Write-Ins
Survive Your Story x Center for Creative Writing Silent Write-In
Each month, I host two 90-minute silent write-ins on Zoom in conjunction with the Center for Creative Writing. You need to register to join, but you can drop in (or out!) at any point to write or work in quiet community. A prompt will be offered. Survive Your Story paid subscribers have the option of submitting prompt-based writing for feedback to Shawna within one week of each session. Our write-ins are a judgment-free zone.
The details:
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting(s).
2nd Saturdays from 12PM-1:30PM EST
4th Saturdays from 3PM-4:30PM EST
Register in advance using the above links.
Park & Write
I also host a Zoom write-in every Friday from 4PM-5:00PM EST through Literary Liberation. Learn more and sign up here.
Regularly Offered Courses
The Center for Creative Writing offers year-round online creative writing mentorship in six-week sessions designed to help you get to the page and thrive there. We believe writing is for anyone, and that teaching “how to write” is as much about helping you explore your unique creative writing process as it is about providing lessons on craft and content. Our community-oriented, strengths-focused approach will help you build a more fruitful and sustainable writing practice.
I am available as a mentor at the Center, and have several years of experience teaching the following base courses, which are still available in their original form as well as within our mentorship model.
Writing through Trauma to Truth, Parts 1&2
Writing about trauma is often an attempt to make sense and meaning; to unravel what can’t easily be felt or said; to stitch torn cloth together again with well-crafted words that make, from struggle, something good and beautiful and true – for yourself and for future readers. Read the full course description.
Writing the Wave, Parts 1-4
Writing the Wave is an organic approach to writing that will jump-start your creative process and free the writer inside you—even if you’re just starting or have been struggling for years. Working with both your creative and analytical mind through a series of imagination-boosting techniques, the course has helped thousands of aspiring writers get to the page and thrive there. Read the full course description.
Generative Writing
Generative writing sessions are designed to get you writing. Enjoy the benefits of weekly deadlines and regular, in-depth feedback from your teacher as you develop new or existing projects. These sessions follow the same format, pricing (includes a free consultation), and schedule as our regular six-week courses, but without formal assignments. Read the full description.
Private Writing Guidance
Whether you want to polish or publish your writing, the Center offers expert, one-on-one guidance for the next stage of the process such as first reader, copy editor, manuscript midwife or content editor. Read the full description.
All courses run for six weeks and utilize the Wet Ink platform. Please consult the 2026 session dates on the Center website.
Sliding Scale Options
I recognize that not everyone is able to access the classes I teach through various institutions. For that reason, in addition to these regularly scheduled courses, I take 2-3 private students per month for courses priced on a sliding scale of $125-300. These sessions typically last 6 weeks and are scheduled with me via email. Generally, I reserve these spaces for queer, BIPOC or differently-abled individuals, and includes anyone on a fixed income. Course goals are curated to client need. Coursework is assigned and completed through email exchange. However, video conferencing is an option.
I also offer sliding-scale book-length manuscript reviews at a rate of $250-$350 including a one-hour Zoom or in-person meeting as well as in-line notes and written feedback.
Payment can be made through Paypal, Venmo, CashApp or Zelle. Email me using the form on my Contact Page to set up one of these sessions.
If these rates cannot work for you, please reach out. I am open to trade, payment plans, and sometimes have patrons who are willing to provide scholarships for those who need additional aid. No questions asked.
Retreats, Workshops & Classes
“I Exist Here” is my first course hosted through my personal Substack, Survive Your Story. It is only available to paid subscribers. Head to the above link to learn about accessibility options so you can engage this exclusive content.
“I Exist Here” is a course that utilizes the techniques of expressive writing to explore the times, places, and roles that continue to define us. In this course, we will follow a three-part approach to all writing, beginning with the facts, moving to the emotions, and followed by a self-check-in. This method is proven to improve both mental and physical health outcomes. As a rule, we will write four days a week for at least 20 minutes. Topics do not have to be traumatic in nature, although you are welcome to explore themes of grief and pain along with joy and growth.
This course poses a central question: What is alive inside you? When you examine what zings, you are looking at a place you dwell. This course will ask you to identify those moments, examine them both with distance and up close, and to determine how they inform your existence. You will also be prompted to reframe narratives that do not serve the person you would like to be. Sometimes, where we choose to stop existing is just as informative as where we are existing.
Professional Development Workshops
Some professions work with others’ stories as a matter of course. Think of first responders, nurses, social workers, therapists, prison faculty and volunteers, and others. If you are part of an organization that handles sensitive stories, you know that sometimes these stories are hard to let go of. I teach a specialized program for letting go of those stories that stay with us, focusing on secondary trauma and the use of expressive writing as a tool for its release. This workshop is designed for groups of 10 or fewer, and can be in-person or online. Sessions run 2-3 hours and are curated to the needs of your group.
Rates start at $500 with a sliding scale for non-profits and smaller organizations. Larger groups and travel incur different costs. Please reach out to me for more information.
Collaboration & Hosting
I am open to scheduling collaborative workshops with queer, BIPOC, and differently-abled individuals. If this is you, please reach out to me via the form on my Contact Page. I’d love to hear more about what you think we can do together.
Likewise, I would love to hear from you if you know of a place you would love to see my courses offered.
In short, if you’d like to work with me, reach out to me. I’d love to hear from you!