Join Us
The time has come to transform your dreams of becoming a writer into a book you can proudly call your own, shop to publishers and share with the world. The WriteWorkshops help you navigate the process that takes your private ideas to the broader public.
As you prepare to take this huge leap as a writer, it’s natural to feel hesitant. You may never have published before. You may worry that close friends who have seen your writing are not objective, only supportive. You may wish your book would land in stores without any feedback along the way.
The process of workshopping your writing will be different from what you may have experienced or expected, but that doesn’t mean it will be difficult.
Workshop critiques should never be confused with criticisms. No one will ever judge your work on any basis beyond your own stated goals as a writer. Our approach rests on helping you find your voice so that you can best communicate the stories you were born to tell the world.
You’re reading this because you know you have those stories inside of you. Maybe you’ve lived an extraordinary life and want to paint a picture of the adventures you’ve experienced. Maybe you have a unique talent that you want to help others to cultivate. Maybe you’ve always enjoyed creating vivid characters and watching their dramas unfold. Or maybe you just love to write! All of these are strong signs that you will succeed.
Preparing to plunge into the workshop process is like standing on the edge of an ocean. It looks impossibly vast as the waves crash around but as soon as you’re in, you feel refreshed and energized.
Once you find your voice, you’ll have more than that pitch-perfect work you always wanted to create; you’ll have the power to quickly and easily communicate your stories to rapt audiences.
Your book is your legacy to our world. Invest in yourself as a writer and, as part of The WriteWorkshops, leave a strong heritage for the future.
Faculty
Jeff Ourvan
The WriteWorkshops were founded in 2013 by literary agent, attorney and published author Jeff Ourvan. Jeff’s most recent work, THE STAR SPANGLED BUDDHIST: Zen, Tibetan and Soka Gakkai Buddhism & The Quest For Enlightenment in America, was published by Skyhorse. A thriller writer and nonfiction author, Jeff studied writing for many years with the novelist John Rechy. Prior to working as a literary agent, Jeff was a magazine editor, as well as a corporate attorney, public relations executive, geologist and commercial fisherman. As an agent with one of New York’s most successful boutique literary agencies, Jeff understands today’s publishing market and provides not only editing and writing advice but also suggestions toward making writers’ works commercially viable. After all, writers want to be published — and many from this workshop have! For interviews with Jeff, click here and here.
Heather Siegel
Heather Siegel is the author of the memoirs OUT FROM THE UNDERWORLD (Greenpoint Press, 2015), and THE KING & THE QUIRKY (Regal House, forthcoming 2020) and the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions, including being named a finalist in Foreword Reviews 2016 INDIES Book of the Year Award, a finalist in the Leap Frog Press 2017 Fiction Contest, and a semifinalist in the Kore Press 2018 Memoir Award. Her creative nonfiction and essays have appeared in publications such as Salon.com, in The Flexible Persona Literary Magazine, The Chaos Journal of Personal Narrative, The Mother Magazine, Author Magazine, Dan’s Papers, and Thread Literary Magazine, as well as on popular parenting and relationship websites such as ScaryMommy and Parent Co. She holds an MFA from The New School University, and teaches creative and academic writing at local colleges and in continuing education programs on Long Island, where she lives with her family. More about her can be found at www.heathersiegel.net.