Aspen Writers’ Network
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In keeping with Aspen Words’ commitment to working writers, AWN was formed to provide mutual support and networking opportunities for writers and aspiring writers in the Roaring Fork Valley and beyond.
AWN is geared towards writers seeking to take the next step in their writing and/or to further their professional careers. It also provides a networking group for encouragement, support, camaraderie and inspiration.
Our monthly, informal meetings provide an opportunity to connect with other writers to share work, writing tips and inspiration. Each quarter will feature exceptional writer-focused content to foster connections and bring stimulating programming to members. AWN members also enjoy priority access or reduced admission to other popular Aspen Words programs.
Thanks to general underwriting support for the program, AWN membership is just $150/year. Financial assistance is available if this annual membership fee presents a barrier to participation.
- Access to monthly, informal, AWN-exclusive meetings (typically on the third Thursday of the month).
- Access to quarterly AWN-exclusive events with a specific program and guest speaker.
- Access to the AWN Facebook group.
- Highly discounted rate for a one-day writing workshop hosted by Aspen Words annually
- 25% discount for all Winter Words author events
- Free admission to all Writer in Residence and Community Read events.
- Invitations to Aspen Words members-only receptions.
- Private consultations with literary agents and editors at the Summer Words conference in June 2024.
Events
2024 Fall Writing Workshop with Mary Robinette Kowal (Two Workshops in One)
Sunday, October 6th, 9am to 4pm (with a 1-hour lunch break). Mary Robinette Kowal will be teaching two of her most popular topics:
Hiding Exposition in Plain Sight
In this workshop, we learn how to give our readers all the information they need to know about the setting we created, without drowning them in information. Together we learn the art of subtly expositing without showing our authorial hand.
Endings: How to Wrap Things Up
Very often, writers get to the two-thirds mark in a work and bog down, sometimes abandoning it to move on to something shinier. Why does this happen? It's a place at which we move from raising questions for the reader to needing to answer them. This change in mode requires a different set of tools than the beginning of a story, while needing to appear part of a seamless whole. In this workshop, we'll look at how to wrap up loose ends, decide which things we can leave dangling, and what elements make a strong closing sentence.
General Admission: $95 | AWN Member: $35
Learn more about the Aspen Writers Network (AWN) and become a member today!
ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR Mary Robinette Kowal is the author of The Spare Man,The Glamourist Histories series, Ghost Talkers, and the Lady Astronaut Universe. She is part of the award-winning podcast Writing Excuses and has received the Astounding Award for Best New Writer, four Hugo awards, the Nebula and Locus awards. Her stories appear in Asimov’s, Uncanny, and several Year’s Best anthologies. Mary Robinette, a professional puppeteer, also performs as a voice actor (SAG/AFTRA), recording fiction for authors including Seanan McGuire, Cory Doctorow, and John Scalzi. She lives in Nashville with her husband Rob and over a dozen manual typewriters. Visit maryrobinettekowal.com.
AN EVENING WITH MARY LOUISE KELLY MODERATED BY BREEZE RICHARDSON
Join us for a conversation with 2024 Aspen Words Literary Prize ceremony moderator, novelist and host of NPR's "All Things Considered," Mary Louise Kelly.
Moderator: Aspen Public Radio’s Executive Director, Breeze Richardson.
This event is free and open to all, registration is requested.
The event is currently at capacity, if you are interested in attending plan to arrive when the doors open at 5:30 p.m.
DOORS: Open at 5:30 p.m. EVENT: Conversation 6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. SEATING: General admission and available on a first come, first served basis. Come early and purchase a drink at the TACAW bar. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mary Louise Kelly is a host of “All Things Considered,” NPR’s award-winning afternoon newsmagazine. Previously, she spent a decade as national security correspondent for NPR News, and she’s kept that focus in her role as anchor. That’s meant taking “All Things Considered” to Russia, North Korea, Iran and beyond. She’s published two novels, “Anonymous Sources” and “The Bullet,” as well as the New York Times bestselling memoir, “It. Goes. So. Fast. The Year of No Do-Overs.” Her writing has appeared in the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, among other publications, and she serves as a contributing writer at The Atlantic. ABOUT THE MODERATOR Breeze Richardson joined the Aspen Public Radio team in June 2021. Highly-respected in public media for her strategic planning and communications background, she has a passion for telling stories and producing community-focused programming. Since arriving in the Roaring Fork Valley, Breeze has been on stage exploring disability and inclusion with 1A’s Jenn White, discussing the importance of local journalism for Aspen Institute’s Society of Fellows, and in conversation with Tockukwu Okafor, Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, and 2023 Aspen Words Literary Prize winner Jamil Jan Kochaifor Aspen Words. In February 2023, she took the stage at the Wheeler Opera House with NPR's Ailsa Chang to lead a conversation about making big career changes, representation in media, and the impact of investigative journalism. Breeze currently serves as President of the Rocky Mountain Community Radio coalition, and is an elected member of the Western States Public Radio Board of Directors. In 2024, she completed the Public Media Diversity Leaders Initiative (PMDLI) hosted by the Riley Institute at Furman University, and is a proud alumni of the Aspen Institute Hurst Leaders Forum.
2024 Community Read Beyond the Book: Hamlet Movie Weekend
Aspen Words in partnership with the Pitkin County Library Cinema presents a "Hamlet" movie weekend.
Join us in the Pitkin County Library Dunaway Community Meeting Room on Friday and Saturday, September 13 & 14 to watch back-t0-back silver screen renditions of "Hamlet" 1996 and 1948.
Exact times and registration details to come.
All Community Read Events are free and open to all.
2024 Community Read Beyond the Book: Hamlet Movie Weekend
Aspen Words in partnership with the Pitkin County Library Cinema presents a "Hamlet" movie weekend.
Join us in the Pitkin County Library Dunaway Community Meeting Room on Friday and Saturday, September 13 & 14 to watch back-t0-back silver screen renditions of "Hamlet" 1996 and 1948.
Exact times and registration details to come.
All Community Read Events are free and open to all.
2024 Community Read Book Pick-Up
Aspen Words and Pitkin County Library are thrilled to present the 2024 Community Read, which celebrates literature, unites readers around a work of fiction and ignites meaningful conversation on the vital social issues explored in the novel, Enter Ghost by Isabella Hammad, winner of the 2024 Aspen Words Literary Prize.
Join us at Pitkin County Library's front lawn to pick-up your free copy of the award-winning novel on Wednesday, July 17 between 12-1 p.m. and 4-6 p.m.
Drawing to a Close: Sustaining Inspiration Beyond the Conference
Thursday, June 27 4:15-5:30 p.m.
Drawing to a Close: Sustaining Inspiration Beyond the Conference
Speakers: Mahogany Browne, Jim Shepard, Karen Shepard, Angie Kim
Moderator: Adrienne Brodeur
https://support.aspeninstitute.org/event/2024-summer-words-public-panels/e585336
Craft Talk: The Plot Thickens: Creating Narratives that Hook Readers
Thursday, June 27 3:00-4:00 p.m.
Craft Talk: The Plot Thickens: Creating Narratives that Hook Readers
Speakers: Kelly Fremon Craig, Angie Kim
https://support.aspeninstitute.org/event/2024-summer-words-public-panels/e585336
Craft Talk: Conversation in Motion: Dialogue & Gesture in Character Development
Wednesday, June 26, 4:10-4:40 p.m.
Craft Talk: Conversation in Motion: Dialogue & Gesture in Character Development
Speaker: Peter Orner
https://support.aspeninstitute.org/event/2024-summer-words-public-panels/e585336
Craft Talk: From Life to Page: Harnessing Experience to Inform Your Writing (no matter the genre)
Wednesday, June 26, 3:30-4:00 p.m.
Craft Talk: From Life to Page: Harnessing Experience to Inform Your Writing (no matter the genre)
Speaker: Martha McPhee
https://support.aspeninstitute.org/event/2024-summer-words-public-panels/e585336
How Stories Stand: Crafting Narrative Architecture through Structure, POV, and Time
Tuesday, June 25, 3:30-4:30 p.m.
Speakers: Karen Lord, Will Schwalbe, Jim Shepard
Moderator: Regina Brooks
https://support.aspeninstitute.org/event/2024-summer-words-public-panels/e585336
Publishing Pathways: Understanding the Industry
Publishing Pathways: Understanding the Industry
Monday, June 24, 1:30-2:30 p.m.
