Write Now-- a weekly time to write in the company of others. Using Zoom to come together, we'll write for twenty-five minutes, take a break, repeat. There is no sharing or critique of your writing, only fast-paced, supportive productivity in the company of other writers. It will be fun, exciting, and might be the thing to help you finish (or start...) your manuscript. These virtual sessions will help participants set aside time to write and be with other writers in an informal setting.
The sessions will be led by Steve Bice.
Additional sessions on Tuesdays, 9:30 AM - 11:30 and Thursdays, 9:30 - 11:30 AM.
Details:
You can register at anytime even if a session has passed.
A Zoom link will be sent one day prior to each session to the email you registered with. Please watch for this email. Signing up does not mean you have to commit to all the sessions.
Studio Lead: Jessica Dubey [email protected]
The sessions will be led by a rotating team of hosts including Jen Scheiderman, Amelia Ramsey, Kassia Sing, Genevieve Douglass, and Steve Bice.
Additional sessions held on Tuesdays, 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM and Wednesdays, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM.
This class will be conducted via Zoom. For a great video on how to use Zoom, watch this tutorial. Please make sure you have the most current version of the Zoom software.
Every Sunday between 1pm and 3pm you can take a free guided tour of BARN. Visit all 10 studios, and find out what you can create at BARN.
We’ll answer all your questions and show you examples of what other makers have made in BARN's fully-equipped workspaces. Tours are free, no need to register. See you on Sunday!
Write Now (formerly Word Sprint)-- a weekly time to write in the company of others. Using Zoom to come together, we'll write for twenty-five minutes, take a break, repeat. There is no sharing or critique of your writing, only fast-paced, supportive productivity in the company of other writers. It will be fun, exciting, and might be the thing to help you finish (or start...) your manuscript. These virtual sessions will help participants set aside time to write and be with other writers in an informal setting.
Additional sessions held on Thursdays, 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM and Wednesdays, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM.
There’s never been a better or more important time for nonfiction. Humanity depends on a fact-based understanding of the world. But your work doesn’t have to read like an encyclopedia entry. In fact, it can read as powerfully as fiction.
But how do you take a heap of facts and tell a satisfying story? One key step is seeing the main theme of your subject, whether it is a life, a historical event, or a form of technology.
This is both the hard part and the thrilling part—and it’s what will set your book apart from every other one on the subject.
In this workshop, you’ll learn how to build a system for organizing and focusing the big picture in your research. You’ll learn how to build parallel timelines so that you master not only your subject, but the context. You’ll also see spots where you need to dive deeper, as well as unexpected connections.
Instructor Bio:
Martha Brockenbrough is the award-winning author of more than twenty books for young readers. She is a former journalist and question writer for Cranium and Trivial Pursuit. She founded National Grammar Day and teaches in the MFA program at Vermont College of Fine Arts.
**This workshop will be live streamed via Zoom.**
If you’re struggling to understand plotting and plot structure, the answer may lie not in books but on the screen. Learn screenplay plotting techniques to help rescue your novel from a flat opening, a sagging middle, a weak climax, and a boring hero. In this class, we’ll discuss several popular screenplay plotting methods including the class three-act structure, beat sheets, and the nutshell method. Join Tiffany Reisz, USA Today bestselling author for this two-hour online seminar. For all levels.
Tiffany Reisz is the USA Today-bestselling author of the Romance Writers of America RITA®-winning Original Sinners series from Harlequin's Mira Books.
Born in Owensboro, Kentucky, Tiffany graduated from Centre College with a B.A. in English. She began her writing career while a student at Wilmore, Kentucky's Asbury Theological Seminary. After leaving seminary to focus on her fiction, she wrote The Siren, which has sold more than half a million copies worldwide.
Tiffany also writes mainstream women's suspense fiction, including The Bourbon Thief (winner of the RT Book Reviews Seal of Excellence Award) and the RITA®-nominated The Night Mark.
Her erotic fantasy The Red—self-published under the banner 8th Circle Press—was named an NPR Best Book of the Year and a Goodreads Best Romance of the Month. It also received a coveted starred review from Library Journal.
Tiffany lives in Louisville, Kentucky with her husband, author Andrew Shaffer, and two cats. The cats are not writers.
The BARN Writers’ Studio is delighted to host an evening with New York Times best-selling author Jonathan Evison in conversation with best-selling author Megan Chance. In Small World, Evison chronicles 170 years of American nation-building at a fullhearted, full-throttle pace that asks on the most human, intimate scale whether it is truly possible to meet, and survive, the choices posed—and forced—by an age.
