The Westercon 66 Speculative Fiction Writers Workshop is a mutual help group function for experienced AND beginning writers, based on the principle that good critiquing skills make good writing skills. In this workshop, members have the opportunity to participate in a critique circle workshop with selling writers and industry professionals who enjoy helping them grow as artists.
NOTE: The deadline for submitting manuscripts has been extended to May 28, 2013!
As of this writing, the following selling writers, agents, editors, and experienced moderators have committed to the Westercon 66 writers workshop (subject to change):
- Maya Kaathryn Bohnoff
- Jennifer Carson
- Howard Hendrix, Ph.D.
- Jacqueline Lichtenberg
- Eileen Rendahl
- J.E. Ellis
- Patricia MacEwen
- Frederick J. Mayer
- Edward Muller
- Jason Stewart
- Mark W. Tiedemann
Because of schedule limitations, entrants cannot choose which pros will be reading their work.
How it works
- This is not a competition.
- Participants work in a quiet room, focusing on story structure, logistics, and style of entrants’ submissions.
- Due to the critical nature of this workshop, it is not recommended for anyone under 18 or sensitive to criticism.
- All manuscripts must be submitted in advance; there will be no on-the-spot reading for critiques.
- Be prepared to attend your assigned sections, which can occur on any of the four days (and we do emphasize this includes Thursday, July 4, and Sunday, July 7) of the convention.
- Two to three manuscripts will be critiqued in each section.
- Entrants are expected to fully participate; you must also read the submissions of the other entrants in your sections, and give your comments.
- Each section lasts three hours.
- There is a nominal entry fee, covering workshop expenses
- Multiple submissions are accepted; however, the entry fee is for one manuscript only. Because of possible limitations in scheduling, we can only guarantee that one submission per member will be workshopped. Second submissions are scheduled on a first-come-first-served basis. Specify the priority in which you want your manuscripts workshopped and understand that each submission will require three hours of your time at the convention.
- Entrants are not permitted to pay double the fee to double the word limit. Collaborative teams are treated as a single entity. Likewise, two or more short stories count as two or more entries, regardless of whether they’re under the word limit when combined
Workshop requirements
- Manuscripts may be either short stories or novel excerpts.
- Stories must be science fiction, fantasy, gothic/horror or have a fantastic element of some kind
- All submissions must be received by the writers workshop no later than May 28, 2013.
- Manuscript submissions are limited to a maximum of 7,500 words.
- Manuscript format should conform to general professional submission standards. The Writer’s Digest Guide to Manuscript Formats, by Dian Dincin Buchman and Seli Groves, is one such resource for this information.
- Longer pieces or novels must include a summary covering the entire plotline with a writing sample (the beginning is preferred). The summary counts as part of the 7,500 words.
- Entry fee for the workshop is $25, payable through the shopping cart on Westercon 66 registration system
NOTE: if you already have your Westercon Membership —- Log back in to the registration system via the “Update an Existing Registration” page. (if you have forgotten your password, there is a reset link).
- Once you have logged in, click on the “Personal Information” link by your name,
- then on the “Writers Workshop/Sponsors” link which will appear on the next page above the form.
- You then can add the workshop to your membership and proceed to payment.
- Please submit all manuscripts with cover letter in pdf format to writersworkshop@westercon66.
org
For more details on attending Westercon 66, please explore the rest of this website. Any questions regarding the Westercon 66 Writers Workshop can be directed to writersworkshop@westercon66.org
Download this Writers Workshop Information Flier as a PDF
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