Speakers: Sophie Cudd, Dawn Davis, Aram Fox, Mollie Glick
Moderator: Lisa Sharkey
Purchase your $30 pass to all 6 events:
https://support.aspeninstitute.org/event/2024-summer-words-public-panels/e585336
AYC: The Wordplay & Expression Summer Camp
The Wordplay & Expression Summer Camp
Open to incoming 6th-9th graders July 22-25 10 am- 2:30 pm Join Aspen Words and Jess Barnum at Aspen Youth Center Monday, July 22 – Thursday, July 25 for a Wordplay & Expression Summer Camp. This workshop will provide a place for you to focus on everything wordplay, writing, voice, creativity, and expression. You’ll self-discover, empower, and manifest your own creativity, confidence, intuition, success, and other magical magic that pops up for you along the way. You’ll engage in a variety of activities such as wordplay writing, reading for inspiration, and stage performances. There will be time to learn and create together as a group, and there will be time to independently create and showcase what you self-design. This camp is a place for you to be the inspiration that you are! Plan to pack a water bottle, snacks, SPF, a long sleeve top layer, a hat, sunglasses, a journal, and a laptop (optional). Registration is required! Price: $100 – Scholarships available *Registration is limited* CLICK HERE TO SIGN UPAWLP Ceremony Watch Party: Pitkin County Library
Please RSVP here!
Pitkin County Library is delighted to once again host a free livestream viewing party of the Aspen Words Literary Prize Awards Ceremony taking place at the Morgan Library in New York City on Thursday, April 25th. The event will be held in the Library’s Dunaway Community Room and doors will open at 4:00pm, with the livestream beginning at 4:30pm.
The finalists for the $35,000 Aspen Words Literary Prize, which honors a work of fiction that illuminates vital contemporary issues, are:
“Chain-Gang All-Stars” by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
“Temple Folk” by Aaliyah Bilal
“Witness” by Jamel Brinkley
“Enter Ghost” by Isabella Hammad
“The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store” by James McBride
Attendees at the Library’s viewing party will be able to delight in the evening’s most exciting aspects in real-time: a conversation with the finalist authors led by Mary Louise Kelly co-host of NPR’s award-winning show All Things Considered, and the live announcement of the $35,000 prize winner.
Refreshments will be served and prizes will be awarded for those who correctly guess the winning book.
AWN: Holiday Party
Thursday, December 19 at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623) 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
Join us for a festive and fun gathering. Choose a beloved book from your shelf to share with other members, or support a local business by visiting White River Books in Carbondale, Bookbinders in Basalt, or Explore Booksellers in Aspen to purchase one. Dedicate the book with your most valuable piece of writing advice, and wrap it up to share at the exchange. Refreshments provided.
AWN: Fairytales with Kim Bussing | Third Thursday in November
Thursday, November 21 at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623) 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Kim Bussing will ask AWN members to look at the psychology and craft of fairy tales to sharpen your manuscript, weave magic into both the fantastic and the mundane, and overcome roadblocks for captivating stories. CRAFT TALK DESCRIPTION Fairy tales are the most honest forms of storytelling. Through magic and metaphor, they confront what is otherwise unspeakable. Many of the stories we tell are built off the bones of fairy tales, from how we imagine characters, create intrigue, conjure settings, and confront what haunts us. Whether you’re writing memoir or science fiction, a children’s novel or a sweeping multigenerational drama, the tenets of fairy tales are integral to our approach to stories. This class will look at the psychology and craft of fairy tales to sharpen your manuscript, weave magic into both the fantastic and the mundane, and overcome roadblocks for captivating stories. It will both teach elements of craft while providing opportunities to generate new work in your prose genre of choice. ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR
Kim Bussing is an author of fairy tales for children and adults. Her first series, The Princess Swap, is forthcoming from Penguin Random House beginning in 2025. Her short fiction has won several grants and awards, and she’s helped tell stories for brands including Hilton, Marriott, Audi, and more. She holds an MFA from the University of Arizona, where she taught creative writing and was co-editor of Sonora Review. She regularly speaks on the power of storytelling, leads creative workshops, and coaches writers and entrepreneurs.
Email Mallory Kaufman for more information on becoming a member.
AWN: 45 Ways to Turn up the Tension with April Henry | Third Thursday October
Thursday, October 17 at Bonfire Coffee (433 Main St Carbondale), 6:30-8:30 p.m.
Join AWN for 45 Ways to Turn up the Tension: no matter what genre you’re writing, these 45 powerful and proven techniques will make readers feel like the pages are flying by.
Taught by April Henry, the New York Times bestselling author of 29 mysteries and thrillers for teens and adults.
ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR:
Edgar-award winning and New York Times-bestselling author April Henry knows how to kill you in a two-dozen different ways. She makes up for a peaceful childhood in an intact home by killing off fictional characters. There was one detour on April's path to destruction: when she was 12 she sent a short story about a six-foot tall frog who loved peanut butter to noted children's author Roald Dahl. He liked it so much he showed it to his editor, who asked if she could publish it in Puffin Post, an international children's magazine. By the time April was in her 30s, she had started writing about hit men, kidnappers, and drug dealers. She has published 29 mysteries and thrillers for teens and adults, with more to come. She is known for meticulously researching her novels to get the details right.
Email Mallory Kaufman for more information on becoming a member.
Edgar-award winning and New York Times-bestselling author April Henry knows how to kill you in a two-dozen different ways. She makes up for a peaceful childhood in an intact home by killing off fictional characters. There was one detour on April's path to destruction: when she was 12 she sent a short story about a six-foot tall frog who loved peanut butter to noted children's author Roald Dahl. He liked it so much he showed it to his editor, who asked if she could publish it in Puffin Post, an international children's magazine. By the time April was in her 30s, she had started writing about hit men, kidnappers, and drug dealers. She has published 29 mysteries and thrillers for teens and adults, with more to come. She is known for meticulously researching her novels to get the details right.
Email Mallory Kaufman for more information on becoming a member.
AWN: Member Reading with Feedback
Thursday, September 19 at Bonfire Coffee (433 Main St Carbondale), 6:30-8:30 p.m.
This month’s meeting is one of the more important ones in our schedule. It provides the opportunity for you to support your fellow writers and/or be supported. We will be having member readings with optional feedback. Refreshments provided.
Reading Rules:
Readings are 4 minutes max (yes, we enforce this). Please practice and time yourself.
Constructive feedback (1 minute max) per reviewer = what you liked best + one area you suggest the writer take another look at.
Email Mallory Kaufman for more information on becoming a member.
AWN: Summer soiree and open mic at the Village Smithy Restaurant
Details to come!
AWN: State of the Publishing Industry
Kevin Larimer, Editor in Chief of Poets & Writers magazine, will be in-person at this meeting to discuss the state of the publishing industry in 2024. He is also the coauthor of The Poets & Writers Complete Guide to Being a Writer: Everything You Need to Know About Craft, Inspiration, Agents, Editors, Publishing, and the Business of Building a Sustainable Writing Career (Avid Reader Press, 2020). He has given presentations and appeared on a number of panels on publishing at events such as the Library of Congress National Book Festival, the Sozopol Fiction Seminars, the Anguilla Lit Fest, the Slice Literary Writer’s Conference, the Iceland Writers Retreat, the Kauai Writers Conference, the Kachemak Bay Writers’ Conference, Poets Forum, the Bronx Book Fair, and the Writer’s Hotel.
AWN: Summer Soiree
AWN members join us for the Summer Soiree! Enjoy heavy appetizers, AWN’s new signature “Working Title” cocktail, a magic show by Doc Eason and an open mic.
AWN: Local Bookstore Panel
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Local Bookstore Panel
Thursday, March 21 @ 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
Local booksellers from BookBinders and White River Books will share their expertise for writers who hope to one day see their own work on the shelf.
Snacks, coffee, tea, beer and wine will be provided.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
Local Bookstore Panel
Thursday, March 21 @ 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
Local booksellers from BookBinders and White River Books will share their expertise for writers who hope to one day see their own work on the shelf.
Snacks, coffee, tea, beer and wine will be provided.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]AWN: Nisi Shawl teaches Writing the Other
Writing the Other: A Practical Approach has been the standard text on inclusivity in speculative fiction for over 20 years. Its co-author Nisi Shawl teaches writers helpful tools for the work of respectfully representing characters differing from their creators’ race, age, gender, etc.; they’ve previously appeared at Duke University, Spelman College, University of Hawaii Manoa and many other learning institutions.
