Second Chances Spring 2026 – Fiction and Nonfiction Essentials

Welcome to the WLT Second Chances sale! From now until 11:59 PM CT June 30, 2026, all of our Spring 2026 class recordings are available to purchase by WLT members. Become a member here.

From deep dives into character to discussions on setting, from digging into your memoir to kicking your story off with a bang, and so much more, these classes are fundamental building blocks for any writer’s craft.

PLEASE NOTE: This is not a live class registration. When you register, you’ll receive access to previously recorded classes taught for a live audience. Registration includes access to any handouts, readings, and slides the instructor originally shared with students. The videos will be available for viewing immediately upon purchase, and will expire on July 31, 2026.

Descriptions for each class recording can be found below. To purchase access to the recordings, all you need to do is add your preferred tickets to your cart and check out. You’ll then receive an email containing the receipt for your purchase along with a link to the class recordings and any class materials.

To find our Business Basics recordings, click here.

To find our Expand Your Horizons recordings, click here.

“Write Your Book This Year”
with Alex Temblador

Discover the outlines, research, and information needed to sit down, write a book, and finish it.

By breaking down the major elements of writing a novel or book – characters, setting, research, plot, character development, outlines, and planning – this class aims to put writers on the path to success as they set out on beginning a new book. Attendees will undergo a large variety of exercises that will involve making lists, crafting scenes, creating outlines, and more. By the end of the class, you’ll know your characters and the storyline more intimately. Each exercise is intended to help writers know everything they can about their book before they begin writing.

What students had to say about the class:

• “I got a lot more out of this than I expected to. I’m shifting into the editing process and can use a lot of this to improve my book.”
• “The class delivered on the title of providing an overview of things to focus on when writing a book, with the added benefit of simple and straightforward tips and tricks to get words out of our heads and onto the page.”

“Throw More Stones: Creating Characters Through Conflict”
with Samantha M. Clark

Whether you’re writing a character-driven or plot-driven story, comedy, drama, or tragedy, conflict is your friend. Big or small, from outside influences or interior emotions, conflict helps us build believable characters and drive our story forward.

All of us learn and grow through conflict, and our characters are no different. Understanding how conflict in our characters’ past have shaped them, helps us create real people readers want to follow. Then within the story, we can use conflict to drive them to grow even further. In this class, you’ll learn about developing well-rounded, fully realized characters, the importance of conflict, the types of conflict, and how to use it to make your stories better.

What students had to say about the class:

• “Samantha had a wonderfully infectious enthusiasm, which, along with her great insights, helped me understand conflict within a story better.”
• “I will look for Samantha Clark when taking more courses. She delivers very high quality at a digestible pace with lots and lots of takeaways. Well done!”

“How to Write About Family Members in Memoir & Personal Essays”
with Mallary Tenore Tarpley

Writing about family members is an art that requires a healthy mix of self-reflection, patience, acceptance, and vulnerability. Depending on your relationship with your family, the process may be painful or healing. In some cases, it may be both.

In this class, we’ll explore the tricky task of writing about family members in memoir and personal essay. To do so, we’ll examine specific examples that will inspire and instruct. Through a mix of instruction, engagement, and short writing exercises, you’ll learn strategies for deciding which family members to write about; how to interview family members and explore hard truths; how to show loved ones’ full humanity by writing about their flaws and strengths; how to write about strained relationships; how to reckon with conflicting memories from family members; how (and whether) to show your copy to family members prior to publication, and more.

You’ll have the opportunity to ask questions about these topics and more, and you’ll come away from this class with practical tips and newfound inspiration to carry you forward in your writing.

What students had to say about the class:

• “Mallary made the class accessible to all writers at any point in their memoir or essay-writing journey.”
• “Mallary packed in a ton of useful information.”

“The Art of Pacing: Macro and Micro Methods to Keep Your Story Moving”
with Chaitali Sen

Neither readers nor writers want a story to stall, sputter along, or sprint ahead at breakneck speed. Learn how to achieve the right pacing for your story!

Every part of your story has an appropriate pace, but how do we find it? Hint: It’s not all in the plot. The right narrative pacing comes from decisions large and small, from word choice and sentence structure to scenes and description to action and character arcs. In this three-hour class, we will explore all of the factors that affect the speed of the story and practice various ways to modulate pacing so that the reader is pulled along compellingly from beginning to end.

What students had to say about the class:

• “Chaitali is full of wisdom on the topic of writing.”
• “I’m always up for anything [Chaitali] teaches!”

“Activating Setting: How Place Can Deepen Your Work”
with Charlotte Gullick

Setting has the potential to energize plot, deepen tension, and reveal character nuances. Yet, many of us overlook this rich aspect of writing craft.

This class will dive into the power of location in your writing. We will explore the ways setting can electrify your work, allowing you to enhance your world building and character development. The format will include lecture, writing exercises, and at least one breakout room.

What students had to say about the class:

• “I have taken classes with Charlotte and knew that she would be a stellar teacher for setting. Still, I am blown away by her attention to detail and how in depth she goes with the material.”
• “[Charlotte’s] prompts were incredibly thought-provoking and helped me dig deep into some scenes.”

“Our Parables, Ourselves: Weaving Myth, Fable, and Stories in Memoir”
with Madeline Vosch

When you consider the facts of your life, you may first think of dates, locations, and people who shaped you. But what about stories? What happens if we think of the stories we grow up with, religious, mythological, the fables that shape our worldview, as lenses through which we can understand ourselves?

In this class, students will examine the use of formative stories, such as mythology and religious stories, in memoir. This class will pay particular attention to works that treat these stories as facts, as things that shape us. We will also examine how treating these stories with the same realism as the people who raised us can further illuminate our own lives and experiences, and provide surprising entry points and possibilities for creative expression in memoir.

What students had to say about the class:

• “I enjoyed Madeline’s delivery and I was impressed by her breadth of knowledge…”

“Fusing The Protagonist’s Internal and External Journey”
with Richard Z. Santos

Every author must answer the question, “Why am I writing about these characters during this particular time frame?” The answer, more often than not, is that the protagonist is forever changed by the events of the story.

An effective protagonist goes on both an internal and external journey. If a story is all plot but no heart, then it might be a failure, and vice versa. These twinned journeys wrap around, complement, and drive each other.

In this class, we will look at examples from books and movies of protagonists who go on these journeys. We will review aspects of well-rounded characters, and how their fears, hopes, and habits drive the story. We’ll talk about how to make sure your character is changed, do writing exercises designed to think about the depth of your characters and plot, and discuss how writers balance these elements in the ideating, outlining, and drafting process.

While many of the examples in this workshop will be drawn from mystery, thriller, and horror, this workshop is open to writers in all genres.

What students had to say about the class:

• “Richard changed the way I think about the antagonist as not one person but a series of things. I think will really help me discover ways to make my work more dynamic.”
• “The instructor moved through his lecture methodically and with each piece, he gave us not only ways to approach our projects but also practical ideas in structure, character, and setting, the ways they work together in creating a story/plot.”

“Jump Start Your Novel”
with Sara Kocek

Are you ready to take your novel manuscript to the next level?

Now more than ever, a strong opening is vital for a novel’s success. Your manuscript has very little time in an agent’s or reader’s hands before they decide whether or not to keep going. In order to stand out from the hundreds of other novels, your opening pages need to be polished and diamond-sharp. In this class, we’ll cover everything you need to jump start your manuscript with compelling tension and a vivid, distinct voice.

What students had to say about the class:

• “The presenter was very knowledgeable about the material and presented things in a very easily understood way.”
• “This is the second class on editing that I’ve taken from Sara, and both have been terrific.“