Jonathan Evison is the New York Times Bestselling author of seven novels, most recently Small World, which Booklist called "a masterpiece...the quintessential Great American Novel," and the Christian Science Monitor called "a modern classic." Sherman Alexie has called Evison "the most honest white man alive." He lives with his family on Bainbridge Island.
Megan Chance is the best-selling, critically acclaimed author of several novels. Her novel Bone River was an Amazon Book of the Month, A Drop of Ink was an Editors' Choice of the Historical Novel Society, and An Inconvenient Wife was an IndieNext pick. In addition to her historical fiction novels, Chance is the author of the young adult Fianna Trilogy, short stories, and eight historical romance novels. Her novels have been translated into several different languages. She is also a popular workshop speaker whose speaking credits include the Pacific Northwest Writers Conference, Romance Writers of America National Conference, Edmonds Write on the Sound Conference, the Seattle Assistance League, Timberland Regional Libraries, and many others.
Like it or not, marketing is part of a modern author’s job description, and it starts long before the book comes out. This is a class for the writers who are baffled when an agent or publisher asks them to describe their “platform,” and for writers who are considering self-publishing but don’t know how to find early adopters. With lots of time for discussion and guided assignments between classes to help students create personalized marketing plans, we'll explore a variety of practical, inexpensive, and realistic ways for “pre-published” authors to gather a community of readers and influencers.
Attendees will...
Beth Jusino is a publishing consultant for both traditional and self-publishing authors, with almost 20 years of experience helping writers navigate the complicated space between manuscript and final book. A former literary agent and marketing director, she’s the author of the award-winning The Author’s Guide to Marketing and has ghostwritten or collaborated on half a dozen additional titles. Beth is a member of the Northwest Independent Editors Guild, a regular speaker for Seattle Public Library’s #SeattleWrites workshops, and has taught at writers’ conferences across the country. Visit her online at www.bethjusino.com or on Twitter @bethjusino.
This is a BARN holiday. Doors will be locked to the public, members, and non-members.
Registration on this page is for the workshop being held at BARN. The simultaneous online Zoom version can be found here.
Nothing is as important to a professional artist's or designer's career as a carefully created portfolio. Yet very few people have one that they're proud to show. Something always seems to get in the way of sitting down and figuring out just how you want to define your work, what you want to focus on, and whom you want to attract with a curated group of pieces you've made. Whether you're blowing the dust off your old portfolio, or creating a new one from scratch, this class takes you through the process of creating a strong portfolio step-by-step, identifying concrete objectives, finding holes that need to be filled, and providing encouragement and review along the way.
High schoolers applying to college, people applying to grad school, recent grads about to start the job search, people applying for a job in a design field or in academia, or artists who want to get their work into viewable order either physically or online--all need up-to-date portfolios-- and all are welcome.
Please click here for BARN's current COVID-19 health & safety protocols.
BARN is committed to accessibility. Tuition Assistance is available - click here to fill out the simple application before registering for a class. For those who might need physical assistance, please learn about BARN's Companion Program here.
Instructor Bio - Natalia Ilyin:
Professor of Design, Design History, and Criticism at Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, Natalia also teaches studio classes in brand and identity design, design for social activism, and transition design. Natalia is also Founding Faculty at Vermont College of Fine Arts, advising design grad students on critical and contextual studies. She has taught at Rhode Island School of Design, Yale University, The Cooper Union, and the University of Washington, and has acted as Critic for the MFA in Graphic Design at Yale University and Rhode Island School of Design.
A former National Director of Programs for the AIGA in New York, she has given talks and workshops at Microsoft, Boeing, Rhode Island School of Design, Maine College of Art, California College of Art, Art Center College of Design's Toyota lecture series, the Wolfsonian Museum, The Henry Art Gallery, and many other very nice places. She has published four books on design criticism and many articles in a wide variety of publications. She worries that people often don't present their work in ways that will support their visions for themselves.
BARN is committed to accessibility. Tuition Assistance is available - click here to fill out the simple application before registering for a class.
While every element of writing can feel challenging to master, writers often struggle most with dialogue. How do you believably portray each character’s distinctive and natural voice, move the story forward, and keep the reader engaged and wanting more—all at the same time? That’s what we’re going to work on together in this hands-on session for all levels of fiction and creative nonfiction writers. You’ll leave with plenty of information, tips, tools, and practice to ensure you write better dialogue right away.
