Clarion West

CLARION WEST SUPPORTS EMERGING AND UNDERREPRESENTED VOICES BY PROVIDING WRITERS WITH WORLD-CLASS INSTRUCTION TO EMPOWER THEIR CREATION OF WILD AND AMAZING WORLDS. THROUGH CONVERSATION AND PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT, WE BRING THOSE VOICES TO AN EVER-EXPANDING COMMUNITY.

SIX-WEEK WORKSHOPS :CLARION WEST'S RENOWNED SIX-WEEK WORKSHOP IS AN IMMERSIVE SIX-WEEK RESIDENTIAL EXPERIENCE GEARED TO HELP STUDENTS BUILD A FOUNDATION FOR PROFESSIONAL CAREERS AS WRITERS OF SPECULATIVE FICTION. PARTICIPANTS MUST APPLY TO ATTEND AND THERE ARE MORE APPLICANTS THAN THERE IS SPACE IN THE WORKSHOP. WE ESPECIALLY ENCOURAGE HISTORICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED WRITERS TO APPLY. IN 2022 CLARION WEST ACCEPTED 18 WRITERS FROM INDIA, AUSTRALIA, SOUTH AFRICA, VENEZUELA, SINGAPORE, ZIMBABWE, GUYANA, AND AROUND THE UNITED STATES TO ATTEND THE SIX-WEEK WORKSHOP WITH INSTRUCTORS SUSAN PALWICK, P. DJELI CLARK, FONDA LEE, TOBIAS S. BUCKELL, BILL CAMPBELL, ANNALEE NEWITZ, AND CHARLIE JANE ANDERS. CLARION WEST HOSTED THE WORKSHOP AT HIGHLINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE IN DES MOINES, WA. WRITERS SPENT SIX-WEEKS WRITING ONE SHORT STORY EVERY WEEK AND CRITIQUING 17 OTHERS, LEARNING TO IMPROVE AND HONE THEIR STORY WRITING SKILLS, AND LEARNING INSIGHTS INTO THE WRITING, PUBLISHING, AND EDITING INDUSTRY.

ONLINE PROGRAMS : IN 2022, CLARION WEST HELD 125 CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS ONLINE WITH 3,034 REGISTRATIONS FOR THESE PROGRAMS FROM SEATTLE, ACROSS THE UNITED STATES, AND ALL OVER THE WORLD. PROMINENT AUTHORS IN THE FIELD OF SPECULATIVE FICTION TAUGHT WORKSHOPS YEAR-ROUND, INCLUDING JEFFREY FORD, HENRY LIEN, FONDA LEE, TARA CAMPBELL, SAM MILLER, AND MARCELA HEDAD. TWENTY-FIVE FREE CLASSES FOR WRITERS WERE PROVIDED FOR 1,427 ATTENDEES, AND 81 SPRINTS AND CO-WRITING SESSIONS FOR COMMUNITY BUILDING WERE HELD FOR OVER 1,000 ATTENDEES. CLARION WEST IS COMMITTED TO RACIAL EQUITY IN THE FIELD OF SPECULATIVE FICTION AND PROVIDED 133 FREE SEATS FOR WRITERS WHO IDENTIFY AS BLACK, INDIGENOUS, AND PEOPLE OF COLOR.

OUTREACH PROGRAMS : THROUGHOUT 2022 CLARION WEST CONTINUED TO RUN A VARIETY OF OUTREACH PROGRAMS FOR READERS AND WRITERS, INCLUDING ONLINE PANELS, IN-PERSON READINGS, FREE SUMMER CLASSES, AND OUR WRITE-A-THON PROGRAM AND DISCORD. IN 2022, CLARION WEST HELD 6 FREE PUBLIC PANELS AND READINGS FOR OVER 600 VIEWERS. THESE INCLUDED THE FANTASTIC INTERSECTIONS SERIES, AND THE SUMMER OF SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY SERIES HELD IN PERSON AT THE SEATTLE PUBLIC LIBRARY AND TOWN HALL SEATTLE AND STREAMED ONLINE. DURING THE SUMMER WRITE-A-THON, CLARION WEST HELD 19 FREE CLASSES FOR 1,186 PARTICIPANTS AND 42 FREE CO-WRITING SESSIONS FOR 720 PARTICIPANTS. THE WRITE-A-THON COMMUNITY GREW TO 640 WRITERS TO FOCUS ON THEIR WRITING SKILLS, JOIN A WRITING COMMUNITY, AND FIND CRITIQUE PARTNERS.