Just One Week Left Until the Chuckanut Writers Conference

June 16, 2017

amberlykat . About Town

Dear Writers: Here’s Amberly Baker of the Chuckanut Writers Conference back again with more about this year’s conference:

It is finally June. School is out for the summer, the days are as long as they’ll ever be, and here in Western Washington, we’ve even had a few sunny days. With the beautiful month of June comes the weekend of the 7th annual Chuckanut Writers Conference, which is coming up so fast—June 23^rd and 24^th, just a week away.

Coming from someone who has been working behind the scenes, this year’s conference is going to be a great one. We have arranged for a delicious spread of food and drinks for our Friday night faculty reading and reception. The swag bags you will take with you are full of useful items to help you take advantage of local businesses and restaurants all over Bellingham. And the conference itself is going to be beautiful, rain or shine—a rainy day in Washington can be just as beautiful as a sunny one, which is good, because you never know what the weather will do.

We have such a great faculty line-up this year, bringing a broad range of talent to all of our sessions. From fiction writers like Jonathan Evison, Samuel Ligon, and Kelly Magee, to nonfiction writers like Daniel James Brown, Paula Becker, and Ijeoma Oluo, our faculty are sure to get your pens (or keyboards) moving. Our faculty also features past and present Poets Laureate Elizabeth Austen and Tod Marshall. Everyone on this list comes with unique talents and experiences to offer, and they have promised their expertise over the weekend of the conference for one ultimate purpose–to help you get excited and inspired about your own writing.

For some of you, this isn’t new—you have enjoyed the conference before, maybe several times. For some of you, this is your first time experiencing it. Well, it’s my first time, too, and I for one cannot wait. The promise of this event leaves me buzzing with excitement! I am thrilled by the thought of so much talent concentrated into one space—the talent of both the faculty and the attendees. I am so excited to meet you, to spend the weekend with you, surrounded by the support and inspiration that comes with a room full of writers. I am honored to have been able to be a part of making this event happen. And I can’t wait to hear about everything you take away from this experience—all of the sage advice you receive, your new writings inspired by our breakout sessions, the lifelong friends and connections you’ll make, the food you’ll eat. It is all coming so soon. I can’t wait to share it with you.

Amberly Baker is a student in Western Washington University’s Creative Writing program, and works at a small bookstore. When she is not reading or writing, she enjoys playing Animal Crossing, knitting, and is obsessed with her cats.

Chuckanut Writers Conference, 2017

May 7, 2017

amberlykat . About Town . Chuckanut Writers Conference

Dear Writers: Here’s Amberly Baker of the Chuckanut Writers Conference to tell you what’s in the works for this year’s amazing event!

Welcome to Bellingham, Washington, an eccentric city nestled in the northern corner of the great Pacific Northwest. Bellingham is home to all kinds of people: With the bay to the West and Mount Baker to the East, it attracts all kinds of outdoor enthusiasts. With so many amazing independent restaurants and holes-in-the-wall, it is a food lover’s haven. It’s a college town, bringing in passionate, excited college students by the thousands. It is also home to a huge writing community, and the annual Chuckanut Writers Conference.

Kelly Magee will offer a class on Rewriting Fairy Tales.

The Chuckanut Writers Conference is an amazing opportunity, whether you’re local or visiting, whether you’ve published three novels or are writing on napkins in rare quiet moments. This year, it takes place on Friday and Saturday, June 23^rd and 24^th at Whatcom Community College, and offers a wide range of breakout sessions to help you find inspiration and continue to develop your craft. These sessions are taught by some of the finest writers the area has to offer—and it has a lot.

There are several great events included in this year’s conference. If you are looking to pitch your amazing new piece of writing, you can find Sean Fletcher and Andy Ross offering Pitch Sessions. Continue reading →

Clover, A Literary Rag ~ a reading at Village Books Today!

September 4, 2016

Laurel Leigh . About Town . Clover literary rag, Mike Allegra, village books

Dear Writers:

I’m wildly delighted to be a part of the Clover reading today at Village Books in gorgeous Fairhaven WA. Authors from Clover 11 will present excerpts of their work and Clover editors Mary Gillilan and Norman Green will host the event that always fills the house. Come by the Readings Gallery at 4 p.m. to join the fun!

There’s also this going on — a secret a brewing that will come to light at today’s reading. Here’s the clues:

I defy anyone to guess in advance, but I will totally buy you lunch if you do.

XO Laurel Leigh

Will We See You at the 2016 Chuckanut Writers Conference?

