Virtual Critique Classes - Spring 2026 Session | Registration open for WWA members |
*NEW* Getting Started with Memoir: 6 Tools with Catherine Stover Six consecutive Thursday afternoons from 1 pm to 3 pm
Register HERE Sign up to participate! During the 6 consecutive two-hour Zoom sessions, you’ll receive feedback regarding your work from colleagues and a complete critique from instructor Catherine Stover. This is a safe and supportive space that provides insight and encouragement from like-minded writers. There will be a limit of 6 participants in the group so that everyone receives time and feedback every session. The group is designed for entry-level memoir writers or unpublished memoir writers. From Catherine: If you’ve asked yourself, “How do I begin?” or “Where do I begin?” this session is for you. For ten years, I’ve worked with people who would like some help getting started as they begin to write about their experiences and ideas. In this 6-session workshop, we will experiment with a new tool each week, and then we will share our work. You will learn how to: 1. Ask yourself the right questions. We will share our stories, and I will help you identify your strengths and ways to bring your stories to life. As a bonus, I will also share information from my book on writing memoir, which will be published by the Wisconsin Writers Association Press in the next year. Please note that these are six consecutive weekly sessions, starting on Thursday, April 2, from 1:00 – 3:00 pm. The maximum is 6 participants, and the minimum is 4. After the first session, participants will be encouraged to write 1-3 pages each week. Catherine Stover is an award-winning writer and an award-winning teacher at Madison Area Technical College. Her blog about books is at https://www.catherinestover.com/ . The way it works: Zoom links will be sent to writers before each session, and documents will be shared via email. Participants should be familiar with Zoom and Word. Please Note: WWA highly recommends that participants have a computer and reliable access to the internet. It is nearly impossible to participate in the sessions using only a smartphone. Member Fee: $150 for all six sessions! Space is limited to a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 6 participants.
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Novel Writing Intensive Group with Lisa Lickel WEDNESDAY 5 Consecutive Mornings 10am to Noon
Morning sessions - Register HERE Afternoon sessions - Register HERE Lisa Lickel, author/editor, book coach, and editor of Creative Wisconsin magazine is leading five-week intensive critique groups for novel or other full-length book writers who have a drafted (completed or nearly completed) manuscript and experience working with others in critique groups. PLEASE NOTE: these are five sessions in a row. Maximum 4 and minimum 3 participants. Each participant will submit 25 pages of their own work for critique each week. In turn, they will read and critique pages submitted by the other 2 or 3 participants (maximum 50-75 pages each week). These sessions are for authors who want specific feedback on their novel or other book-length work. Besides questions that naturally come up during our sessions, Lisa will also focus on aspects that are genre and craft specific as they arise, and group members may discuss other facets of their work besides what is submitted for feedback, with a generous half-hour per author each week. Lisa will provide critiques of the work, answer questions, and facilitate discussions. Before signing up, writers should prepare or be able to prepare a minimum one-page synopsis to share with other group participants and have at least 5 sessions of material available. From Lisa: "By working together, writers have the opportunity to gather the insights of their peers and learn to distill advice and opinions in a small group environment. Sharing feedback is a great way for us to learn and grow in our craft, to ask those questions that might feel awkward elsewhere, and to support and encourage each other. WWA wants to be part of your journey to success." The way it works: Participants will meet via zoom a week before the sessions, and thereafter email their pages to the other group members at least six days prior to the session so that each participant may review and prepare critiques for their fellow writers and be ready to discuss on meeting day. During the session each writer will read from their submission and hear constructive advice from peers and facilitator Lisa Lickel. Participants will provide their feedback to their peers following the session. Member Fee: $125 for all five sessions! Space is limited to 4 participants.
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Poetic Imagery with Jennifer Morales
On the following Wednesdays from 11am to 1pm.
- April 15 & 29
- May 13 & 27
- June 10 & 24
Register HERE
Sign up to participate in the Poetic Imagery series! During the 2 hour Zoom sessions, facilitator Jennifer Morales will focus on writing using examples and prompts. There will be a limit of 8 participants to the group so that everyone receives time and feedback every session.
From Jennifer:
English is a voracious scavenger of sounds and words from other languages. For
this reason, its vocabulary is one of the largest of any living language. And
yet, from this bounty, we writers often dish up the same overused images and
word choices—our comfort food. In each session, we will read a poem that
demonstrates rich ways with vocabulary, imagery, or sound to discern lessons
and tools for our own poems. Then, each participant will share their own poem
and we will discuss them with an ear toward expansive word choice, fresh
imagery, and sound play.
The way it works: Zoom links will be sent to writers before each session. Participants will share their work electronically. Participants should be familiar with Zoom and willing to read their work aloud during the session. Formatting requirements and critique guidelines will be provided by Jennifer Morales. Please Note: WWA highly recommends that participants have a computer and reliable access to the internet. It is nearly impossible to participate in the sessions using only a smartphone. Having a rudimentary understanding of Word and Zoom is also recommended.
Member Fee: $150 for all six sessions! Space is limited to a minimum of 6 and a maximum of 8 participants.
