A 4-hour generative workshop to help you bust through writer’s block and kickstart new speculative stories—without building a whole new world.
Writing compelling speculative fiction doesn’t always require the creation of a whole new world—a little weird can go a long way. This hands-on speculative fiction class gives you fresh ways to get words on the page—and stories started.
You sit down to write, and… nothing. You’ve got a blank screen, a stuck story, or a WIP that feels more like a WHY-ISN’T-THIS-PROGRESSING. Maybe you’ve searched for prompts online, but haven’t actually used them—or you try, and still feel like you’re writing in a vacuum.
It’s frustrating. You want to get your stories out, but it’s hard to get traction on your own.
What helps? Structure. Company. A little spark of inspiration. This four-hour class gives you all three. You’ll explore unconventional sources of story fuel and write right there in class, with support from your instructor and fellow writers.
Whether you’re taking a break from a bigger project or just want to get unstuck, you’ll leave with three new starts—and one piece with personalized feedback.
This class offers juicy new tools to:
- Break through creative writing blocks
- Generate new ideas for your writing
- Reconnect with your joy in writing
What you’ll get in this workshop
- Three ways of unlocking new stories: Inspiration from common expressions, unfinished business (horror), and deliberate paradoxes
- The secret to getting unstuck: How guided prompts + real-time writing = magic
- Personalized feedback: Verbal feedback from your instructor and peers to shape your strongest draft
- Permission to play: A creative reset that doesn’t require worldbuilding from scratch
This is for you if:
- You’re a writer who loves a little weird in your work
- You’re a seasoned spec fic writer
- You’re curious about writing speculative fiction
- You just need a creative reset
- You’ve got a stalled WIP and need to work on something new and fun
In the first part of this four-hour generative writing workshop, we’ll explore three ways of unlocking new stories: crafting narratives from common expressions, gleaning horror from unfinished business, and using deliberate paradoxes to create new ways of looking at the world. We’ll read sample stories and write to three different prompts, giving you three story starts.
You’ll then get to keep working on one of your story starts, which you’ll be able to share with the class and get verbal feedback from the instructor and other participants.
Tara’s teaching philosophy
Tara’s area of focus in writing and teaching are speculative fiction and flash fiction. She enjoys working with writers with a wide range of experiences and at various stages of their professional and writing lives.
Her teaching approach is open and discussion-based. She highlights work by women and writers of color as example texts to expose readers to the full range of what’s going on in the flash and speculative fiction worlds. As a mixed-race woman, she finds she can be a conduit of understanding and cultural translation between communities. Writing and reading are subjective, and everyone has different tastes. The point is to clarify how different readers are interpreting a work and why, and to use that information to help writers get closer to their own visions.
Saturday, July 12
1-5 pm
Online in the Wordcrafters Zoom room
Cost
Access: $119 – if you have limited access to funds
Sustainer: $159 – the actual cost of this program
Patron: $199 – if you have more access to wealth/resources and can support others who need to pay less
Choose the ticket price that best reflects your financial capacity. We trust you to discern your level of need or ability to help others with less access to wealth.
Learn more about our Pay From Your Heart Pricing.
Scholarship info: We want everyone to have access to our writing programs. If you need additional support, please complete our scholarship request form.
Wordcrafters members save 10% on this and other events and classes.
HEALTH CONSIDERATIONS
Masks are optional. Please stay home if you’re unwell with any upper respiratory illness.
Your instructor
Tara Campbell (she/her) is an award-winning writer, teacher, Kimbilio Fellow, fiction co-editor at Barrelhouse, and graduate of American University’s MFA in Creative Writing.
Her publication credits include Masters Review, Wigleaf, Electric Literature, CRAFT Literary, Uncharted Magazine, Daily Science Fiction, Strange Horizons, and Escape Pod/Artemis Rising. She’s the author of the eco sci-fi novel TreeVolution, two hybrid collections of poetry and prose, and two short story collections from feminist sci-fi publisher Aqueduct Press. Her sixth book, City of Dancing Gargoyles (SFWP), was one of Reactor Magazine’s “Best Books of 2024.”
She teaches creative writing at venues such as Johns Hopkins University, Clarion West, The Writer’s Center, and Hugo House. Find her at www.taracampbell.com
Other Classes You May Enjoy:
Get your writing time in at the Wordcrafters studio at our regular write-ins. FREE for Wordcrafters members and open to the public.
Tuesdays 9:30 am-noon
Sundays 6:30-9 pm
A quarterly journaling workshop that takes you deeper into your thoughts and feelings through grounding, prompts, and a community that holds space for whatever shows up on the page.
Sundays, Nov 8, Feb 14, May 2, 3-5 pm | In-person and online | Age 16+
Share your words in sweet community at our monthly open mic emceed by spoken word poet Jorah LaFleur.
Second Thursdays, September through June | Age 14+ | Next open mic: Nov 12
Demystifying the process of bringing your story to the page in this full day craft intensive with Patricia Crisafulli.
Nov 21 | Ages 18+
A 4-week writing accountability and co-working group to help you make real, steady progress on your writing.
Wednesdays 3-4:30 pm | In person or online | Next cohort starts Dec 2, facilitated by Daryll Lynne Evans | Age 16+
The Oregon Author Series brings a visiting Oregon writer into our space for an afternoon of live conversation: about their book, their process, and the stubborn, beautiful work of making something true on the page.
Dec 13, 2026; March 14, June 13, 2027 | 4-6 pm
Ages 16+