Our Week four instructor, Sarah Pinsker, brought energy to a week traditionally considered to be one of the toughest, with the students’ energy levels crashing and stories taking strange turns. But strange is where fiction gets good, and Sarah encouraged the students to lean into the weird. A singer and songwriter known for her nontraditional…
Our second alumnus-turned-teacher this year, Week Three instructor Cadwell Turnbull, inspired the class with a project idea: the craft dictionary. The art of the writer’s craft is discovering how an effect is accomplished — whether it’s physically moving characters from setting A to setting B or using unexpected perspectives to surprising effect — and the…
The Six-Week Workshop students started workshopping stories in Week Two. Their instructor, Brenda Peynado, ran the workshop like a writer’s room, asking them to identify the bivalve heart of the story before diving into the discussion. The collaborative structure of the writer’s room method made for a free-flowing conversation peppered with possibility. Three of the…
In the Six-Week Workshop, our Week One instructor, Usman T. Malik, continued the proud tradition of Clarion West students coming full circle. He returned to the six-week fold with insight sharpened by his experience in the 2013 cohort. From Day One, he offered the cohort invaluable advice for thriving over the next six weeks, from…
Meet Carolina Rodríguez Fuenmayor 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…
M.T. Khan is the recipient of the $1,000 Salam Award Scholarship for a student of Pakistani origin attending Clarion West’s Six-Week Workshop. The award is sponsored by the Salam Award for Imaginative Fiction, which promotes science fiction and related genres of writing in Pakistan and supports writers of the Pakistani diaspora. Khan will join the…
Every year, the Seattle Public Library (SPL) turns the entire city into a book club by selecting a book for Seattle to read and discuss. Clarion West is pleased to partner with SPL for this year’s Seattle Reads selection, Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler. Grab a copy of Parable at your local library…
Streaming Link Available | 7:00 PM | Open to the Public* 7/23 $5 ticket minimum at Town Hall Seattle Accessibility: Click here to read about our accessibility policies and offerings, and for information about requesting accommodations. Usman T. Malik Tuesday, June 18Hugo House1634 11th AvenueSupported by the Leslie Howle Instructorship Usman T. Malik (CW ‘13) is…
From Vonda N. McIntyre to Today A Free Virtual Panel Saturday, June 8 at 11 am PST Four award-winning authors discuss the roots and future of feminist science fiction, with a special focus on Clarion West founder Vonda N. McIntyre and other major influences on the genre. About the Event Vonda N. McIntyre contributed extensively…
The Clarion West staff and community are incredibly pleased to welcome a new class of 18 students to Seattle this summer! This year’s students hail from Thailand, Zimbabwe, Colombia, India, Nigeria, Canada, and various regions of Turtle Island/the USA. They will have the unparalleled opportunity to work with our phenomenal 2024 instructor lineup, which includes…