Fall 2026 Classes & Events Catalog
If writing is a journey, think of our Fall 2026 Classes & Events as your map to the end of this year. Where would you like to be at the end of 2026?
No matter what you’re working on, we’ve got places to begin, routes to your destination, and a plethora of roadside attractions and delightful detours to keep you invigorated along the way.
We have a mix of tried and true highways and new trails to blaze. We have in-person classes and events around the state, and we have ways to stay tuned into inspiration and to sharpen your skills no matter where you are in the world.
Let’s hit the road, and let’s enjoy ourselves along the way.
All Fall 2026 online classes will be recorded, and all registered students will have access to their class recordings until January 31, 2027. In-person classes will not be recorded or provided online.
WLT is committed to making our classes and events accessible to all writers, including writers who do not have the financial means to pay for programming. Five (5) seats in each class have been set aside for scholarship recipients to attend free of charge. If you’d like to learn more about applying for available scholarship seats for our Fall 2026 classes, visit the page for the class you’re interested in and scroll down to “Scholarship Information.”
September
Tuesday, September 8
👋 ⭐️ September One Page Salon
In-person (Austin, TX) / 7:30-9:30 PM CT
On Tuesday, September 8, join us for our next edition of the one-of-a-kind One Page Salon! It will be a night of revelry and literary fun.
Wednesday, September 9
🤖 WLT Crash Course: “The Art of the Substack Newsletter” with Christine Sneed
Live on Zoom / 7:00-8:30 PM CT
Learn how to create a successful Substack newsletter by developing your unique voice, attracting subscribers, and making the most of the platform’s publishing tools and large creative community.
Saturday, September 12
Texas Writes in Goldthwaite, TX
In-person (Goldthwaite, TX) / 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Texas Writes is a statewide program that brings accomplished authors to rural libraries for a half day of presentations and panel discussions focused on the craft of writing.
Wednesday, September 16
🤖 WLT Crash Course: “Crash the Stage: A Peek into Playwriting” with Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton
Live on Zoom / 7:00-8:30 PM CT
Join playwright and librettist Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton for an intro into the basics of writing a great script and tips on how to take your characters to the next level.
Thursday, September 17
🤖 ⭐️ Third Thursday: “Writing the Future”
Live on Zoom / 7:00-8:30 PM CT
WLT hosts Third Thursday each month, featuring discussions focusing on specific topics of interest to writers and readers, bringing together distinguished panelists for conversations moderated by a WLT staff member.
Saturday, September 19
👋 In-Person Class: “Snake Body, Open Mouth: Tapping Into Your Poetic Voice” with Bianca Alyssa Pérez
In-person (Austin, TX) / 1:00-4:00pm CT
This course is for writers who want to explore how personal and inherited histories shape their voice through generative writing. Participants will leave with new poems or drafts inspired by lineage, memory, and the body, along with fresh strategies for accessing emotionally resonant, authentic language.
Tuesday, September 22
✏️🤖 Ask Us Anything: “Copyright Law”
Live on Zoom / 12:00-1:00 PM CT
Our Ask Us Anything program gives writers the chance to ask WLT staff members and special guests any and all of their burning questions on a specific topic, both by submitting questions ahead of time and asking them during the live event.
Wednesday, September 23
🤖 “How to Corroborate Memory When Writing Personal Essays and Memoir” with Mallary Tenore Tarpley
Live on Zoom / 6:30-9:30 PM CT
This class will teach you how to corroborate memory so that you can write fuller and more accurate portrayals of the past in memoir and personal essays.
Monday, September 28
Writers’ Happy Hour
In-person (Austin, TX) / 6:00-10:00 PM CT
Show up, socialize, get some writing done.
Wednesday, September 30
🤖 “The Long Haul: How to Begin (& Finish) Your Book” with Samantha M Clark
Live on Zoom / 6:30-9:30 PM CT
Writing a novel or memoir can be daunting. But never fear, this class will show you how to get started, how to not lose steam in the middle, and how to revise effectively after you’ve finished the first draft.
