by the Clarion West Workshop Team 2020 challenged all of us in ways we never expected. At Clarion West, this meant trying different approaches and making new connections. In April, One-Day Workshop administrator Tegan Moore (CW ’15) pivoted on a dime to pull together 43 free online classes. We followed this in May with another…
by Marnee Chua, Executive Director As we approach the end of this year, I am pleased to share that several individuals have joined the Clarion West Board of Directors in 2020. Their addition to the board will help us better position the organization to grow, build capacity, and achieve our plans to make our workshops more…
Since 1984, Clarion West has held workshops with the intention of providing a safe space for writers to imagine new worlds. A place to re-imagine the fundamental issues within our societies, technologies, politics, prejudices, and fears. Consider making a gift to Clarion West on #GivingTuesday during the global day of giving and support our year-end…
Calling all ensigns, pirates, dungeon crawlers, and apprentice witches! Think you have what it takes to outwit the competition? Clarion West is bringing you our second annual Speculative Fiction Trivia Night–now fully online! Support our accessible and low-cost writing workshops by signing up, forming a team or joining one at random, and choosing your ship…
Dear Alumni and Friends, Autumn is upon us in the Northern Hemisphere! In Seattle, we made it through a heat wave and the smoke from the U.S. Pacific Coast wildfires. As 2020 continues to give us all plenty to write (and worry) about, we want to share all of our good news with you. Despite…
Clarion West seeks to foster a global community of writers and readers. To do so, Clarion West must actively support and make room for a great deal more diversity in science fiction, fantasy, horror, and their related works. Our anti-racist efforts include partnering with organizations like Writing the Other, FIYAHCON, and Voodoonauts and focusing on…
Did you know? We offer a limited number of full scholarships for each class to Black and Indigenous writers and writers from other marginalized backgrounds on a first come, first served basis. Please email us at with a one-paragraph statement about your scholarship interest and need. Please include the name of the class to…
That’s a wrap! We’d like to thank everyone who participated in this year’s Write-a-thon: every writer, every donor, every instructor, every reader, every audience member. You make Clarion West possible. In a harrowing year that feels like science fiction, you all joined us as we launched a hugely ambitious experiment to go fully online with…
Dear Alumni and Friends, We’re kicking off the sixth and final week of our annual Write-a-thon. With over 500 global participants writing together, taking free workshops, making friends, and building community, this is our biggest Write-a-thon ever. We’re getting closer and closer to our $20K minimum goal. We hope to hit $30K to offset this year’s…
Dear Alumni and Friends, The year 2020 continues to be a turbulent one. Who’s ready for some good news? We proceed in our mission of supporting diverse, underrepresented genre writers and making our programs as inclusive and accessible as possible. We stand with Black Lives Matter, and we condemn police brutality. This is an awe-inspiring time to witness…