Saturday Writers 2024 Fall Workshops
Our workshops are designed to give attendees plenty of time to explore and learn about specific topics taught by professionals from within the writing world. Our 2024 Fall Workshops will be conducted in person at the St. Peters Cultural Arts Centre and via Zoom and recorded (recordings provided to paid attendees). One of our workshops will be ONLY held on ZOOM. If you don’t have access to the internet at home, many cafes and libraries offer free WIFI. Workshops must be paid via online through PayPal or paid at the door of the workshop. All of our meetings this year will be held in the evening from 6pm to 9pm.
Thursday, October 3rd
Maryfrances Wagner Topic: The Essence of Haiku Zoom 6:00 - 9:00 pm |
Wednesday, October 9th
Shana Youngdahl Topic: Your Writer Social Strategy: Navigating Online (or Choosing Not To) As An Author St. Peters Cultural Arts Centre 6:00 - 9:00 pm |
Tuesday, October 15th
Ciera Horton McElroy Topic: Telling (Then Selling Your Story) Marketing For Writers St. Peters Cultural Arts Centre 6:00 - 9:00 pm |
Monday, October 21st
Meredith Tate Topic: Making Your Submission Package Shine St. Peters Cultural Arts Centre 6:00 - 9:00 pm |
Thursday, October 3rd
Speaker: Maryfrances Wagner Topic: The Essence of Haiku Location: Zoom Only Time: 6:00 - 9:00 PM |
Description: In this workshop we will examine the elements of a good haiku and what makes it zing. We'll write some haiku together with the intent of learning how to make them better. We'll ignore the 5/7/5 pattern and explore more what Basho and the other great haiku poets thought a haiku should do.
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Bio: Maryfrances Wagner’s newest books are The Immigrants’ New Camera, and Solving for X. She co-edits I-70 Review, serves on The Writers Place board, was 2020 Missouri Individual Artist of the Year, and was Missouri’s 6th Poet Laureate 2021-2023. Red Silk won the Thorpe Menn book award and was first runner up in the Eric Hoffer award 2024 (reissued in 2023) and Short Listed for the Grand Prize. Her poems have appeared in New Letters, Midwest Quarterly, Laurel Review, American Journal of Poetry, Poetry East, Voices in Italian Americana, Main Street Rag, Rattle, Unsettling America: An Anthology of Contemporary Multicultural Poetry (Penguin), Literature Across Cultures (Pearson/Longman), et. al. She is the granddaughter of four Italian Immigrants.
Wednesday, October 9th
Speaker: Shana Youngdahl Topic: Your Writer Social Strategy: Navigating Online (or Choosing Not To) As An Author Location: St. Peters Cultural Arts Centre Time: 6:00 - 9:00 PM |
Description: In this interactive metacognitive workshop participants will consider their writing goals in relationship to the communities they build online and in person. We'll cover how different writers choose to engage in social media (or not), and participants will come away with an outline of what kinds of engagement will best nurture their creative lives now and into the future. Through reflection and organization, you'll walk away more aware of how to create a social strategy that centers you, your community, and is uniquely tailored to your goals and unique disposition.
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Shana Youngdahl is a poet, professor, and fiction writer. Shana loves helping people embrace the stories they need to tell. Educated at Mills College, The University of Minnesota, and The University of Maine, Shana currently works as Assistant Professor in the MFA program at Lindenwood University. The author of several poetry chapbooks and one volume of poems, her debut novel As Many Nows As I Can Get, was a Kirkus Best Book of 2019, a New York Public Library top-ten book of 2019 for teens, and a 2020 Rise Title from the American Library Association (Dial/Penguin Teen). Her second novel A Catalog of Burnt Objects is expected in 2023 (Dial/Penguin)
Tuesday, October 15th
Speaker: Ciera Horton McElroy Topic: Telling (and then Selling) a Story: Marketing for Authors Location: St. Peters Cultural Arts Centre Time: 6:00 - 9:00 PM |
Description: Novelist and marketing strategist Ciera McElroy will explore best practices for promotion and how to share your work in a way that feels authentic and honest. We’ll explore strategies for writers at all career stages: from pitching to preparing for book tours and publicity opportunities. We’ll unpack the fears that may hold us back from promoting our work—and how to navigate an ever-changing marketplace. You’ll leave with actionable steps and tools for building your writing career.
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Ciera McElroy is an author, CEO, and film communications consultant. As a marketing and messaging strategist, her film projects have grossed a collective $175 million at the box office. Ciera’s debut novel ATOMIC FAMILY (Blair) was released in 2023 to critical acclaim. Additional work has appeared in The Washington Post, The Daily Beast, Writer’s Digest, AGNI, Bridge Eight, Iron Horse Literary Review, the Crab Orchard Review, and Saw Palm, among others. Ciera is passionate about making the publishing industry more transparent and sharing marketing strategies for authors.
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Monday, October 21st
Speaker: Meredith Tate Topic: Making Your Submission Package Shine Location: St. Peters Cultural Arts Centre Time: 6:00 - 9:00 PM |
From developing your query letter to writing your synopsis to narrowing down your agent list, preparing to query can be daunting. In this workshop, we’ll talk all things agents, querying, and making your submission package stand out from the crowd and catch an agent’s eye.
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Meredith is the author of four published young adult books, including FREEDOM TRIALS, THE RED LABYRINTH, THE LAST CONFESSION OF AUTUMN CASTERLY, and SHIPPED, as well as an adult book titled MISSING PIECES. She also wrote a children’s picture book for Kiwi Crate called BENNY BLUE. Meredith earned her master’s degree in social work from the University of New Hampshire before deciding to switch career paths and pursue her true dream of telling stories. She moves around a lot, and has lived in New York, Boston, London, St. Louis, Zurich, and Houston. Meredith recently relocated back to St. Louis, where she lives with her husband, Vincent, their son, Wesley, and their spoiled rescue dog, Finley. When Meredith’s not writing, she loves photography, playing the piano, trying new recipes, and chasing her goal of seeing every continent (five down, two to go!)
Workshop Pricing:
Member Pricing:
All 4 for $60.00, when purchased together ($15.00 Each) Any 3 for $50.00, when purchased together ($16.67 Each) Any 2 for $35.00, when purchased together ($17.50 Each) Workshops are $20.00 each, when purchased separately. |
Non-Member Pricing:
All 4 for $90.00, when purchased together ($22.50 Each) Any 3 for $70.00, when purchased together ($23.33 Each) Any 2 for $50.00, when purchased together ($25.00 Each) Workshops are $30.00 each when purchased separately. |
Payment:
PayPal:Member:
Non-Member: |
Snail Mail:Mail checks to:
Saturday Writers PO Box 2093 St. Peters, MO 63376 Contact Diane How at diane.h@saturdaywriters.org to pay over the phone. |
*Payment must be received in prior to workshop.*