2025 UPDATE: We are partnering with Common AREA Maintenance (CAM), a Seattle-based artist and writer cooperative on developing a residency floor in the El Rey building in downtown Seattle! Read more about this project and updates here. Full background on housing for the Six-Week Workshop: Clarion West has a long history of partnering with universities…
Clarion West is searching for an artist to create artwork for our 2026 featured artwork. Clarion West seeks to commission one custom illustration with unlimited global rights. Please share this call with the artists you know that might be a great fit, and see below for details. What we’re looking for: Each year, we commission…
The 2025 Washington State Legislature passed Senate Bill (ESSB) 5814, which added new business activities to the definition of retail sales. As a result, businesses and nonprofits will be required to begin collecting sales tax on live presentations, including online and in-person classes, seminars and workshops, starting Oct. 1, 2025. This statewide law, passed to…
November 10, 1975 – September 23, 2025 It is with a heavy heart that we share the passing of our friend and colleague, Jon Lasser, on Tuesday, September 23. He was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2019, and most recently was hospitalized due to breathing difficulties, subsequently moving to home hospice and then inpatient hospice….
Clarion West is calling for submissions of flash fiction stories! This call is open to our Six-Week Alumni and to participants from the Flash Fiction Groups. Submissions from all speculative genres are welcome, including science fiction, fantasy, horror, slipstream, etc. One story will be selected for our upcoming Fall issue of Seventh Week newsletter, and 1-2 runners-up will have…
Novel Writing Workshop Our sincerest thanks to the amazing Samit Basu for kicking off our first Novel Writing Workshop and working with our first class of novelers! Clarion West will be opening applications for our second nine-month virtual workshop in October! The workshop will run from March – November 2026. Our second Novel Writing Workshop will…
Funded! We’re pleased to announce that the 2025 Greg Bear Memorial Instructorship has been funded for another year! With support from Astrid Bear, Jeff and Bonney Lemkin, Karen Anderson, Joe and Gay Haldeman, Curtis Frye, and an anonymous donor, we’ve completed the fund! We can’t thank you enough for supporting the workshop and our incredible…
With heartfelt gratitude, we thank all of the businesses and organizations that have sponsored Steamy in Seattle 2025! Our sponsors help ensure fundraising success while reaching an inclusive community of writers from Seattle and all over the world. Interstellar Sponsor Milky Way Sponsor In-Kind and Supporting Sponsors Benjamin Sands Reads Canlis Restaurant Cassie Alexander Books…
Hagen Insurance Partners has sponsored Steamy in Seattle each year that we’ve held it! I reached out to Cindy Hagen, the owner, to see why she’s supporting Clarion West. Marnee Chua: Tell us all about Hagen Insurance Partners, who do you work with? Cindy Hagen: I’m an independent insurance agent specializing in health insurance for…
Meet Sejuti Bala Each year, Clarion West works with a new artist to create an image that is used across the Write-a-thon, on our website, and for the Summer of Science Fiction & Fantasy reading series poster. The poster illustration is custom designed by the artist with their personal interpretation of speculative fiction. In 2025,…
We are delighted to welcome a new group of writers to the Clarion West family! Clarion West will be running virtually this summer, and we’ll be managing time travel over at least eight time zones for a group of 15 joining us from Sri Lanka, Germany, Nigeria, Canada, Mexico, Saudi Arabia (by way of Pakistan),…