Shawl is also a prolific short story author and multiple award-winning editor. Their most recent publication is Kinning, a sequel to their Nebula finalist alternate history Everfair. They live in Seattle, near a large lake filled with dangerous currents and millionaires.
Summer Words
Join us for our annual Summer Words Writers Conference in Snowmass, CO.
Book Ball
Aspen Words’ 2024 Book Ball promises to be a real page turner! Join author and keynote speaker Michael Lewis for an unforgettable experience with fellow literature lovers while enjoying cocktails and dinner at the historic Hotel Jerome. Book Ball raises critical funds to support Aspen Words programs including writers in the schools, scholarships for aspiring writers and community talks with Pulitzer Prize-winning authors.
BOOK BALL
Thursday, June 20, 2024
5:30-9:30 p.m. MT
ASPEN WORDS ANNUAL BENEFIT DINNER
Featuring
Michael Lewis
Thursday, June 20, 2024 Hotel Jerome Grand Ballroom
Leadership award to be presented to Tom Bernard.
Thank you to our host committee!
Lisanne and Jim Rogers Andrea and Chris Bryan Erin Lentz Ellie Knaus and Adam Sztykiel Sue and Ron Hopkinson Suzanne Bober and Steve Kahn
TICKETS ON SALE IN APRIL 2024 Sign up for our newsletter to get a notification when tickets go on sale
Aspen Words Literary Prize Ceremony
A conversation with the prize finalists and announcement of the 2024 winner.
Details:
Morgan Library & Museum 225 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016 Program: 6:30-7:30 p.m. ET & Livestreamed!FREE Registration:
https://support.aspeninstitute.org/event/2024-aspen-words-literary-prize-ceremony/e568007/register/new/select-tickets
Finalists:
Loretta Thurwar and Hamara “Hurricane Staxxx” Stacker are the stars of Chain-Gang All-Stars, the cornerstone of CAPE, or Criminal Action Penal Entertainment, a highly popular, highly controversial, profit-raising program in America’s increasingly dominant private prison industry. It’s the return of the gladiators and prisoners are competing for the ultimate prize: their freedom. In CAPE, prisoners travel as Links in Chain-Gangs, competing in death-matches for packed arenas with righteous protestors at the gates. Thurwar and Staxxx, both teammates and lovers, are the fan favorites. And if all goes well, Thurwar will be free in just a few matches, a fact she carries as heavily as her lethal hammer. As she prepares to leave her fellow Links, she considers how she might help preserve their humanity, in defiance of these so-called games, but CAPE’s corporate owners will stop at nothing to protect their status quo and the obstacles they lay in Thurwar’s path have devastating consequences. Moving from the Links in the field to the protestors to the CAPE employees and beyond, Chain-Gang All-Stars is a kaleidoscopic, excoriating look at the American prison system’s unholy alliance of systemic racism, unchecked capitalism and mass incarceration and a clear-eyed reckoning with what freedom in this country really means.
Pantheon – Random House
Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah is the New York Times-bestselling author of Friday Black. His work has appeared in The New York Times Book Review, Esquire, The Paris Review and elsewhere. He was a National Book Foundation’s “5 Under 35” honoree, the winner of the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award and the Saroyan Prize, and a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle’s John Leonard Award for Best First Book, along with many other honors. Raised in Spring Valley, New York, he now lives in the Bronx.
In Temple Folk, Black Muslims contemplate the convictions of their race, religion, economics, politics and sexuality in America. The 10 stories in this collection contribute to the bounty of diverse narratives about Black life by intimately portraying the experiences of a community that resists the mainstream culture to which they are expected to accept and aspire to while functioning within the country in which they are born. With an unflinching eye for the contradictions between what these characters profess to believe and what they do, Temple Folk accomplishes the rare feat of presenting moral failures with compassion, nuance and humor to remind us that while perfection is what many of us strive for, it’s the errors that make us human.
Simon & Schuster
Aaliyah Bilal was born and raised in Prince George’s County, Maryland. She has degrees from Oberlin College and the University of London School of Oriental and African Studies. She’s published stories and essays with The Michigan Quarterly Review and The Rumpus. Temple Folk is her first short story collection.
What does it mean to really see the world around you—to bear witness? And what does it cost us, both to see and not to see? In these ten stories, each set in the changing landscapes of contemporary New York City, a range of characters—from children to grandmothers to ghosts—live through the responsibility of perceiving and the moral challenge of speaking up or taking action. Though they strive to connect with, stand up for, care for and remember one another, they often fall short and the structures they build around these ambitions and failures shape their futures as well as the legacies and prospects of their communities and their city. In its portraits of families and friendships lost and found, the paradox of intimacy, the long shadow of grief and the meaning of home, Witness enacts its own testimony. Here is a world where fortunes can be made and stolen in just a few generations, where strangers might sometimes show kindness while those we trust—doctors, employers, siblings—too often turn away, where joy comes in snatches: flowers on a windowsill, dancing in the street, glimpsing your purpose, change on the horizon.
Farrar, Straus and Giroux – Macmillan
Jamel Brinkley is the author of A Lucky Man: Stories, which won the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence and was a finalist for the National Book Award, the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize for Debut Fiction, the Story Prize, the John Leonard Prize, and the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award. He has also been awarded an O. Henry Prize, the Rome Prize, a Wallace Stegner Fellowship, and a Lannan Foundation Fellowship. His work has appeared in The Paris Review, A Public Space, Ploughshares and The Best American Short Stories. He was raised in the Bronx and in Brooklyn, New York, and currently teaches at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop.
After years away from her family’s homeland, and healing from an affair with an established director, stage actress Sonia Nasir returns to Palestine to visit her older sister Haneen. Though the siblings grew up spending summers at their family home in Haifa, Sonia hasn’t been since the second intifada and the deaths of her grandparents. While Haneen stayed and made a life commuting to Tel Aviv to teach at the university, Sonia remained in London to focus on her burgeoning acting career and now dissolute marriage. On her return, she finds her relationship to Palestine is fragile, both bone-deep and new.
Once at Haneen’s, Sonia meets the charismatic and candid Mariam, a local director, and finds herself roped into a production of Hamlet in the West Bank. Soon, Sonia is rehearsing Gertude’s lines in Classical Arabic and spending more time in Ramallah than in Haifa with a dedicated group of men from all over historic Palestine who, in spite of competing egos and priorities, each want to bring Shakespeare to that side of the wall. As opening night draws closer it becomes clear just how many invasive and violent obstacles stand before a troupe of Palestinian actors. Amidst it all, the life Sonia once knew starts to give way to the daunting, exhilarating possibility of finding a new self in her ancestral home.
A stunning rendering of present-day Palestine, Enter Ghost is a story of diaspora, displacement, and the connection to be found in family and shared resistance. Timely, thoughtful, and passionate, Isabella Hammad’s highly anticipated second novel is an exquisite feat, an unforgettable story of artistry under occupation.
Grove Press – Grove Atlantic
Isabella Hammad is the author of The Parisian and Enter Ghost. Her writing has appeared in The Paris Review, The Nation, Granta, Conjunctions, and elsewhere. She was awarded the Plimpton Prize, an O. Henry Award, the Sue Kaufman Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Palestine Book Award and a Betty Trask Award, and her work has been supported by the Lannan Foundation and Columbia University’s Institute for Ideas and Imagination.
In 1972, when workers in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, were digging the foundations for a new development, the last thing they expected to find was a skeleton at the bottom of a well. Who the skeleton was and how it got there were two of the long-held secrets kept by the residents of Chicken Hill, the dilapidated neighborhood where immigrant Jews and African Americans lived side by side and shared ambitions and sorrows. Chicken Hill was where Moshe and Chona Ludlow lived when Moshe integrated his theater and where Chona ran the Heaven & Earth Grocery Store. When the state came looking for a deaf boy to institutionalize him, it was Chona and Nate Timblin, the Black janitor at Moshe’s theater and the unofficial leader of the Black community on Chicken Hill, who worked together to keep the boy safe. As these characters’ stories overlap and deepen, it becomes clear how much the people who live on the margins of white, Christian America struggle and what they must do to survive. When the truth is finally revealed about what happened on Chicken Hill and the part the town’s white establishment played in it, McBride shows us that even in dark times, it is love and community—heaven and earth—that sustain us.
Riverhead Books – Penguin Random House
James McBride is the author of the New York Times–bestselling Oprah’s Book Club selection Deacon King Kong, the National Book Award–winning The Good Lord Bird, the American classic The Color of Water, the novels Song Yet Sung and Miracle at St. Anna, the story collection Five-Carat Soul, and Kill ’Em and Leave, a biography of James Brown. The recipient of a National Humanities Medal and an accomplished musician, McBride is also a distinguished writer in residence at New York University.
