Willamette Writers Chapters are local writing communities where writers improve their craft and acquire the career skills required in today’s publishing world. They also provide opportunities for local writers to hone their leadership, presentation, and teaching skills.

Willamette Writers on the River serves writers in Corvallis, Albany, Linn and Benton Counties. We welcome members from other chapters and all writers aged 18 and older (unless otherwise stated).

Read on to learn about our chapter, and join our mailing list to keep in touch.

Become a Willamette Writers Member today to enjoy membership benefits such as free meetings for all WW chapters and reduced conference registration fees.

Upcoming Meeting

Please head to our events calendar to find out about our upcoming meetings (including date, time, location, and Zoom or in-person information): willamettewriters.org/events.

About the Meetings

Willamette Writers on the River presents speakers or short workshops on writing related topics six months out of the year. We also host open mic readings three times each year. We do not meet in July, August, and December. We encourage people to attend the Willamette Writers Conference during our summer break.

Meeting Time

6:30-8-30 PM on the fourth Monday of each month

Meeting Location

We meet in Corvallis. See the announcement for each individual meeting to learn the exact location. Some meetings may be online or offer an online alternative.

Meeting Format

Open-Mic Readings in March, June, and September give writers the opportunity to test their work on an audience of their peers. The readings are free and open to the public.

Meeting Format:

Programmed Meetings in which WWotR presents a speaker/workshop/panel discussion to help writers learn more about writing.

• 6:30-6:45 – Networking & social time
• 6:45-8:15 – WWotR News and Announcements followed by the Program
• 8:15-8:30 – Q & A, Networking, and Speaker’s Book Sales

Meeting Format for Open Mics:

• 6:30-6:45 – Sign-up to read. Networking and social time.
• 6:45-8:30 – News and Announcements followed by Readings

Meeting Cost

Monthly meetings at all the chapters are free and open to the public. Please consider becoming a member or donating to support your chapter meetings. Your support makes our programming possible.

The Chapter Co-Chairs

The Willamette Writers on the River Chapter is run by co-chairs who create a program to fit the needs and interests of the Willamette Writers members around  Corvallis.

Nancy Ballard

Nancy Ballard is the author of the Under Carico’s Moons series of science fiction cowboy stories, writing as Nan C Ballard. She has written and edited environmental assessment reports, written an arts column for a small town paper, and collaborated on adaptations of plays for community theater. Her poetry has been published in the online Willawaw Journal and the anthology Mount Shasta Reflections. Her short fiction A Tree on the Bluff won third place in the (very locally) prestigious Scott Valley, CA, Libraries Annual Writing Contest in 2013. Nancy has been the Willamette Writers on the River-Corvallis Chapter co-chair since January, 2020, and co-hosts the Tuesday and Saturday Willamette Writers Coffee at Your Kitchen Table online conversations. She belongs to a science fiction/fantasy critique group. She does quick pen-and-colored-pencil doodles to practice mindfulness. Her current just-for-fun project with her husband is to visit interesting places in every county in Oregon. You can find her at nancballardwriter.blogspot.com or @NanCBallard on Instagram.

Jennifer D.Munro

Jennifer D. Munro is an avid but inept birdwatcher and knitter. She volunteers at a wildlife rescue center, where she wrangles ducklings and spreadsheets. She is a two-time Pushcart Prize nominee, a Top Ten Finalist in the Erma Bombeck Global Humor Competition, and winner of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists blog contest (in the “blogs nobody reads” category). Her prose has appeared in numerous publications, including Salon; Alaska Airlines Beyond; Literary Mama; Ninth Letter; North American Review; Gulf Coast; Boulevard; Best American Erotica; Full Grown People; Zyzzyva; andThe Bigger the Better the Tighter the Sweater: 21 Funny Women on Beauty and Body Image. She once sold the world’s known supply of miso in one day to an end-of-the-world cult but is now much more content with her work as a freelance copyeditor (a cat-approved work-from-home career). www.JenniferDMunro.com.