August is About Embracing a Multi-Passionate Writer's Life
Plus a September sneak peek | Write or Die Weekly #79
😍 WE ADDED SO MANY NEW WORKSHOPS TO OUR FALL LINEUP SINCE WE SAW YOU LAST 😍
➳ Build Your Alter Ego on Substack: A Live Masterclass
with
| Wednesday, August 20 | 6:30 - 8:30 PM (EST)Reinvent yourself on the page and meet the voice that’s been waiting to emerge. This live MASTERCLASS will help you build your alter ego, experiment with bold new styles, and turn your Substack into a portal for creative transformation.
Every unforgettable writer has one thing in common: they stopped playing it safe.
Whether you’re stuck in a niche that no longer lights you up or craving a bold new voice to channel your next chapter, this workshop is your permission slip to stop overthinking and start becoming.
Join bestselling author and storytelling provocateur Cara Alwill for a 2-hour live writing workshop designed to help you build your alter ego and use Substack as your creative playground. In this immersive session, we’ll explore how to:
Reinvent your writing voice through character, archetype, or persona
Experiment with new genres, styles, and formats—without waiting for perfection
Use your Substack as a low-risk, high-reward container for testing bold new ideas
Build a magnetic presence online that draws in readers who are obsessed with your vibe
Leverage real-time storytelling and authenticity to grow your paid subscriber base
Expect a blend of writing exercises, open discussion, hot seat coaching, and high-vibe brainstorming to shake you out of creative paralysis and into full expression.
➳ Drafting as Play/Revision as Experimentation
with Corinne Cordasco-Pak and Marguerite Sheffer | Wednesdays, August 20 and August 27 | 7- 8:30 PM (EST)
"Drafting as Play" and "Revision as Experimentation" are two ninety-minute workshops designed to help writers reimagine parts of the writing process that are generally thought of as difficult or sticky.
Each workshop includes practical, generative strategies for getting words on the page and moving writing projects—big or small—forward.
☾☼ Summertime Sadness: A Work-in-Progress Reading with the Editors of Write or Die Magazine
Date: Saturday, August 16
Time: 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM (EST)
Location: Zoom
You’re invited to a moody summer afternoon with the editors of Write or Die Magazine—Kailey, Shelby, Tamar, Suzanne, and Brittany!
In this virtual event, each will read a short excerpt from her novel-in-progress. Afterwards, stick around for a candid conversation about novel writing, creative routines, and any burning questions you have about the writing life.
➳ How to Start Your Memoir with Intention
with Michelle Kicherer | Thursday, August 21 | 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM (EST)
Are you in the earlier stages of memoir writing? This workshop is designed to provide tangible guidelines for how to start a memoir with intention.
We’ll look at techniques for forming story arc, for developing stronger characters and for writing scenes that will create an impact in your memoir. This workshop will focus on tangible editing tools for your memoir, including how to take an inventory, what your story is “about” and what areas of your life to focus on (and which ones might belong in a different book).
We will look at examples of several very different structures from writers like Melissa Febos, Mary Karr, David Sedaris, and Jeannette Walls. Together, we will dissect storytelling components of their work and learn tangible tools that we can apply to our own work.
➳ The Multi-Passionate Writer's Life
with Courtney Kocak | Saturday, August 23 | 2:00 PM - 4:30 PM (EST)
Your blueprint for developing and adapting a story or concept across multiple mediums.
Are you a writer with big ideas and a passion for storytelling that won’t be confined to just one format? The Multi-Passionate Writer’s Life is designed to help you take a concept or story idea and successfully adapt it across multiple mediums—whether that’s essays, books, podcasts, newsletters, scripts, or beyond.
You’ll learn how to identify the core themes of your work, play to your strengths as a writer and preferred mediums, and strategically expand your reach. Instructor Courtney Kocak—writer, podcaster, and multi-hyphenate creator—will share real-world examples from her own career, along with hard-earned best practices for navigating different formats.
We’ll also dive into the business side: how to pitch your ideas, repurpose content effectively, and maximize your productivity without burnout. Whether you’re a journalist looking to break into podcasting, a memoirist dreaming of making a short film, or a newsletter writer aiming for a book deal, this course will give you the tools to evolve your ideas and build a sustainable, multi-platform writing career.
➳ Memory, Myth & Meaning: Speculative Nonfiction 101
with Hannah Grieco | Tuesday, August 26 | 7-9 PM (EST)
What might we write if we dared to reimagine the past?
This generative workshop introduces speculative nonfiction—a genre that blends memory, imagination, symbolism, and even ghost stories to stretch what’s possible in truth-telling. You’ll leave with the start of two new essays and a braver sense of what nonfiction can hold.
Early September Spots to Save
Lighten Up: Infusing Humor Across Genres with Liz Alterman— September 6
Even the darkest and most intense novels and memoir have moments of lightness that bring a sense of balance to the work. In this course, we'll explore how to add humor to your writing regardless of genre. '
Writing in Flow: Create in Tune with Your Cycle with Kailey DelloRusso— September 11
We live in a world that tells us the only way to make progress is to push through. But what if your body—and your creativity—were asking for something else?
This workshop introduces a new approach to your writing life: one rooted in cycles, softness, and seasonal rhythms. By mapping the creative process onto the phases of the menstrual cycle (and their seasonal counterparts), we’ll explore how your writing energy ebbs and flows—and how to honor that rather than resist it.
Small Press Publishing with a Debut Seminar Part 2: Production, Promotion, Post-Publication, and Beyond! with Emily Jon Tobias—September 13
You have found a home for your manuscript, and you have signed on the dotted line. Now what? Let's clear the path for production of your first book by understanding the process ahead.