Groups and Programs

Willamette Writers 2016 Conference – Member Promoter Opportunity

At Willamette Writers we always look for new ways to help support our members, and this year we wondered how we could highlight the authors, poets, playwrights, and screenwriters who make up Willamette Writers as we promote the Willamette Writers Conference. Then we were struck by an idea! We invite our members (YOU!) join our conference promotion…

Up and Coming Award Winner 2016 – Heidi Schulz

Congratulations, Heidi Schulz! One could say that Heidi Schulz has already up and come. With her first book published by Disney, praised by critics, and included in the Oregon Battle of the Books for the school year 2016-17; her second book called a “deliciously witty, delightfully inventive, devilishly fun adventure…” (Anne Ursu, The Real Boy), and her third…

Books for Kids Touches the Lives of Children in Need

Books for Kids logo - a program from Willamette Writers that delivers books to children

Willamette Writers’ Books for Kids program in partnership with Clackamas Barnes & Noble collected 3,541 new books and raised $1269.24 to purchase books for children in need. Thank you Barnes & Noble and all of the book-loving Willamette Writers supporters who helped us accomplish this feat! Barnes & Noble’s Holiday Book Fair and Book Drive…

FiLMLaB Grand Prize Winner Announced!

Last week our four finalists consulted with screenwriting mentor and 2016 FiLMLaB Director, Randall Jahnson, before diving into an optional script rewrite; a chance to improve their original seven page script with notes from our Celebrity Judges. By Thursday night, all of the revised scripts were in and ready to review by our Producers Circle,…

How to Register for a Pitch

We are releasing pitch times in blocks on April 28th, May 23rd, and June 6th (all at midnight). This ensures everyone can get access to pitch times. Pitches are $25, and there is no limit to the amount of pitch times you choose. The Pitch Schedule (PDF) shows you which times are available at this time.  Please note that the registration system will only show…

2016 FiLMLaB Finalists!

2016 FilMLaB Finalists logo

Our Celebrity Judges have had their say in evaluating our ten semifinalists over the last two weeks. Each writer will receive copies of their judges notes and ratings, and a few will use those notes to improve or enhance their scripts during the next phase of the FiLMLaB Contest: the optional rewrite. This is meant…

Willamette Writers Conference Returning Faculty (Pt. Two)

Willamette Writers Conference Returning Faculty

Long time Willamette Writers member, author Anthony St. Clair has attended our conferences for years. In fact, I first met Anthony at the 2010 Willamette Writers Conference. He has many favorite returning faculty, and was kind enough to tell me about four of them: Susan DeFrieitas, William Hertling, Luke Ryan, and Eric Witchey. Discovering Core Character…

Willamette Writers Conference Returning Faculty (Pt. One)

Willamette Writers Conference Returning Faculty

With over sixty faculty members, the 2016 Willamette Writers Conference will offer workshops from the most varied group of instructors ever. They represent the many faces of writing from poetry to prose, fiction to nonfiction, and the art of writing to the business. This extraordinary list of presenters includes well-loved veteran instructors, newbies, and guest…

Tues, 10 May: An Evening with NYT Bestselling Author Ben Fountain

An evening with NY Times bestselling author Ben Fountain Writer and best-selling author Ben Fountain will visit Eugene as the Oregon Humanities Center’s Kritikos Lecturer in the Humanities. Fountain is the author of an award-winning collection of short stories titled Brief Encounters with Che Guevara (2007), as well as a powerful and highly acclaimed debut novel, Billy Lynn’s…