October
Saturday, October 3
👋 ⭐️ Boerne Book Festival
In-person (Boerne, TX) 10:00AM-4:00PM CT
Come see to our panel, “Obsessed with Texas” at 2:00 PM at the Boerne Public Library, featuring Drew Buxton (Daytona Teddy Riggs), Jess Cannon (A Zoom with a View: A Mystery), and Lucas Schaefer (The Slip) and moderated by James Wade.
👋 ⭐️ Texas Writes in Wolfforth, TX
In-person (Wolfforth, TX) / 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Texas Writes is a statewide program that brings accomplished authors to rural libraries for a half day of presentations and panel discussions focused on the craft of writing.
Tuesday, October 6
👋 ⭐️ October One Page Salon
In-person (Austin, TX) / 7:30-9:30 PM CT
On Tuesday, October 6, join us for our next edition of the one-of-a-kind One Page Salon! It will be a night of revelry and literary fun.
Wednesday, October 7
🤖 “How to Anchor Scenes in Poetry” with Ariana Brown
Live on Zoom / 6:30-9:30 PM CT
This workshop explores how to write compelling scenes in poetry using objects as anchors. Participants will study scenes from both novelists and poets, focusing on how each writer uses objects and strong imagery to zoom in or out of an important moment.
Saturdays, October 10 & 24
In-Person Series: “Your Next Short Story: From Start to Finish” with John Pipkin
In-person (Austin, TX) / 1:00-4:00 PM CT
This two-part class will look at strategies for focusing your creative energy in brief, fast-paced, 15-minute sessions to produce the beginnings of 8 new stories during the first class, and in the second class we’ll work through revision exercises for polishing the final version of one of those stories.
Wednesday, October 14
🤖 “Introduction to Self Publishing” with P.J. Hoover
Live on Zoom / 6:30-9:30 PM CT
If you’ve ever thought about self publishing a book but have no idea where to start, this class is for you. Dipping your toes into self publishing can seem overwhelming, and yes, there is a lot to learn, but this class is here to help you understand what you need to know to get your book out there.
Thursday, October 15
👋 ⭐️ Third Thursday: “Writing Captivating True Crime”
In-person (Austin, TX) / 7:00-8:30 PM CT
WLT hosts Third Thursday each month, featuring discussions focusing on specific topics of interest to writers and readers, bringing together distinguished panelists for conversations moderated by a WLT staff member. In October, we’ll be in-person at BookPeople!
Tuesday, October 20
✏️🤖 Members Present: “Interview Techniques to Bring Your Story Alive” with Sara Ramey
Live on Zoom / 12:00-1:00 PM CDT
Our Member Presents program features WLT Members sharing their expertise with the community.
Wednesday, October 21
🤖 WLT Crash Course: “Indie Screenwriting 101” with Alex Chew
Live on Zoom / 7:00-8:30 PM CT
Have you ever wanted to write a screenplay but didn’t know where to start? Have you started but want to fine tune your skills and workshop your ideas? This is the class for indie screenwriters who are done waiting for permission.
Monday, October 26
Writers’ Happy Hour
In-person (Austin, TX) / 6:00-10:00 PM CT
Show up, socialize, get some writing done.
Wednesday, October 28
🤖 “What Happens Inside: Writing Body Horror” with Leticia Urieta
Live on Zoom / 6:30-9:30 PM CT
When it comes to our bodies, there is little we fear more than the inevitability that our bodies will change, can fall ill and will die. This generative workshop will provide space for us to engage with multiple writing activities that make space to write and share our own body horror stories.
Saturday, October 31
In-Person Class: “Writing Humor in Memoir” with Greg Marshall
In-person (Austin, TX) / 1:00-4:00 PM CT
In this class, we’ll approach humor not as a trifle but a tool, a craft that can enrich and enliven the stories we’re most desperate, and even most scared, to tell. Students will absorb practical tips and tricks to punch up their writing, whether that means swapping a too-sincere sentence for something strange and delightful, or adjusting tone to land a joke just right.