Strictly Fiction with Laurie Scheer Thursday evenings from 6:00pm to 8:00pm Central
Register HERE During the two hour Zoom sessions you’ll receive feedback regarding your work from colleagues and a complete critique from instructor Laurie Scheer. This is a safe and supportive space that provides insight and encouragement from like-minded writers. There will be a limit of 8 participants to the group so that everyone receives time and feedback every session. The group is designed for all levels of literary and genre fiction writers. Laurie welcomes ANY fiction (except erotica) from novelists, short story writers, and flash fiction writers. From Laurie: "WWA’s Critique Groups offer an opportunity for writers to not only receive feedback regarding their work, but also provide insights and feedback for other writers within the group. Writers receive 10-15 minutes within each session to listen and ask questions regarding their material. Previous to the session, writers have provided page-by-page comments regarding their work via a Google Docs folder. As a result of the feedback received, both written and verbal, topics emerge within the sessions that often affect all writers. Instructor Scheer provides professional feedback along with prepared, and sometimes immediate information, concerning topics covered within the group’s sessions. Questions are welcomed throughout the week leading up to the session, and during the week following each session. This is a safe space where all fiction writers are welcome. Writers have shared that their writing has improved as of the feedback and discussion that evolves within the group’s dynamics. Together, these Critique Groups provide a workshop space that improves writers’ writing overall." The way it works: Zoom links will be sent to writers per session and documents will be shared via Google Docs. Participants should be familiar with Zoom and Google Docs, but assistance is available if needed. Please Note: WWA highly recommends that participants have a computer and reliable access to the internet. It is nearly impossible to participate in the sessions using only a smart phone. Member Fee: $150 for all six sessions! Space is limited to a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 8 participants. If the sessions are not full by August 31, registration will open to nonmembers and the fee will be $200.
Advanced Strictly Fiction with Laurie Scheer Tuesday Evenings from 6:00pm to 8:00pm CST
Register HERE For writers who have participated in previous Strictly Fiction Critique Groups. Sign up to participate. During the two hour Zoom sessions you’ll receive feedback regarding your work from colleagues and a complete critique from instructor Laurie Scheer. This is a safe and supportive space that provides insight and encouragement from like-minded writers. There will be a limit of 5 participants to the group so that everyone receives extended time and feedback every session. The group is designed for writers who have participated in previous participants of Strictly Fiction Critique Group Sessions and all literary and genre fiction writers. From Laurie: WWA’s Critique Groups offer an opportunity for writers to not only receive feedback regarding their work, but also provide insights and feedback for other writers within the group. Writers receive a full 20-25 minutes within each session to listen and ask questions regarding their material. This is an extended amount of time that is allotted within the Strictly Fiction sessions. Previous to the session, writers have provided page-by-page comments regarding their work via a Google Docs folder. As a result of the feedback received, both written and verbal, topics emerge within the sessions that often affect all writers. Instructor Scheer provides professional feedback along with prepared, and sometimes immediate information, concerning topics covered within the group’s sessions. Questions are welcomed throughout the week leading up to the session, and during the week following each session. This is a safe space where all fiction writers are welcome. Writers have shared that their writing has improved as of the feedback and discussion that evolves within the group’s dynamics. Together, these Critique Groups provide a workshop space that improves writers’ writing overall. The way it works: Zoom links will be sent to writers before sessions and documents will be shared via Google Docs. Participants should be familiar with Zoom and Google Docs, but assistance is available if needed. Please Note: WWA Highly recommends that participants have a computer and reliable access to the internet. It is nearly impossible to participate in the sessions using only a smartphone. Member Fee: $150 for all six sessions! Space is limited to a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 5 participants.
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Fiction and Non-Fiction with Laurie Scheer Wednesday evenings from 6:00pm to 8:00pm Central
Register HERE Sign up to participate! During the two hour Zoom sessions you’ll receive feedback regarding your work from colleagues and a complete critique from instructor Laurie Scheer. This is a safe and supportive space that provides insight and encouragement from like-minded writers. There will be a limit of 8 participants to the group so that everyone receives time and feedback every session. The group is designed for all levels of fiction, non-fiction, and memoir writers in either short or long form. From Laurie: WWA’s Critique Groups offer an opportunity for writers to not only receive feedback regarding their work, but also provide insights and feedback for other writers within the group. Writers receive 10-15 minutes within each session to listen and ask questions regarding their material. Previous to the session, writers have provided page-by-page comments regarding their work via a Google Docs folder. As a result of the feedback received, both written and verbal, topics emerge within the sessions that often affect all writers. Instructor Scheer provides professional feedback along with prepared, and sometimes immediate information, concerning topics covered within the group’s sessions. Questions are welcomed throughout the week leading up to the session, and during the week following each session. This is a safe space where all writers are welcome. Writers have shared that their writing has improved as of the feedback and discussion that evolves within the group’s dynamics. Together, these Critique Groups provide a workshop space that improves writers’ writing overall. The way it works: Zoom links will be sent to writers per session and documents will be shared via Google Docs. Participants should be familiar with Zoom and Google Docs, but assistance is available if needed. Please Note: WWA Highly recommends that participants have a computer and reliable access to the internet. It is nearly impossible to participate in the sessions using only a smart phone. Member Fee: $150 for all six sessions! Space is limited to a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 8 participants.
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