Winter Words with Abraham Verghese – Paepcke Auditorium & Livestreamed
Buy Winter Words Tickets + Passes
IN-PERSON SEASON PASS: $80 Attend three in-person events at Paepcke Auditorium in Aspen and one in-person event at TACAW in Basalt
VIRTUAL SEASON PASS: $40 Join all four Winter Words events via livestream
INDIVIDUAL EVENT TICKETS: $30 Join any of the four events in-person
MORE WAYS TO PURCHASE TICKETS: Visit Explore Booksellers (221 E. Main St., Aspen), 11 a.m.- 6 p.m., Monday-Sunday, or stop by the Aspen Words lunchtime box office in the Red Brick Center for the Arts (110 E. Hallam St., Aspen), on Wednesdays from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
Bestselling author of “Cutting for Stone,” Abraham Verghese wraps up the 2024 Winter Words season, presenting his latest work, “The Covenant of Water,” also a New York Times bestseller, as well as an Oprah’s Book Club selection and the subject of a six-part podcast series hosted by Oprah Winfrey. This mystical work of fiction follows three generations of a family which experiences mysterious tragedy on the South Indian coast. Verghese will talk about his inspiration for the novel and how his deep and knowledgeable background in the medical field influences his work.
Moderator: Elisabeth Egan, author and a New York Times books editor Event location: Paepcke Auditorium in Aspen (1000 N 3rd St). Parking is limited. Doors: 5:30 p.m. | Talk: 6:00-7:00 p.m. | Book-signing to follow. Explore Booksellers will be selling books.ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Abraham Verghese, MD, MACP, is Professor and Linda R. Meier and Joan F. Lane Provostial Professor and Vice Chair for the Theory and Practice of Medicine at the School of Medicine at Stanford University. He is also a bestselling author of “Cutting for Stone,” and the recently released “The Covenant of Water” as well as a physician with a reputation for his focus on healing in an era where technology often overwhelms the human side of medicine. He received the Heinz Award in 2014 and was awarded the National Humanities Medal, presented by President Barack Obama, in 2015.
Born in Addis Ababa in 1955, the second of three sons of Indian parents recruited by Emperor Haile Selassie to teach in Ethiopia, he grew up near the capital and began his medical training there. When the emperor was deposed, Verghese briefly joined his parents in the United States, working as an orderly, or nursing assistant, in a series of hospitals and nursing homes before completing his medical education in India at Madras Medical College. His experiences of civil unrest and his time as a hospital orderly were to leave a significant mark on his life and work.
After graduation, he left India for a medical residency in the United States and, like many other foreign medical graduates, he found only the less popular hospitals and communities open to him, an experience he described in a 1997 New Yorker article, “The Cowpath to America.”
Abraham Verghese’s early years as an orderly, his care of terminal AIDS patients and the insights he gained from the deep relationships he formed and the suffering he witnessed were transformative. Though he wrote a seminal scientific paper, he felt the sometimes cold and unimaginative language of science could not begin to capture the nature of the experience for patients and families, nor did it convey his own feelings as he witnessed their journeys. These were the cumulative experiences around which his first book, “My Own Country: A Doctor’s Story,” is centered.
As his interest in writing grew, he took time off from medicine to study at the Iowa Writers Workshop, where he earned an MFA in 1991. Since then, his work has appeared in the New Yorker, Texas Monthly, Atlantic, The New York Times, The New York Times magazine, Granta, Forbes and The Wall Street Journal, among others.
After leaving Iowa, Verghese became professor of medicine and chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Texas Tech Health Sciences Center in El Paso, Texas, where he lived for the next 11 years. In El Paso, he finished his first book, chosen as one of the Best Books of the Year by TIME and later filmed for Showtime as “My Own Country,” directed by Mira Nair and starring Naveen Andrews. His second bestselling book, “The Tennis Partner: A Story of Friendship and Loss,” explored his friend and frequent tennis partner’s losing struggle with addiction. “The Tennis Partner” was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year.
In his writing and work, Abraham Verghese continues to emphasize the importance of bedside medicine and physical examination in an era of advanced medical technology. He contends that the patient in the bed often gets less attention than the patient data in the computer. His December 2008 article in the New England Journal of Medicine, “Culture Shock: Patient as Icon, Icon as Patient,” clearly lays out his viewpoint.
In speaking about his novel, “Cutting for Stone,” he also addressed the issue: “I wanted the reader to see how entering medicine was a passionate quest, a romantic pursuit, a spiritual calling, a privileged yet hazardous undertaking. It’s a view of medicine I don’t think too many young people see in the West because, frankly, in the sterile hallways of modern medical-industrial complexes, where physicians and nurses are hunkered down behind computer monitors and patients are whisked off here and there for all manner of tests, that side of medicine gets lost.”
Today, as a popular invited speaker, Verghese has more forums beyond his writing in which to share his views on patient care. He speaks widely on the subject, as well as giving talks and readings from his books. At the Stanford School of Medicine, he has led the effort to establish the Stanford 25, where residents and students are taught techniques and skills to recognize the basic phenotypic expressions of disease that manifest as abnormal physical signs.
Thanks to our partners at Explore Booksellers and Bookbinders Basalt, Aspen Words members receive 20% off Winter Words book titles.
Thank you to our season presenting sponsors
Diane & William Hunckler
Beth & Josh Mondry
Helen & Wally Obermeyer
Thanks also to our local partners:
Winter Words with Safiya Sinclair – TACAW in Basalt & Livestreamed
Buy Winter Words Tickets + Passes
IN-PERSON SEASON PASS: $80 Attend three in-person events at Paepcke Auditorium in Aspen and one in-person event at TACAW in Basalt
VIRTUAL SEASON PASS: $40 Join all four Winter Words events via livestream
INDIVIDUAL EVENT TICKETS: $30 Join any of the four events in-person
MORE WAYS TO PURCHASE TICKETS: Visit Explore Booksellers (221 E. Main St., Aspen), 11 a.m.- 6 p.m., Monday-Sunday, or stop by the Aspen Words lunchtime box office in the Red Brick Center for the Arts (110 E. Hallam St., Aspen), on Wednesdays from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
What is it like to leave everything you know behind? Join Aspen Words at TACAW for Winter Words with memoirist and award-winning poet Safiya Sinclair, as she discusses her new book, “How to Say Babylon.” This Read with Jenna TODAY show book club pick examines the author’s rigid Rastafarian upbringing and her efforts to break free from the patriarchal structure which defined her youth.
Moderator: Mitzi Rapkin, host of First Draft: A Dialogue on Writing Event location: TACAW 400 Robinson Street Basalt, CO 81621. Parking is limited. Doors: 5:30 p.m. | Talk: 6:00-7:00 p.m. | Book-signing to follow. Explore Booksellers will be selling books.ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Safiya Sinclair was born and raised in Montego Bay, Jamaica. She is the author of the memoir “How to Say Babylon,” forthcoming from Simon & Schuster in October 2023. She is also the author of the poetry collection “Cannibal,” winner of a Whiting Writers’ Award, the American Academy of Arts and Letters’ Metcalf Award, the OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Poetry, the Phillis Wheatley Book Award and the Prairie Schooner Book Prize in Poetry. “Cannibal” was selected as one of the American Library Association’s Notable Books of the Year and was a finalist for the PEN Center USA Literary Award and the Seamus Heaney First Book Award in the UK and was longlisted for the PEN Open Book Award and the Dylan Thomas Prize.
Sinclair’s other honors include a Pushcart Prize, fellowships from the Poetry Foundation, Civitella Ranieri Foundation, the Elizabeth George Foundation, MacDowell, Yaddo, the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference and the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, Granta, The Nation, Poetry, Kenyon Review, the Oxford American and elsewhere.
Thanks to our partners at Explore Booksellers and Bookbinders Basalt, Aspen Words members receive 20% off Winter Words book titles.
