Welcome to the Iowa Summer Writing Festival online!
Registration for online workshops starting in November is now open!.
View the complete listings and enroll here: ISWF Online Workshops Storefront.
Here is the November roster at a glance:
The Art of Storytelling: The Next Chapter (Six-Week Workshop)
Beau O’Reilly & Jenny Magnus, Instructors
Thursdays on Zoom, November 4–December 16, 2021
Note: Class does not meet on Thanksgiving, November 25
6:30–9:30 p.m. Iowa/Central Time (7:30–10:30 p.m. Eastern; 4:30–7:30 p.m. Pacific; 5:30–8:30 p.m. Mountain)
Creating Characters from the Inside Out (Weekend Workshop)
Karen Bender, Instructor
Friday, November 5–Sunday, November 7, 2021
Friday on Zoom, 7:00 p.m.–8:00 p.m. Iowa/Central Time (8:00–9:00 Eastern; 5:00–6:00 Pacific; 6:00–7:00 Mountain) Introductory meeting
Saturday and Sunday on Zoom, 10:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. Iowa/Central Time (11:00–4:00 Eastern; 8:00–1:00 Pacific; 9:00–2:00 Mountain)
Re-Visioning Your Stories (Six-Week Workshop)
Karen Bender, Instructor
Mondays on Zoom, November 8–December 13, 2021
6:00–9:00 p.m. Iowa/Central Time (7:00–10:00 Eastern; 4:00–7:00 Pacific; 5:00–8:00 Mountain
The Novella Workshop (Five–Week Workshop)
Sharon Oard Warner, Instructor
Note: This workshop meets twice weekly
Tuesdays and Fridays on Zoom: November 9–December 10, 2021
5:30–7:00 p.m. Iowa/Central Time (6:30–8:00 Eastern; 3:30–5:00 Pacific; 4:30–6:00 Mountain)
Using the First Person Point of View: A Craft Intensive (Weekend Workshop)
Karen Bender, Instructor
Friday, November 12–Sunday, November 14, 2021
Friday on Zoom, 7:00 p.m.–8:00 p.m. Iowa/Central Time (8:00–9:00 Eastern; 5:00–6:00 Pacific; 6:00–7:00 Mountain) Introductory meeting
Saturday and Sunday on Zoom, 10:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. Iowa/Central Time (11:00–4:00 Eastern; 8:00–1:00 Pacific; 9:00–2:00 Mountain)
Poetic Origins & Process: Exploring the Mysteries of Beginnings and Composition (Six-Week Workshop)
Jude Nutter, Instructor
Saturdays on Zoom, November 13–December 18, 2021
11:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m. Iowa/Central Time (12:00–3:00 p.m. Eastern; 9:00 a.m.–12:00 noon Pacific; 10:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. Mountain)
How to enroll in Online Workshops in the Festival
To enroll in online workshops, go to the ISWF Online Workshops Storefront in UI Learn/Canvas Catalog. Each course has a listing with complete details, including the dates, course description, instructor bio, registration fees, and the date enrollment for the course opens. When enrollment for the course has opened, an "enroll" button will appear with the course. Click the enroll button! If you don't have an account in Canvas already, you'll be prompted to create one (you will use this same account if you take other courses later). You will then be directed to enter your payment information.
For online courses in the Festival, this is the only method to enroll. We're not able to enroll you by phone on this particular platform.
Terms and Community Policy
The Iowa Summer Writing Festival is a community built on an assumption of shared enterprise, in the spirit of mutual respect. We reserve the right to a) revoke the registration of or b) dismiss from the program any person who disrupts the learning/working environment of others. Participants in the Festival are subject to all University of Iowa policies governing conduct in our community, whether online or in person.
SOME OF OUR PRIOR WORKSHOPS ONLINE:
The 99-Day Novel with Kelly Dwyer
Essay Bootcamp: A Generously Generative Workshop with Amy Butcher (Five-Week Workshop)
Five New Poems: A Generative Workshop for All Levels with Diana Goetsch (Five-Week Workshop)
Building Block Essay Lab with Carol Spindel (Four-Week Workshop)
The Short Poem with Malena Mörling (Five-Week Workshop)
Write Funny to Me with Eric Goodman (Four-Week Workshopo)
Memory & Imagination: A Workshop for Advanced Poets with Jude Nutter (Six-Week Workshop)
The Novella Workshop with Sharon Oard Warner (Five-Week Workshop)
Revisioning Your Story with Karen Bender (Five-Week Workshop)
Openings: An Advanced Novel Workshop with Robert Siegel (Five-Week Workshop)
Advanced Novel Workshop: Conflict, Plot & Structure with Kelly Dwyer (Five-Week Workshop)
Advanced Tools of Craft for Writers of Fiction & Memoir with Sands Hall (Six-Week Workshop)
The Propulsive Plot: Strategies for Building Suspense in the Novel with Debra Jo Immergut (Five-Week Workshop)
Losing “Your” Voice: The Art of Imitation in Poetry with Jared Joseph (Five-Week Workshop)
How to Start Your Memoir with Robert Siegel (Five-Week Workshop)
Finding Your Story: A Weekend Intensive with Karen Bender (Weekend Workshop)
Poetry Across the Wires with Katie Ford (Five-Week Workshop)
Flash Fiction in a Flash: Writing (and Submitting) Publishable Flash Fiction with Kelly Dwyer