Writing the Other and Clarion West, two Seattle-based writing organizations, announce the beginning of a new partnership.

Clarion West will serve as the fiscal sponsor for Writing the Other, as the organizations explore partnership opportunities and shared resource development. Fiscal sponsorship will enable the two mission-aligned organizations to share resources, which keeps administrative expenses down. Clarion West and Writing the Other have previously partnered on a number of programs and events and already overlap with classes, writers served, and some leadership.

The Clarion West Writers Workshop has been held annually in Seattle, WA, since 1986. The program was founded on the belief that writers from diverse backgrounds need an opportunity to be heard — and to experiment with new forms of storytelling. With over 700 graduates from the Six-Week Summer Workshop, Clarion West has been a significant actor in helping the careers of speculative fiction writers, including women and other writers who have been traditionally underrepresented in the field.

Award-winning author and Writing the Other co-founder, Nisi Shawl, is a graduate of the 1992 Clarion West Workshop and has been on the board of directors for over 20 years. Nisi’s work with Writing the Other has helped create a thriving community of diverse writers focused on representation in fiction.

K. Tempest Bradford, a 2003 Clarion West graduate and winner of the 2023 Andre Norton Nebula Award, co-founded Writing the Other online with Shawl in 2015 and now serves as the organization’s Executive Director.

“In the past four years our online classes and webinars have grown exponentially and we loved expanding the subjects we taught and bringing more experts in to help us help more creators and writers create better representation,” Bradford said. “Now that we’re partnered with Clarion West, we have a much better foundation from which to grow even more and explore new avenues for the classes and beyond.”

Both organizations host online and in-person classes and workshops for speculative fiction writers and offer full and partial tuition scholarships for writers in need. In addition to gaining access to more resources and administration assistance, the fiscal sponsorship allows Writing the Other to accept tax deductible donations toward expanding their scholarship program and more grant opportunities.

“Since 2016 we’ve been able to offer scholarship spots in every class thanks to generous donations from the community,” said Bradford. “Our Vonda N. McIntyre Sentient Squid Scholarship is named in honor of our first donor, the beloved novelist and tireless supporter of up-and-coming writers. To date, the Sentient Squid Scholarship has provided over $20,000 in financial aid to a wide range of deserving applicants. We’re looking forward to expanding this program even further!”

Find out more about Writing the Other and Clarion West’s scholarships and how you can contribute. Learn more about our online classes here and Clarion West’s year-round offerings via their website.