Thank you to our season presenting sponsors
Diane & William Hunckler
Beth & Josh Mondry
Helen & Wally Obermeyer
Thanks also to our local partners:
Winter Words with Sasha DiGiulian – Paepcke Auditorium & Livestreamed
Buy Winter Words Tickets + Passes
IN-PERSON SEASON PASS: $80 Attend three in-person events at Paepcke Auditorium in Aspen and one in-person event at TACAW in Basalt
VIRTUAL SEASON PASS: $40 Join all four Winter Words events via livestream
INDIVIDUAL EVENT TICKETS: $30 Join any of the four events in-person
MORE WAYS TO PURCHASE TICKETS: Visit Explore Booksellers (221 E. Main St., Aspen), 11 a.m.- 6 p.m., Monday-Sunday, or stop by the Aspen Words lunchtime box office in the Red Brick Center for the Arts (110 E. Hallam St., Aspen), on Wednesdays from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
World-champion climber Sasha Digiulian joins Aspen Words to present excerpts from her memoir, “Take the Lead: Hanging On, Letting Go, and Conquering Life’s Hardest Climbs,” her first book on the subjects of navigating a male-dominated sport, dealing with body dysmorphia in the age of social media, and channeling a competitive spirit into entrepreneurship. If you love Tommy Caldwell’s “Push,” this evening of literature, the examination of risk-taking, and stimulating conversation is not to be missed. Moderator: Caroline Tory, Aspen Words managing director Event location: Paepcke Auditorium in Aspen (1000 N 3rd St). Parking is limited. Doors: 5:30 p.m. | Talk: 6:00-7:00 p.m. | Book-signing to follow. Explore Booksellers will be selling books.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sasha DiGiulian is a world champion climber and three-time U.S. national champion. At thirty years old, she’s traveled to over fifty countries and accomplished over thirty first female ascents. In 2016, she graduated from Columbia University with a focus on journalism and business and in 2022 became the founder and CEO of SEND Bars, a superfood nutrition bar company. In addition to being featured in dozens of magazines and new media pieces, she wrote for many publications including Outside magazine, National Geographic, Rock and Ice, Self, Seventeen and Crave. Sasha is an outspoken environmental activist and a global athlete ambassador for Right to Play, Protect Our Winters and Up2Us Sports. She served on the board of the Women’s Sports Foundation for six years and travels globally for expeditions, speaking engagements, sporting events and commercial work.
Thanks to our partners at Explore Booksellers and Bookbinders Basalt, Aspen Words members receive 20% off Winter Words book titles.
Thank you to our season presenting sponsors
Diane & William Hunckler
Beth & Josh Mondry
Helen & Wally Obermeyer
Thanks also to our local partners:
Holiday Party & Book Exchange
Thursday, December 21 @ 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
Dawn your holiday best and celebrate the season with a festive book exchange. Bring a new or lightly used wrapped book to trade with fellow AWN members. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided.
An Evening with Adrienne Brodeur, Author of “Little Monsters”
Thursday, September 21 @ 6:30 - 7:30 p.m.
In-Person at TACAW
(400 Robinson St, Basalt, CO)
Details to come!
Writing Workshop: Let the Writing Make the Rules – with Kate Milliken
Join Aspen Words for a one-day intensive in Pitkin County Library's Dunaway Community Room (120 N. Mill St. Aspen, CO) led by author Kate Milliken.
Kate Milliken is the Iowa Award winning author of the short story collection “If I’d Known You Were Coming” and the novel, “Kept Animals,” which was long listed for the 2020 First Novel Prize and hailed by the New York Times Book Review as a novel of “deft insights and gorgeous, sensual description.” Kate has written television and commercial advertising and taught on behalf of UCLA, the University of Michigan, and The Center for Fiction. Her work has appeared in O, the Oprah Magazine, the Santa Monica Review, Zyzzyva, and Fiction, among others and her work has been supported by Tin House, the Vermont Studio Center, Sewanee Writers Workshop, and the Ragdale Foundation. Kate is currently a freelance editor and writing coach and she lives with her family in the Midwest.
Registration for this workshop is now closed, all available spots have been filled. Please reach out to Mallory.Kaufman@aspeninstitute.org to add your name to the waitlist.
WORKSHOP DETAILS When we talk about (and teach) creative writing we often speak in terms of the rules of craft. While it is important to have a knowledge of what has worked time and again to create compelling stories, in order to write a truly singular story you will need to move beyond convention. Often students of creative writing are so aware of how a story is supposed to be told that they fail to hear the wisdom that is already present in their own writing; its subtle whispers about how it wants to be told. In this one day intensive, through close readings of unconventional narratives, generative writing prompts, and an in-depth discussion of our own projects, we will deepen our understanding of the voice, the shape, and the themes that our work seeks to articulate. Whether you come to our meeting with just an idea of the story you want to tell or you have a full rough draft in your desk, our time together will embolden you to take the next step—from getting the first pages written to embarking on a needed revision—with a deeper connection to the material and a greater authority, moving you beyond crafting a story to making it your very own. ABOUT THE AUTHORKate Milliken is the Iowa Award winning author of the short story collection “If I’d Known You Were Coming” and the novel, “Kept Animals,” which was long listed for the 2020 First Novel Prize and hailed by the New York Times Book Review as a novel of “deft insights and gorgeous, sensual description.” Kate has written television and commercial advertising and taught on behalf of UCLA, the University of Michigan, and The Center for Fiction. Her work has appeared in O, the Oprah Magazine, the Santa Monica Review, Zyzzyva, and Fiction, among others and her work has been supported by Tin House, the Vermont Studio Center, Sewanee Writers Workshop, and the Ragdale Foundation. Kate is currently a freelance editor and writing coach and she lives with her family in the Midwest.
Author Talk with Brittany Penner, August Writer in Residence
In-Person at The Village Smithy
(26 S 3rd St., Carbondale, CO)
Join us for an in-person author talk featuring Brittany Penner, an Indigenous Métis writer and family physician at Village Smithy in Carbondale (26 S. 3rd St.). Brittany will be in conversation with Daniel Shaw, local writer and program partner.
This event is free and open to all. Registration is requested.
DOORS: open at 6:00 pm.; conversation will begin at 6:30 p.m.
SEATING: On the porch of the Village Smithy, seating is first come, first served.
Summer Soiree
In-Person at Village Smithy (26 S 3rd St, Carbondale, CO)
Come together with fellow AWN members to celebrate the accomplishments of local writers and enjoy a summer evening. More details to come!
The State of the Publishing Industry – Part of the Summer Words Craft Panel Series
Purchase a pass for $30 to gain access to all events in the series.
Publishing experts will help you navigate the book business, give advice on how to get published, and discuss challenges and opportunities facing the industry today. Panelists: Millicent Bennett, Kirby Kim and Dana Murphy This event is free to summer words students! Your student badge serves as your pass. ABOUT THE SPEAKERS Millicent Bennett
Millicent Bennett, Executive Editor, acquires primarily literary fiction, upmarket book club fiction, and voice-and character-driven narrative nonfiction, including memoir, with an emphasis on marginalized and underrepresented voices. She joined Harper in 2021 as part of the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt integration, where she served as editorial director, and after seventeen years as editor at PRH, S&S, and Hachette.
Kirby Kim
Kirby Kim, a native of Los Angeles, California, attended Pomona College and got his JD at UC Hastings College of the Law. Kirby has worked for Charlotte Sheedy Literary, Vigliano Associates, WME, and Janklow & Nesbit. He represents both literary and commercial authors. He’s most interested in receiving manuscripts that straddle the fence a bit, with upmarket expression combined with a genre element or plot device. When it comes to straight literary work, he’s alternatively drawn to rich, sweeping stories that try to encompass a time or a place or tightly written, narratively innovative stories or voices with award potential. His commercial interests include thrillers, mysteries, and speculative fiction. He also represents a range of nonfiction, working with leaders and journalists in the areas of science, culture, business, and current affairs. Some of his clients include award-winning science fiction writer Ted Chiang, Edgar Award winner James A. McLaughlin, Bloomberg Businessweek journalist Lauren Etter, rapper/actor Common, two-time National Book Award winner in the Philippines Gina Apostol, and debut novelists Ling Ling Huang and Adam White. Kirby is currently a board member of the Asian American Writers Workshop. He lives in Phoenix, Arizona, with his wife and two kids.
Dana Murphy
Dana Murphy represents a wide range of fiction and nonfiction for both adult and teen readers. She joined Trellis Literary Management in 2022, after a decade building her list at The Book Group. Books by her clients have been New York Times and international bestsellers and chosen as Barnes & Noble Discover, Book of the Month, Read with Jenna, Indie Next and NYT Editors’ Choice picks. Across genre, Dana falls in love at the story and line-level simultaneously. She’s always searching for language and plot that move in equal measure, and novels with a soft heart, a sense of humor, and a deep earnest affection for their characters and story. In non fiction, she loves well-researched cultural criticism — especially if it reckons with “low” and “unworthy” pop culture in a smart, serious way or interrogates the power structures that shape our collective understanding of “good” taste. 