June 1, 2016

Helen Ruth . About Town . Chuckanut Writers Conference

Dear Writers:

I’m delighted to once again be involved in the Chuckanut Writers Conference right here in Bellingham WA! And further pleased to introduce conference intern Helen Pendergast, who will tell you more about this year’s event. Write On!

What is the first thing you think of, when you hear rain? Is it the pitter-patter of your footsteps out in the morning air, letting your rambunctious retriever mix pull you into shallow puddles, or is it staring up at the magnificent pine trees littering the horizon line? These are just a few of the things that can inspire the writing and stories that you have to share with a community of writers in Bellingham. That is why the Chuckanut Writers Conference (http://chuckanutwritersconference.com/) is back again for another year!

Imagine eighteen incredible authors, industry experts, and agents (http://chuckanutwritersconference.com/speakers/) from all over the Pacific Northwest right at your fingertips, helping inspire your writing into action.

The conference will be held at Whatcom Community College in Bellingham, WA on June 24^th and 25^th. This experience benefits all writers of any stage in their craft, helping to develop each and every unique voice and story. Whether you are interested in knowing why sitting in coffee shops or on a park benches with a notebook glued to your lap is so satisfying— or you have published four bestselling novels already; there is still vital knowledge you will take away from this conference. Most people leave with new practical knowledge, ideas, contacts, lifelong friends … oh, and an incredible swag bag too!

In its sixth year, the conference is featuring unforgettable master classes that hone in on your craft just a little closer. This year our Thursday master classes include, “Ventriloquism on the Page” from Fairhaven author and lover of the big city, Sara Donati, “The Wilderness of Revision” from Elaina Ellis, poet and Associate Editor of Copper Canyon Press, and “Creative Non-fiction: Doing Somersaults on the High Ridge” from Robert Michael Pyle, a full-time biologist, writer, teacher and speaker.

These classes fill up fast, so be sure to register as soon as possible! (http://chuckanutwritersconference.com/register/)

Sara Donati – “Ventriloquism on the Page”

Elaina Ellis – “The Wilderness of Revision”

Robert Michael Pyle – “Creative Nonfiction: Doing Somersaults on the High Ridge”

Thursday holds our pre-conference events in the afternoon, followed by the Chuckanut Radio Hour (http://www.villagebooks.com/event/CRH-rejections-6/23/16) featuring a Seattle-based band– The Rejections (and Trailing Spouses) kicking off the conference with great music and conversation.

The conference continues with multiple breakout and plenary sessions from the esteemed faculty, check out the schedule (http://chuckanutwritersconference.com/program/) to see what you don’t want miss. There is a ton going on, so I wish you luck narrowing in on just a few! If you are finding that you have a few projects going on already, I suggest signing up for an agent pitch session (http://chuckanutwritersconference.com/agents/), to help keep your projects moving forward, and your ideas out of your own already cluttered head.

What’s great about this conference is that there are plenty of opportunities to mingle at our Friday night reception over food, approach faculty during book signings, get your voice heard between conversations with marketing experts and other attendees– but my favorite part? Continue reading →

Chuckanut Writers Conference Was All That!

July 3, 2015

Laurel Leigh . About Town . Chuckanut Writers Conference

Dear Writers:

It was awesome!

Here’s some pics from the 2015 Chuckanut Writers Conference.

The familiar doors of Syre Hall on Whatcom Community College’s gorgeous campus were the entryway to the fifth annual Chuckanut Writers Conference, featuring a fab lineup of authors, literary agents, and publishing experts: Betsy Amster, Philip Athans, Carol Cassella, Kerry Colburn, Anne Depue, Bryan Doyle, Steven Galloway, Elizabeth George, Samuel Green, Lee Gulyas, Denise Jolly, Stephanie Kallos, William Kenower, Elizabeth Kracht, Erik Larson, Robert Lashley, Kate Lebo, Brenda Miller, Elissa Washuta, Molly Wizenberg, and Jennifer Worick. Wow! Continue reading →

Chuckanut Writers Conference Is One Week Away!

June 19, 2015

Hannah Streetman . About Town . Chuckanut Writers Conference

Dear Writers:

The featured photo shows the beautiful outdoor plaza at Whatcom Community College in Bellingham, Washington, site of the fifth annual Chuckanut Writers Conference on Friday and Saturday, June 26-27. Here’s Hannah to tell you more!

I just checked the weather forecast for next weekend: high 70s and sunny. It’ll be the perfect weather for strolling from plenary to pitch sessions at the fifth annual Chuckanut Writers Conference—only a week away! Continue reading →