Instructor: Story Circle Network
Maximum Enrollment: 100
Class Term: 10/10/2026 - 10/10/2026
Tuition/Fees
SCN Member: $49
Non-Member: $69
Class description
Join us for a full day of workshops, conversations, and time to write. Learn from experienced presenters, connect with fellow writers, and leave with fresh ideas and new pages. (Note: Even if you can’t attend the whole event, recordings of all sessions will be made available to registered attendees after the event.)
Class communication method
This is a Zoom-based event. Zoom links will be emailed before the conference. All registered attendees will receive access to recordings.Class outline
Note: All times are listed in the Central Time Zone (CT).
8:45am-9:00am: Welcome & Opening Remarks
9:00am-10:00am: Keynote: How to Evoke Empathy in Your Readers
~ Presenter: Lori Duff ~
Award-winning author and trial attorney Lori Duff shares how the same techniques lawyers use to understand opposing arguments and persuade juries can help writers create more compelling characters and airtight plots. Drawing on more than 30 years of courtroom experience and a career as an acclaimed novelist, Lori demonstrates how empathy is a writer’s greatest superpower, offering practical strategies to deepen character development, strengthen conflict, and connect more powerfully with readers.
10:10am-11:10am: The River of Reflection: The Thoughts, Memories, and Obsessions That Bring Characters to Life
~ Presenter: Judy McClure ~
Jump into the current and surface with new strategies that support reflection in your writing. Reflection helps deepen our readers’ knowledge of our characters and narrators while also solidifying theme and voice. Those musings, confusions, and obsessions of our characters allow readers to connect with their humanness. Through examples of reflective writing, craft instruction, and writing prompts, we will strengthen the humanity of your words.
11:15am-11:45am: Guided Quickwrite & Share
~ Facilitator: Len Leatherwood ~
Put the morning’s ideas into practice through guided writing prompts, with optional sharing.
12:00pm-1:00pm: Panel Discussion with our 2025 Sarton & Gilda Award Winners
~ Moderator: Len Leatherwood ~
Excerpts from our Q&A with SCN’s 2025 Sarton & Gilda Award-winning authors will play during lunch. This pre-recorded session will also be available afterward as part of the conference recordings.
1:10pm-2:10pm: Turning Lyrical Essays into Memoir
~ Presenter: Lisa Braxton ~
In this generative workshop, participants will read examples of lyrical essays that became part of larger works—memoirs in essays. Through writing prompts and techniques discussed, participants will craft rough drafts of their own lyric essays and explore how to anchor those standalone pieces in a single, overarching narrative arc or theme for a memoir. Participants will receive supportive feedback and be inspired with concrete ideas for further writing.
2:20pm-3:20pm: The Power of Authentic Voice
~ Presenter: Molly Dwyer ~
Brilliant writing affects us much as music does, in ways that can’t be explained. Voice is the writer’s instrument. Voice refers to our style, the quality that makes our writing unique. It conveys our attitude, personality, and character. In this workshop we will learn how develop the quality and character our voice needs to capture the reader’s imagination. There will be a slide show and writing exercises to help us on our journey.
3:30pm-4:30pm: Write the Story Only You Can Tell
~ Presenter: Sheena Yap Chan ~
Many writers spend years learning the craft of storytelling, studying structure, and improving their writing skills. Yet knowing how to write is often not what keeps a story unwritten. The hidden challenge is the internal editor that questions whether a story is important enough, personal enough, or worthy of being shared. This interactive workshop introduces Human Readiness™ as the inner work that supports authentic creative expression. Through guided writing exercises, sharing, and reflection, participants will identify the beliefs that hold them back, reconnect with their authentic voice, and practice writing with greater honesty and self-trust.
4:30pm-5:00pm: Closing Discussion and Conference Wrap-Up
Instructor bio
In order of appearance:
Lori B. Duff is the award-winning author of the Fischer at Law series. An attorney since 1994, she writes legal fiction with the voice of experience. She’s married, has two overachieving children who have fled the nest, and spends her free time spoiling her rescue dog in Loganville, GA. You can learn more about her work at https://www.loriduffwrites.com
Judy McClure is a teacher and writer of creative nonfiction that focuses on identity, nature, relationships, education, and gender issues. You can find her work at Assignment Literary Magazine, WBUR’s Edify, 805LitMag, Miniskirt Magazine, and others. She is the winner of the Friends of the Chautauqua Writers’ Center prose prize, is a graduate of Grub Street’s Essay Incubator, and lives in Boston with her wife and their dog Rosy. You can learn more about her work at: mcclurewrites.my.canva.site/
Len Leatherwood, the Program Coordinator for SCN’s Online Classes program, is a nationally recognized writing coach and award-winning author. Len has published work in flash fiction and nonfiction and has been nominated for two Pushcart Prizes. Her novel, Hope in a Time of Dying, won the American Fiction Award in the LGBTQ+ category. You can learn more about her work at https://lenleatherwood.com/
Lisa Braxton is the author of the multi-award winning memoir, Dancing Between the Raindrops: A Daughter’s Reflections on Love and Loss. She’s also the author of the award-winning novel, The Talking Drum. She is a fiction and nonfiction instructor at Grub Street, the nation’s largest independent center for creative writing and a Kimbilio fiction writing fellow. You can learn more about her work at https://lisabraxton.com/