Practice Your Pitch Workshop
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
This is a great opportunity to practice talking about your work. Even if you are not ready to pitch your book/essay/poem to publishers/agents, developing a pitch is a great way to determine what is most important in your writing project, which helps you with editing and even finishing the work. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
Member Readings
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
Short readings from members’ work will fill the first hour. Slots are limited. To read at this meeting (not required), either email Mark Tompkins (MarkLTom@icloud.com) signup when you arrive. Readers can receive feedback from the group if desired; indicate your preference when you sign up.
The second hour will be personal writing time.
Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided.
Non-AWN members are welcome to attend their first meeting to see if they want to join
The How To’s of a Non-fiction Book Proposal
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
From 6;30 – 7:30 p.m. Janklow & Nesbit literary agent, Melissa Flashman will ZOOM in to discuss the how to’s of a non-fiction book proposal. Q&A will follow. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided. The second hour will be personal writing time.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Melissa Flashman is a literary agent at Janklow & Nesbit representing award-winning and best-selling fiction and nonfiction. In nonfiction, she is particularly interested in conversation-changing books including journalism, science, technology, business/finance/economics, memoir/narrative, essays and cultural criticism. Melissa’s authors have won numerous awards including the Pulitzer, the National Book Critic Circle Award, the Whiting Award, the Windham Campbell Prize, the Rona Jaffe Award, the Hugo Award, n + 1 writer’s fellowship, The Robert B Silvers Prize, and The Nation’s Ridenhour Prize among others.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
State of the Publishing Industry
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
Gillian Blake, SVP, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Crown and Currency will be in-person at this meeting to discuss the state of the publishing industry. Hear from a longtime publishing professional on the state of the industry in 2023. Moderated by Adrienne Brodeur, author and Executive Director of Aspen Words. Q&A will follow. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Gillian Blake is SVP, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Crown and Currency. Previously she was Editor-In-Chief at Henry Holt. She also acquires and edits select titles. Her editorial focus is on narrative nonfiction, history, memoir, science, current events, popular culture, and biography. She has edited many prize-winning and bestselling authors, including Michelle Obama, Elizabeth Kolbert, Matthew McConaughey, Susan Cain, Tina Brown, Adrian Nicole Leblanc, Ai Weiwei, Andy Cohen, Elton John, Jaron Lanier, Peggy Orenstein, Pamela Paul, Steven Johnson, Bari Weiss, Russell Brand, Rob Lowe, Brandi Carlile, Kate Walbert, Anthony Doerr, A.J. Jacobs and Harold Bloom.
ABOUT THE MODERATOR
Adrienne Brodeur is the author of the memoir, “Wild Game,” which was a Best Book of the Year by Amazon, NPR, People, and the Washington Post and is in development as a Netflix film and the novel “Little Monsters,” which will publish in July 2023. She founded the literary magazine, “Zoetrope: All-Story” with filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, was an acquiring editor at HMH Books, and served as a judge for the National Book Award. Her essays have appeared in Glamour, O Magazine, The National, The New York Times, Vogue, and other publications. She has been the Executive Director of Aspen Words since 2016.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
Gillian Blake is SVP, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Crown and Currency. Previously she was Editor-In-Chief at Henry Holt. She also acquires and edits select titles. Her editorial focus is on narrative nonfiction, history, memoir, science, current events, popular culture, and biography. She has edited many prize-winning and bestselling authors, including Michelle Obama, Elizabeth Kolbert, Matthew McConaughey, Susan Cain, Tina Brown, Adrian Nicole Leblanc, Ai Weiwei, Andy Cohen, Elton John, Jaron Lanier, Peggy Orenstein, Pamela Paul, Steven Johnson, Bari Weiss, Russell Brand, Rob Lowe, Brandi Carlile, Kate Walbert, Anthony Doerr, A.J. Jacobs and Harold Bloom.
ABOUT THE MODERATOR
Adrienne Brodeur is the author of the memoir, “Wild Game,” which was a Best Book of the Year by Amazon, NPR, People, and the Washington Post and is in development as a Netflix film and the novel “Little Monsters,” which will publish in July 2023. She founded the literary magazine, “Zoetrope: All-Story” with filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, was an acquiring editor at HMH Books, and served as a judge for the National Book Award. Her essays have appeared in Glamour, O Magazine, The National, The New York Times, Vogue, and other publications. She has been the Executive Director of Aspen Words since 2016.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
Craft workshop with Rachel Weaver
Thursday, January 19 @ 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. | at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
Rachel Weaver will provide a short, targeted craft workshop virtually for the first hour. The second hour will be personal writing time. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided.
WORKSHOP DETAILS
7 Ingredients for a Compelling Plot: so often as writers we get loads of feedback on small sections of our novels or memoirs. But what about how the book is working as a whole? It’s easy to get lost in the trees and not be able to see the forest. This class will give you the tools you need to take a step back, see the book as a whole, and begin to identify where the tension is sagging, where your reader will start thinking about all that laundry they should probably get started on, and what to do about it. We’ll talk about seven key ingredients that work to create a book a reader has a hard time putting down. Whether you have a lot or a little plot in your novel or memoir, this is a class that will help you strengthen that through thread.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rachel Weaver is the author of the novel Point of Direction which Oprah Magazine named a Top Ten Books to Pick Up Now. She is on faculty at Regis University’s low-residency MFA program, and at Lighthouse Writers Workshop where she won the Beacon Award for Teaching Excellence in 2018.
Rachel Weaver is the author of the novel Point of Direction which Oprah Magazine named a Top Ten Books to Pick Up Now. She is on faculty at Regis University’s low-residency MFA program, and at Lighthouse Writers Workshop where she won the Beacon Award for Teaching Excellence in 2018.
A Conversation About Memoirs with authors Adrienne Brodeur and Courtney Maum
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
The first hour will be a conversation with memoirists Courtney Maum ("The Year of the Horses") and Adrienne Brodeur ("Wild Game") about their careers and writing life. They will be joining us virtually.
The second hour will be for AWN members to connect. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Adrienne Brodeur is the author of the memoir, “Wild Game,” which is in development for film. During her 15 years in the publishing industry, she founded the literary magazine “Zoetrope: All-Story” with filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, was an acquiring editor at Harcourt and HMH Books, and served as a judge for the National Book Award, among other literary contests. Her essays have appeared in Glamour, O Magazine, The National, The New York Times, Vogue and other publications. She has been with Aspen Words since 2013.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
All attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app.
Courtney Maum is the author of five books, including the groundbreaking publishing guide "Before and After the Book Deal" and the memoir "The Year of the Horses," chosen by The Today Show as the best read for mental health awareness. A writing coach and educator, Courtney's mission is to help people hold on to the joy of art-making in a culture obsessed with turning artists into brands. You can sign up for her publishing tips newsletter and online masterclasses at CourtneyMaum.com
Adrienne Brodeur is the author of the memoir, “Wild Game,” which is in development for film. During her 15 years in the publishing industry, she founded the literary magazine “Zoetrope: All-Story” with filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, was an acquiring editor at Harcourt and HMH Books, and served as a judge for the National Book Award, among other literary contests. Her essays have appeared in Glamour, O Magazine, The National, The New York Times, Vogue and other publications. She has been with Aspen Words since 2013.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
All attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app. Member Readings
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
Short readings from members’ work will fill the first hour. Slots are limited. To read at this meeting (not required), either email Mark Tompkins (MarkLTom@icloud.com) signup when you arrive. Readers can receive feedback from the group if desired; indicate your preference when you sign up. The second hour will be personal writing time. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided.
Non-AWN members are welcome to attend their first meeting to see if they want to join.
All attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app.
Practice Your Pitch Workshop
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
This is a great opportunity to practice talking about your work. Even if you are not ready to pitch your book/essay/poem to publishers/agents, developing a pitch is a great way to determine what is most important in your writing project, which helps you with editing and even finishing the work. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
All attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app.
AWN Member Reading
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
Short readings from members’ work will fill the first hour. To read at this meeting (not required), either email aspenwritersnetwork@gmail.com or signup when you arrive. Readers can receive feedback from the group if desired; indicate your preference when you sign up. The second hour will be personal writing time.
Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided.
Non-AWN members are welcome to attend their first meeting to see if they want to join.
All attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app.