Jennie Shortridge is a teacher, editor, and bestselling author of five novels, including Love Water Memory. Her fiction and nonfiction work has been published for over twenty-five years. From the outset, a love of writing and helping others surmount writing obstacles led her to teaching in a variety of settings, including conferences, literary organizations, and nonprofits. She is currently at work on a memoir.
Join husband and wife team, hosts of the Holy & Human podcast and local authors Elisa Romeo and Adam Foley (Holy Love: The Essential Guide to Soul-Fulfilling Relationships) to discover how to discern ego noise versus Soul guidance throughout the entire writing process! Through stories, examples, and exercises learn how to hear your intuition and connect to the Soul of your writing project. From finding your writing voice to navigating the publishing process and platform building, Elisa and Adam will discuss how to stay connected to your core values and the real intention behind your project. Come find out why celebrities like Danica Patrick as well as thought leaders like Wayne Dyer have recommended their work.
Bios: Elisa Romeo, MFT, and Adam Foley are the cohosts of the Holy & Human podcast. Elisa is a licensed marriage and family therapist, an intuitive, and the author of Meet Your Soul. Adam is a certified somatic practitioner, yoga instructor, and spiritual coach. Together, they help individuals awaken and deepen their Soulful nature within relationship. They live with their children in the Pacific Northwest.
This class will be taught through Zoom. Class time is Pacific Daylight Time.
Writing groups can provide support, feedback, networking opportunities, and a crucial learning environment. But what makes a successful writing group? And how can you create your own? This three-hour class will go over the basics, as well as provide time and opportunities to take those theoretical concepts out for a practical test drive. What works best for you? And how can you make it part of your writing practice?
Erica Bauermeister is the NYT bestselling author of four novels including The School of Essential Ingredients and The Scent Keeper (a Reese’s Book Club pick). Her most recent work is a memoir entitled House Lessons: Renovating a Life. She earned a PhD in literature from the U.W. and is the co-author of two readers’ guides: 500 Great Books By Women, and Let’s Hear It For the Girls. She currently lives in Port Townsend, WA.
This four-session course will walk students through the process of creating their own comics and graphic novels from idea to finished product. Topics covered included elements of storytelling, creating a narrative, creating characters, drawing, inking, and coloring comics.
Billy Simms is an award-winning artist and educator. He holds a BA from the University of Maryland Baltimore County in theatrical scenic and lighting design, an MS from The Johns Hopkins University in special education, and an MFA in studio art from Miami University. He lives in Hamilton, OH with his wife and four cats.
Do you dream of earning money as an artist? Make that dream a reality by learning how to market your artwork to reach a bigger audience! No matter what your medium is, you can use tips and tricks from the marketing trade to make your art shine on a bigger stage. From jewelry-makers to woodworkers, illustrators and digital artists, textile crafters, and mixed media creators, you can sell your craft by getting in front of the right people — with the right price and the right message!
In this four-session class, you’ll learn:
Note: This class is tailored to students 12-18 who have an established art or craft they feel confident about. Participants should bring their own tablet or smartphone and will be required to download a subscription-based design software called Canva (which has a limited free version available). Participants will also be asked to use existing social media and email accounts to promote their materials, though this is optional if they don’t have them or don’t want to use them for promotional purposes. Finally, they will also be creating an Etsy account, which will require a credit card in order to go live (this is part of their class homework).
Carrie Bancroft is a magical marketer, event creator, mother of an aspiring artist, and writer. When she's not running creativity workshops and insanely awesome events, she can be found helping others live the life of their dreams, exploring tidal pools with her son, hanging out with horses and cats, or adventuring in the wilds of the Olympic Peninsula.
Ever craved the catharsis of processing something by way of the page? Ever wanted to turn a painful experience into prose? If so, join Steph Jagger, author of Everything Left to Remember, for this two-session workshop.
Together we will:
And...you'll walk away with:
Words can soothe. Words can create space inside and out. When wrapped this way and that, they can take us apart and put us back together. Words can move us from loss right back into life. Join us.
To note: No particular type of grief experience is required. All of us have experienced a loss of some kind: a person, a job, some version of ourselves, our two front teeth. If you want to look at loss -- sit with it, process it, shift it or shape it -- you’re in the right place. No writing experience is necessary. All of us have written something: a sonnet, a novel, a grocery list. While Steph is a writer with extensive experience in publishing, editing, and craft, in this workshop we’re looking for catharsis over quality, process over profundity. If you know how to use a pen or a keyboard, you’re in the right place. "The way we deal with loss shapes our capacity to be present to life more than anything else. The way we protect ourselves from loss may be the way we distance ourselves from life." - Rachel Naomi Remen
Steph Jagger is a best-selling memoirist of two books. Her first, Unbound: A Story of Snow & Self-Discovery was published in 2017. Her second, a mother-daughter story called Everything Left to Remember was published in 2022. Outside of being an author, Steph is a sought-after mentor and coach whose offerings guide people toward a deeper understanding of themselves and their stories. All of her work, including speaking and facilitating, lies at the intersection of loss, the nature of deep remembrance, and the personal journey of re-creation. Steph grew up in Vancouver, Canada and currently lives and works on Bainbridge Island, WA. Find more at www.stephjagger.com or @stephjagger on Instagram.