November
November 2-30
Write-ins
Live on Zoom / November 2, 5, 7, 9, 12, 17, 21, 23, 28, 30
Every November, we bring our writing community together for free dedicated writing meet-ups throughout the month. Join us for ten virtual sessions, three hours each, thirty hours total. Sit down, log in, write.
Tuesday, November 3
November One Page Salon
In-person (Austin, TX) / 7:30-9:30 PM CT
On Tuesday, November 3, join us for our next edition of the one-of-a-kind One Page Salon! It will be a night of revelry and literary fun.
Wednesday, November 4
🤖 “Theme as Guide: Following the Heart of Your Novel” with Charlotte Gullick
Live on Zoom / 6:30-9:30 PM CT
Identifying the “aboutness” of a project—the heart, stakes, and focus of the work—can help guide and motivate a book-length project.
This class is part of the Novel Writing Class Package
Saturday, November 7
🤖 “Braiding Your Narrative: Motivations and Methods” with Chaitali Sen
Live on Zoom / 10:00 AM–1:00 PM CT
A braided narrative alternates different strands of a story, allowing them to develop distinctly while building toward a cohesive whole. In this 3-hour class, we will look at different forms of braiding and how to make effective and intentional choices on handling different points of views and timelines that serve one overarching story.
This class is part of the Novel Writing Class Package
Wednesday, November 11
🤖 “Tie-in Pieces: How to Use Essays & Articles to Get Noticed” with Katie Simon
Live on Zoom / 6:30–9:30 PM CT
Publishing pieces related to your work-in-progress can help make your book a reality (without a large social media following) by showing proof of concept, getting attention from an agent or editor, and promoting your book.
Saturday-Sunday, November 14 & 15
👋 ⭐️ Texas Book Festival 2026
In-person (Austin, TX) / 10:00AM-5:00PM
Wednesday, November 18
🤖 “Character vs. Caricature: Creating Characters that Leap Off the Page” with Rubén Degollado
Live on Zoom / 6:30-9:30 PM CT
“Character vs. Caricature: Creating Characters that Leap Off the Page” is a 3 hour session designed for fiction writers wanting to take their character creation to the next level. Through the examination of popular film and novel characters and the introduction of tools, writers will see how master storytellers writers create fully realized characters that feel lived in.
This class is part of the Novel Writing Class Package
Thursday, November 19
🤖 ⭐️ November Third Thursday: “Mining the Personal in Fiction & Nonfiction”
Live on Zoom / 7:00–8:30 PM CT
WLT hosts Third Thursday each month, featuring discussions focusing on specific topics of interest to writers and readers, bringing together distinguished panelists for conversations moderated by a WLT staff member.
Saturday, November 21
🤖 The Art of the Editing Phase with Alex Temblador
Live on Zoom / 10:00 AM–1:00 PM CT
In “The Art of the Editing Phase” you’ll learn how to elevate your story through revision techniques that will result in a better flow, engaging sentences, and overall storyline.
This class is part of the Novel Writing Class Package
Monday, November 23
👋 ⭐️ Writers’ Happy Hour
In-person (Austin, TX) / 6:00-10:00 PM CT
Show up, socialize, get some writing done.
December
Tuesday, December 1
December One Page Salon
In-person (Austin, TX) / 7:30-9:30 PM CT
On Tuesday, December 1, join us for our next edition of the one-of-a-kind One Page Salon! It will be a night of revelry and literary fun.
Saturday, December 5
🤖 “Forget Discipline: How To Want Your Way Through Writing” with ire’ne lara silva
Live on Zoom / 10:00 AM-1:00 PM CT
We’ll investigate what it means to start or re-start a book project, connecting with the root of our desire to write, to create, to speak, to share. We’ll interrogate the internal/external obstacles that keep us from the work we long to do.
Tuesday, December 8
🤖 ✏️ New Member Orientation
Live on Zoom / 12:00-1:00 PM CDT
Whether you’ve just signed-up or have been a Member for years, the New Member Orientation is a great opportunity to come together with your fellow Members and the WLT staff to hear about the ins and outs of membership, including the many member benefits you can take advantage of, special opportunities for members, and the answer to any questions you have.