NEW DATE: September 10, 2023 | 10AM – 1PM Pacific – (convert to your time zone)
Can’t make the live webinar? Register to get the recording after
Where: Online — Zoom Classroom
Price: $50 – $75
Scholarships Are Available!
Stories can wound or heal. In this webinar, award-winning author and editor Nisi Shawl will talk about the ways stories can hurt, the ways they can help, and how you can use their power–particularly when writing speculative fiction and alternate history. The webinar will cover:
- The kinds of harm toxic stories can do to their audience
- Telltale features of many toxic stories
- A review of specific stories with harmful effects
- Discussions of ways to subvert or pass the harmful effects by
- Writing techniques for disarming said harmful effects.
- Live and take home exercises to provide practice in these valuable techniques.
Join us to learn the special, restorative power of writing speculative fiction and alternate history!
Who Should Take This Webinar?
Writers of all genres — Literary, YA, Middle Grade, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Children’s Books, Romance — and all mediums — Prose, Playwriting, Screenwriting, Comics/Graphic Novels, Games — from all backgrounds and any skill level.
Schedule
The webinar will include two 5 minute breaks. A more detailed schedule will be sent the week before.
Accessibility
Zoom meetings software is compatible with standard screen readers and has several other accessibility features that make it possible for writers who are Blind or vision impaired to participate in the webinar. Questions will be submitted via the chat function.
Live closed captions will be available, auto-generated by Rev.com. The final version of the recorded webinar will have auto-generated closed captions available. Note: the accuracy of these captions varies, and for live webinars we do not edit them.
Technical Requirements
Zoom video conferencing works on computers, tablets, and most smartphones. We suggest you access the live webinar via a computer for the best experience. Before enrolling in class, make sure your computer or mobile device is compatible with Zoom. Before class, load the app on your system and join this test meeting.
A webcam/video camera is not necessary for class because students won’t be on video. The Q&A will be text-only. You can call in via phone if audio isn’t working through your computer.
Scholarship Opportunities
We have full and partial Vonda N. McIntyre Sentient Squid Scholarships available for this webinar. If you do not have the financial means to pay for all or part of the registration cost, we encourage you to apply. We have a broad definition of financial need that ranges from writers who do not have the money at all to writers who have the funds but can’t afford to use them for a writing class.
We especially encourage writers who have been financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic to apply. Wherever you exist on the financial needs spectrum, don’t self reject! (Still not sure whether you should apply? Read this post.)
Our scholarships are available to any writer regardless of background or identity. We set aside a portion of scholarships specifically for students who identify under the POC, BIPOC, or BAME umbrellas as well as for Palestinian writers/writers of Palestinian heritage, though we do not limit the number of scholarships we give to marginalized authors.
If you can afford to pay for part but not all of the registration fee, please apply for a partial scholarship. Under this financial aid plan you can let us know the amount you can afford. If you cannot afford to pay at all, please apply for a full scholarship.
To apply, please fill out this form by 11:59PM Pacific July 30. You’ll be asked to provide:
- A brief (300 or fewer words) statement of financial need
- A brief (500 or fewer words) description of a work or works in progress that you hope the webinar will help you create.
- If you identify as POC, BIPOC, BAME, or Palestinian, you may indicate that if you wish.
Deadline: 11:59PM Pacific June 30. We will notify all applicants of their standing two weeks before class begins. If you have any questions, please use our contact form to ask!
Refund Policy
We are not offering refunds for this webinar. If you purchase a ticket for the live session and are unable to make it, you will still get access to the recording and resources.
Register Below
If you have a Gift Card, discount, or code to access tickets, please enter it into the “Promo Code” field at the top of the Registration box below and click Apply before you begin the process. If the whole box below gives you trouble, click here to register on our Eventbrite page.