Workshop: The Magic of Sudden, Micro and Flash: Very Short Stories led by Pam Painter
ALL DAY SUNDAY, OCT. 23
Sunday, Oct. 23 @ 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Pam will be teaching the workshop in-person. Space is limited. AWN members receive a discount ($40 for AWN members; $90 for non-members). WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION: This workshop will explore the elements of stories under 750 words. To begin, we’ll discuss the concept of the unstable situation. Plot and conflict sit like boulders on these tiny stories although the tension in an unstable situation is the only drama necessary. And because first sentences are windows into worlds, we’ll write a lot of first sentences in a short amount of time. Next, we’ll experience the mystery and magic of prompts and how they arrive out of nowhere and immediately will conjure up six or seven new stories. Then we’ll discover how the words “what if” can lead to startling ways to continue and even complete a story. Finally, we’ll ride some of these new story beginnings to satisfying ends. The class will be fast-paced and exciting and most of all productive. I’ll send you home with a list of my favorite Flashanthologies and collections, places to submit your work, and inspiring quotes by writers to serve as future signposts. We have a whole day to write. A luxury. Let’s do it. All attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app.
In-Person at Pitkin County Library (120 N Mill St, Aspen)
Workshop: Writing Dialogue that Works led by Tiffany Tyson
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623) & Virtual
Tiffany Tyson will be teaching the workshop virtually. Both in-person and virtual attendees will be able to join.
WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION:
Dialogue can be a powerful tool for characterization, motivation, plot advancement, and emotion, or it can be a clunky thing that bogs down the action and takes the reader out of the story. How can you be sure your dialogue elevates rather than deflates? We’ll look at examples of effective dialogue, discuss what makes these examples work, and use what we learn to practice writing dialogue on our own. In the process, we’ll explore subtext, rhythm, pacing, attribution, and more. Students should bring their preferred writing tools.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
All attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Tiffany Quay Tyson will lead this workshop virtually. AWN members are invited to participate online or in-person at Bonfire Coffee Company in Carbondale.
Tiffany Quay Tyson will lead this workshop virtually. AWN members are invited to participate online or in-person at Bonfire Coffee Company in Carbondale.
Author Talk with July Writer in Residence Jamaica Baldwin
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
July writer in residence, Jamaica Baldwin will speak about her writing life, her upcoming book “Bone Language” and her current poetry project which traces the legacy of her female ancestors from the deep south to the west coast. As a bi-racial woman she is particularly interested in how the legacy of colonialism and the global plantation machine impacted her female ancestors on both sides of the racial divide.
All attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jamaica Baldwin (she/her) hails from Santa Cruz, CA by way of Seattle. Her first book, “Bone Language,” will be published by YesYes Books in 2023. Her work has appeared, or is forthcoming, in Prairie Schooner, World Literature Today, The Adroit Journal and The Missouri Review, among others. She is a 2021 National Endowment for the Arts Fellow, winner of the 2021 RHINO Poetry editor’s prize and winner of the 2019 San Miguel de Allende Writers Conference Contest in Poetry. Her writing has been supported by Hedgebrook, Furious Flower and the Jack Straw Writers program. Jamaica is currently pursuing her PhD in English at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln with a focus on poetry and Women’s and Gender Studies.
ABOUT THE MODERATOR
Lindsay DeFrates is a former freelance writer and current PR and Media Specialist with the Colorado River District. She lives in Glenwood Springs with her three kids and a husband, and when she is not dragging them all outside for the adventure du jour, she is revising her science fiction novel. www.lindsaydefrates.com
Jamaica Baldwin (she/her) hails from Santa Cruz, CA by way of Seattle. Her first book, “Bone Language,” will be published by YesYes Books in 2023. Her work has appeared, or is forthcoming, in Prairie Schooner, World Literature Today, The Adroit Journal and The Missouri Review, among others. She is a 2021 National Endowment for the Arts Fellow, winner of the 2021 RHINO Poetry editor’s prize and winner of the 2019 San Miguel de Allende Writers Conference Contest in Poetry. Her writing has been supported by Hedgebrook, Furious Flower and the Jack Straw Writers program. Jamaica is currently pursuing her PhD in English at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln with a focus on poetry and Women’s and Gender Studies.
ABOUT THE MODERATOR
Lindsay DeFrates is a former freelance writer and current PR and Media Specialist with the Colorado River District. She lives in Glenwood Springs with her three kids and a husband, and when she is not dragging them all outside for the adventure du jour, she is revising her science fiction novel. www.lindsaydefrates.comCraft workshop with Rachel Weaver
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
*Note: this is the 2nd Thursday of the month
Rachel Weaver will provide a short, targeted craft workshop for the first hour. The second hour will be personal writing time. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided.
WORKSHOP DETAILS
20 Questions to Strengthen Your Novel or Memoir
This class will cover twenty important questions that will help you identify and strengthen weak points in your novel or memoir with regards to structure, characterization, arc, scene work and thematic elements. This is appropriate for writers of all genres at any point in the drafting process. Open to fiction and memoir writers of all levels.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
All attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rachel is the author of the novel Point of Direction, which Oprah Magazine named a Top Ten Book to Pick Up Now. She is on faculty at Regis University’s low-residency MFA program, and at Lighthouse Writers Workshop where she won the Beacon Award for Teaching Excellence in 2018
Rachel is the author of the novel Point of Direction, which Oprah Magazine named a Top Ten Book to Pick Up Now. She is on faculty at Regis University’s low-residency MFA program, and at Lighthouse Writers Workshop where she won the Beacon Award for Teaching Excellence in 2018
State of the Publishing Industry
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
Todd Doughty, SVP, Publicity and Communications at Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group will be in-person at this meeting to discuss the state of the publishing industry. This is an incredible opportunity to hear from a longtime publishing professional on the state of the industry. Moderated by Adrienne Brodeur, author and Executive Director of Aspen Words. Q&A will follow. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Todd Doughty is currently SVP, Publicity and Communications, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and has worked at Penguin Random House for more than two decades. A graduate of Southern Illinois University (Carbondale) and former bookseller, he lives with his partner in Westchester County, New York.
ABOUT THE MODERATOR
Adrienne Brodeur is the author of the memoir, “Wild Game,” which is in development for film. During her 15 years in the publishing industry, she founded the literary magazine “Zoetrope: All-Story” with filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, was an acquiring editor at Harcourt and HMH Books, and served as a judge for the National Book Award, among other literary contests. Her essays have appeared in Glamour, O Magazine, The National, The New York Times, Vogue and other publications. She has been with Aspen Words since 2013.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
All attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app.
Todd Doughty is currently SVP, Publicity and Communications, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and has worked at Penguin Random House for more than two decades. A graduate of Southern Illinois University (Carbondale) and former bookseller, he lives with his partner in Westchester County, New York.
ABOUT THE MODERATOR
Adrienne Brodeur is the author of the memoir, “Wild Game,” which is in development for film. During her 15 years in the publishing industry, she founded the literary magazine “Zoetrope: All-Story” with filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, was an acquiring editor at Harcourt and HMH Books, and served as a judge for the National Book Award, among other literary contests. Her essays have appeared in Glamour, O Magazine, The National, The New York Times, Vogue and other publications. She has been with Aspen Words since 2013.
This meeting is for AWN members only; interested writers are welcome to join at the meeting.
All attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app.In-Person Group Meeting: Writer Introductions and Optional Readings
In-Person at Bonfire Coffee Company (433 Main Street, Carbondale, CO 81623)
Think Aspen Writers’ Network might be a good fit for you? Learn about the exciting in-person programs AWN has planned for 2022, weigh in on what you’d like to see from the program this year, and meet your fellow Roaring Fork Valley writers. Snacks, coffee, tea, beer, and wine will be provided. An interest poll will be conducted for future meeting topics.
After introductions, there will be short readings from interested members. Slots are limited.
To read at this meeting (not required), either email Mark Tompkins (MarkLTom@icloud.com) or sign up when you arrive. Readers can receive feedback from the group if desired; indicate your preference when you sign up.
Non-AWN members are welcome to attend their first meeting to see if they want to join; however, all attendees must upload their proof of vaccination in advance on the ReturnSafe app.
Aspen High School Only – Heather Hansman in the Schools
"Powder Days" author Heather Hansman will visit Aspen High School to discuss her book and career as a ski journalist and environmental writer. This event is for AHS students and faculty; not open to the general public.
Schools interested in learning about Aspen Words' Writers in the Schools programming should reach out to Madeline Liption (Madeline.lipton@aspeninstitute.org).
