society of Human Resource Managers . Nearly 70% of companies require no training on inclusion, and most companies are “merely going through the motions” of DEI, it added.

The Romance Writers of America’s bankruptcy shows that laissez-faire attitudes toward diversity and inclusion have long-term consequences.

Underrepresented members and their allies will vote with their feet when diversity efforts fail. It might not happen as abruptly or dramatically as what the Romance Writers of America experienced; it’s certainly easier to quit a professional organization than a job.

But the rise and fall of the group shows that if organizations struggling with full inclusion don’t rewrite their story, their members will do it for them.

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In its bankruptcy filing, the Romance Writers of America blamed “disputes concerning diversity, equity and inclusion” for its membership declining by an astounding 80%. Read from CU expert Christine Larson on The Conversation.

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College essays and diversity in the post-affirmative action era, sonja starr’s latest research adds data, legal analysis to discussion about race in college admissions essays.

Editor’s Note: This story is part of an occasional series on research projects currently in the works at the Law School.

The Supreme Court’s decision in June 2023 to bar the use of affirmative action in college admissions raised many questions. One of the most significant is whether universities should consider applicants’ discussion of race in essays. The Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) v. Harvard did not require entirely race-blind admissions. Rather, the Court explicitly stated that admissions offices may weigh what students say about how race affected their lives. Yet the Court also warned that this practice may not be used to circumvent the bar on affirmative action.

Many university leaders made statements after SFFA suggesting that they take this passage seriously, and that it potentially points to a strategy for preserving diversity. But it’s not obvious how lower courts will distinguish between consideration of “race-related experience” and consideration of “race qua race.” Sonja Starr, Julius Kreeger Professor of Law & Criminology at the Law School, was intrigued by the implication of that question, calling the key passage of the Court’s opinion the “essay carveout.”

“Where is the line?” she wrote in a forthcoming article, the first of its kind to discuss this issue in depth in the post- SFFA era. “And what other potential legal pitfalls could universities encounter in evaluating essays about race?”

To inform her paper’s legal analysis, Starr conducted empirical analyses of how universities and students have included race in essays, both before and after the Court’s decision. She concluded that large numbers of applicants wrote about race, and that college essay prompts encouraged them to do so, even before SFFA .

Some thought the essay carveout made no sense. Justice Sonia Sotomayor called it “an attempt to put lipstick on a pig” in her dissent. Starr, however, disagrees. She argues that universities are on sound legal footing relying on the essay carveout, so long as they consider race-related experience in an individualized way. In her article, Starr points out reasons the essay carveout makes sense in the context of the Court’s other arguments. However, she points to the potential for future challenges—on both equal protection and First Amendment grounds—and discusses how colleges can survive them.

What the Empirical Research Showed

After SFFA , media outlets suggested that universities would add questions about race or identity in their admissions essays and that students would increasingly focus on that topic. Starr decided to investigate this speculation. She commissioned a professional survey group to recruit a nationally representative sample of recent college applicants. The firm queried 881 people about their essay content, about half of whom applied in 2022-23, before SFFA , and half of whom submitted in 2023-24.

The survey found that more than 60 percent of students in non-white groups wrote about race in at least some of their essays, as did about half of white applicants. But contrary to what the media suggested, there were no substantial changes between the pre-and post- SFFA application cycles.

Starr also reviewed essay prompts that 65 top schools have used over the last four years. She found that diversity and identity questions—as well as questions about overcoming adversity, which, for example, provide opportunities for students to discuss discrimination that they have faced—are common and have increased in frequency both before and after SFFA.

A Personally Inspired Interest

Although Starr has long written about equal protection issues, until about two years ago, she would have characterized educational admissions as a bit outside her wheelhouse. Her research has mostly focused on the criminal justice system, though race is often at the heart of it. In the past, for example, she has assessed the role of race in sentencing, the constitutionality of algorithmic risk assessment instruments in criminal justice, as well as policies to expand employment options for people with criminal records.

But a legal battle around admissions policies at Fairfax County’s Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology—the high school that Starr attended—caught her attention. Starr followed the case closely and predicted that “litigation may soon be an ever-present threat for race-conscious policymaking” in a 2024 Stanford Law Review article on that and other magnet school cases.

“I got really interested in that case partly because of the personal connection,” she said. “But I ended up writing about it as an academic matter, and that got me entrenched in this world of educational admissions questions and their related implications for other areas of equal protection law.”

Implications in Education and Beyond

Starr’s forthcoming paper argues that the essay carveout provides a way for colleges to maintain diversity and stay on the right side of the Court’s decision.

“I believe there’s quite a bit of space that’s open for colleges to pursue in this area without crossing that line,” she said. “I lay out the arguments that colleges can put forth.”

Nevertheless, Starr expects future litigation targeting the essay carveout.

“I think we could see cases filed as soon as this year when the admissions numbers come out,” she said, pointing out that conservative legal organizations, such as the Pacific Legal Foundation, have warned that they’re going to be keeping a close eye on admissions numbers and looking for ways that schools are circumventing SFFA .

Starr envisions her paper being used as a resource for schools that want to obey the law while also maintaining diversity. “The preservation of diversity is not a red flag that something unconstitutional is happening,” she said. “There are lots of perfectly permissible ways that we can expect diversity to be maintained in this post- affirmative action era.”

Starr’s article, “Admissions Essays after SFFA ,” is slated to be published in Indiana Law Journal in early 2025.