If you've never written, need to let go of your critical or "editor" voice, or just need some new energy to get the words flowing, this afternoon retreat could be for you. All writing levels and genres are welcome in this safe and fun environment. Use this opportunity to generate new work with the help of prompts for timed writing followed by time to read and receive responses to freshly written material. Reading your work is optional.
As one former participant said, "My very best writing emerges out of your group's creative cauldrons...your comments were spot on, very insightful and helpful."
Julie Gardner, an Amherst Writers & Artists Affiliate, has led WritersGathering groups, workshops and retreats in Seattle since 2011. At BARN, she has offeredregular series since 2019. Participants say they learn more about their strengths, discover new ones, develop their repertoire of craft elements, take risks, generate writing, and have fun writing and learning from others.
Julie is the editor of Original Voices: Homeless and Formerly Homeless Women's Writings. Recent works have been featured in Passager's Pandemic Diaries, Persimmon Tree, and in Alone Together: Love, Grief and Comfort in the Time of Covid 19 which won the 2021 Washington State Book award for nonfiction. A current project has been collaborating with libettists Kamala Sankaram and Kristin Martig leading workshops to generate lyrics for Joan of the City, a site-specific multi-media opera that will use augmented reality/mixed reality to tell the story of a modern-day Joan of Arc through Opera on Tap.
Jennifer K Mann is an author/illustrator from Bainbridge Island, Washington, where she lives with her husband, dogs, cat and chickens, and occasionally her now grown children. Her favorite thing in the world is her family, followed closely by making books for young readers, reading, cooking, camping, hiking, and swimming outdoors, especially in clear cold lakes. Jennifer was once an architect, but now is the author and illustrator of several picture books including TWO SPECKLED EGGS (a previous Washington State Book Award Winner), I’LL NEVER GET A STAR ON MRS BENSON’S BLACKBOARD, SAM AND JUMP and JOSIE’S LOST TOOTH. Her 2020 picture book, THE CAMPING TRIP (Candlewick) won the 2021 Washington State Book Award for picture books. Upcoming books are AUDREY L and AUDREY W: TRUE CREATIVE TALENTS, which is book 2 in a chapter book series written by Carter Higgins (Chronicle Books, 2022); and MAPLE AND ROSEMARY, a picture book by Allison James (Neal Porter Books/Holiday House, 2023).
Discover the best and most enriching journaling practice for archiving the stories that run through your days and revisit those memories already long in the past. Instructor Chelsea Leah will share five important factors for achieving a satisfying memoir journaling practice. She’ll also lead a journaling exercise for each of the five factors with room for a brief share and discussion at the end. With these tools, writers of all ages can craft and document their memories and learn to love the process.
Have handy your journal, a favorite pen, and a memory or two to write about (or photos from the past to use as reference).
Books referenced during the class: Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldman, Stranger than Fiction by Chuck Palahniuk, Traveling with Ghosts by Shannon Leone Fowler, and Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain.
Teacher Bio:
Your life is a story, and if told correctly, a very interesting one. There is an art to taking the sprawling events of your life and reducing them down to a personal essay or memoir. Using Bill Kenower’s unique inside-out approach to writing, we will look at how to tell the fine difference between telling a story about your life, and using your life to tell a story. It doesn’t matter if you want to tell the story of how you’ve climbed Mount Everest, or falling in love for the first time, all stories are worth telling when you find their heart.
Students taking this class can expect to learn:
William Kenower is the author of Fearless Writing: How to Create Boldly and Write With Confidence, Write Within Yourself: An Author’s Companion, Everyone Has What It Takes: A Writer’s Guide to the End of Self-Doubt, and the Editor-in-Chief of Author magazine. In addition to his books he’s been published in The New York Times, Writer’s Digest, Edible Seattle, Parent Map, and has been a featured blogger for the Huffington Post.
Park: At BARN, or the adjacent Christmas tree lot. Parking also available at the First Baptist Church on North Madison, with a free Sweet Deal Mobile shuttle.
