Events and Critiques to Support the Philadelphia Writers Emergency Fund

Help support the Philadelphia Writers Emergency Fund, organized by 215 Festival and Blue Stoop to aid area writers, booksellers, and small press employees in financial distress due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

On Saturday, April 25, 4pm, I’ll join Liz Moore, Mecca Sullivan, Ru Freeman, and Jessamine Chan for a donors-only Zoom reading. ($25 donation)

I’m also offering written feedback for a story, chapter, or essay. ($50 donation)

Learn more about fund, give if you can, or apply if you need support.

More rewards:

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Sun., May 3: Online Flash Fiction Workshop

Join me for the online workshop “Reading and Writing Flash Fiction.” In this one-hour workshop, participants will discuss structure, form, and examples (distributed in advance) of flash fiction, as well as generate some new ideas and pieces. The goal of this workshop is to learn how flash works and leave with a draft.

Tickets are available on a sliding scale, $15-25. All proceeds support one of my favorite Philly bookstores, A Novel Idea.

When: Sunday, May 3, noon-1pm
Where: A Novel Idea via Zoom (registrants will receive a link by email)
How: Register here.

You can also read more and share via Facebook.

More Lunch ‘n’ Learn Short Story Classes Added

**Postponed: New Summer Dates TBA**

Join me for a lunch-time discussion of contemporary short fiction–some of my all-time favorite stories–hosted by Open Book Productions. Sign up for any class or all three. All classes are held on from 12:15-1pm. Read more.

Wednesday, April 22:
“Interesting Facts” by Adam Johnson
A woman with cancer faces her own mortality, as her children retreat into imagination and a beautiful rival befriends her famous husband.

Wednesday, April 29:
“Walkdog” by Sofia Samatar
A high school student’s term paper about a local legend reveals a story of first love and bullying—and a desperate plea for help.

Wednesday, May 6:
“Farangs” by Rattuwut Lapcharoensap
A young Thai man finds love with an American tourist, and must choose where his loyalty lies.

4-Week Novel Boot Camp in July

I’m excited to be teaching this course for the second time with Catapult. In four weeks, you will develop a complete and story structure for your novel–the novel you’re struggling to revise or the novel you want to start writing.

We will use written guides, writing exercises, assigned stories, and discussions to move from premise to detailed synopsis, identifying universal principles that will make your distinct story a satisfying read. You will leave with an outline for your work-in-progress and a toolkit of strategies for future projects.

Click here to read more and sign up.

4-Week Online Bootcamp: Solve Your Novel’s Structure

This spring, I’m teaching a new online course: a four-week bootcamp for structuring your novel. You’ll learn how to find dramatic potential in your protagonist and build a satisfying story, and will walk away with an understanding of plot structure and a detailed synopsis of your project. The course is open to all–those who haven’t started writing yet, and those in the middle of a thorny draft. It starts the last in week in March. Visit Catapult to learn more and sign up.