Presentation by Author Rachel Weaver
Kick off the new year by joining AWN for a zoom meeting with author and editor Rachel Weaver as she shares tips on writing in 2022, and meet other local writers from the Roaring Fork Valley. You will also learn more about the exciting in-person programs AWN has planned for 2022, starting in February! This virtual meeting is open to anyone interested in AWN. All genres welcome.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rachel Weaver is the author of the novel Point of Direction which Oprah Magazine named a Top Ten Books to Pick Up Now. She is on faculty at Regis University’s low-residency MFA program, and at Lighthouse Writers Workshop where she won the Beacon Award for Teaching Excellence in 2018.
Rachel Weaver is the author of the novel Point of Direction which Oprah Magazine named a Top Ten Books to Pick Up Now. She is on faculty at Regis University’s low-residency MFA program, and at Lighthouse Writers Workshop where she won the Beacon Award for Teaching Excellence in 2018.The quarterly meetings in 2021, thus far, include a virtual self-publishing workshop; monthly Third Thursday meetings on Zoom; and one-on-one agent/editor meetings at Aspen Autumn words.
AWN – Third Thursdays Zoom Writing Meetups
Third Thursday of (almost) Every Month
7-8 p.m. MT
Writing is a solitary endeavor that can leave us feeling isolated. What has this meant for you in your writing life during this time when we’ve all been asked to isolate and stay at home?
The theme for these 60-minute informal gatherings is “Communing”. We ask that writers (that are comfortable) to share 1-3 ways that they’re nourishing their creativity and writing practice with the group. Feel free to bring a beverage!
Agent/Editor Consultations at Autumn Words
The Gant in Aspen
Featuring representatives from the top publishing houses and literary agencies. Each year, AWN members receive information on how to sign up for a private consultation and how to submit their work.
Practice Your Pitch
Red Brick Center for the Arts
To help prepare for the upcoming agent, editor meetings at Aspen Autumn Words we are hosting “Practice Your Pitch” at the Red Brick Center for the Arts (Dance Studio space). This session is for AWN members who are interested in the art of talking about and selling their book, whether you’re just beginning to think about the publishing industry or have a meeting scheduled with an agent or editor at Autumn Words this fall. We’ll practice with one another, go over some tips and hear some input from Adrienne Brodeur, executive director of Aspen Words and former editor at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Members should reach out to Marie Chan (marie.chan@aspeninstitute.org) to indicate your interest and confirm your AWN membership is up to date
Self Publishing Zoom Workshop
Self-publishing workshop with editor, typographer and designer
Barbara Scott (Be). Engage in a conversation about the process and design stages of taking your project from manuscript to finished book, via Amazon. This workshop is intended to answer writers’ questions about what it takes to self-publish a book.
Barbara Scott (Be). Engage in a conversation about the process and design stages of taking your project from manuscript to finished book, via Amazon. This workshop is intended to answer writers’ questions about what it takes to self-publish a book.The quarterly meetings in 2020 included a virtual revision focused workshop; access to the virtual “Life of a Book” Summer Words panel presented exclusively to AWN members and workshop students; as well as a two-day virtual personal essay workshop. Monthly community meetups (Third Thursdays) began in January in-person at Here House, Aspen and moved to Zoom in May.
AWN – Third Thursdays Zoom Writing Meetups
Writing is a solitary endeavor that can leave us feeling isolated. What has this meant for you in your writing life during this time when we’ve all been asked to isolate and stay at home?
The theme for these 60-minute informal gatherings is “Communing”. We ask that writers (that are comfortable) to share 1-3 ways that they’re nourishing their creativity and writing practice with the group. Feel free to bring a beverage!
Personal Essay Workshop (Virtual Workshop)
Led by award-winning author Marcelo Hernandez Castillo, this generative workshop explored the powerful possibilities of memory, experience and reflection inherent in the personal essay. Through a close study of traditional and more experimental expressions of narrative, participants worked towards creating and workshopping original work that was nuanced, complex and effectively written. The group looked at work from writers like Maggie Nelson, Rebecca Solnit, Gloria Anzaldúa and others for inspiration. Participants were asked to look closely at their own lives to find the tremendous potential hidden in their stories.
The Life of a Book (Virtual Panel)
It takes a village to publish a book. This presentation will offer a behind-the-scenes look at everything that goes into turning a manuscript into a book — from the acquisition process to selecting a cover, distribution channels and the thousand other decisions that are essential to publishing a book.
Presenters: Becky Saikia-Wilson, SVP, trade associate publisher at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt + Lauren Wein, editorial director at Avid Reader Press.
Writing is Rewriting (Virtual Workshop)
Are you lost in the hazy fog of revision? Not sure what to do next? Have you been cutting and pasting, rewriting and moving things around and moving them back? It’s easy to get caught in addressing surface problems rather than evaluating the backbone of the story from a crafting standpoint. The most difficult part of writing is often revisions. In this spring workshop, Rachel Weaver (“Point of Direction”) will discuss concrete stages of revision, help you figure out where you are and what’s next, and discuss solid techniques to make your revisions as efficient and effective as possible. You will leave class with a long checklist of things you’ve done, and things you’ve got left to do.
The quarterly meetings in 2019 included a writer-focused marketing talk; a session where members practiced pitching their book; and a one-on-one meeting with an agent or editor at Summer Words.
How to Write a Page-Turner: A Workshop for Fiction, Memoir + Narrative Nonfiction Writers
Red Brick Center for the Arts
High tension is probably the No. 1 reason readers keep reading. Whether you’re writing fiction, memoir or narrative nonfiction, if you can keep your reader on the edge of his or her seat by creating and maintaining tension throughout scene after scene, that reader will stay up way too late reading your book and tell all his friends to go out and buy it. In this workshop, we’ll delve into the interplay of all the elements that raise tension and create conflict and explore how to craft your story to capitalize on each within scenes as well as across your entire plotline. The workshop will include short readings, craft discussion and lots of writing prompts.
Special price for Aspen Writers’ Network members: $40. Non-members: $95.
Registration is closed and the workshop is at capacity. Please email Ellie Scott to be added to the waitlist.
Agent/Editor Consultations at Summer Words
The Gant in Aspen
Featuring representatives from the top publishing houses and literary agencies. Each spring, AWN members receive information on how to sign up for a private consultation and how to submit their work.
Practice Your Pitch
Aspen Institute Campus
This session is for anyone who’s interested in the art of talking about and selling a book, whether you’re just beginning to think about the publishing industry or want to meet with an agent at Summer Words this June. Members discuss tips for crafting and delivering the right message, while also taking the opportunity to practice their own pitches with Aspen Words Executive Director Adrienne Brodeur and local author Scott Laser.
Quarterly meetings in 2018 included a writer-focused talk; a one-on-one meeting with an agent or editor at Summer Words; a fall writing workshop; and an opportunity for networking amongst local writers. Detailed event information will be available soon.
Publishing Talk with Novelist Amy Meyerson
Bookbinders in Basalt
Novelist Amy Meyerson will discuss everything you need to know about what happens after you finish writing your book–but before it’s published. She’ll talk about what’s it like to work with an agent + editor and how to market a book as a first-time author, among other topics.
Fiction Writing Workshop with Daryl Gregory
Pitkin County Library in Aspen
Award-winning author Daryl Gregory’s college acting teacher once told him that you can’t play running from a bear—you can only run to what’s going to save you: the tree, the shotgun or that spot just past your slower brother Louie. In this workshop you’ll learn how to create compelling stories by focusing on the essence of drama: characters who want something specific and fail to get it–or realize it’s not what they needed after all. Through exercises and discussion you’ll learn practical techniques for creating dynamic plots, believable characters and scenes that matter.
Agent/Editor Consultations at Summer Words
The Gant in Aspen
Featuring representatives from the top publishing houses and literary agencies. Each spring, AWN members receive information on how to sign up for a private consultation and how to submit their work.
Spring Workshop: How to Write Great Dialogue
Pitkin County Library in Aspen
Learn the essentials of crafting compelling dialogue in a one-hour workshop presented by award-winning novelist Tiffany Quay Tyson, who will join us via Skype from Denver, where she teaches at Lighthouse Writers Workshop. The session will include lots of practical advice as well as hands-on exercises.
Thank You
Thank you to the 2024 steering committee: Mark Tompkins, Lisanne Rogers, Eme Cole, and Andrea Chacos. Thank you to our program sponsor Bonfire Coffee Company.
