12 Washington Writing Resources
Posted by David Duhr in 
The great state of Washington is next up in our State Writing Resources series. My goodness, we’re down to the final five states (or states and districts. Spoiler alert.) We’ve come a long way since Alabama, gang!
Washington, known as the Evergreen State, was the forty-second state admitted to the Union, which happened in 1889, a full thirty years after Oregon, the Beaver State. Make your own jokes.
Some heavy-hitters from the Washington writing world include the late, great Raymond Carver, the wildly popular Debbie Macomber, and Margaret Craven (I Heard the Owl Call My Name). Tom Robbins, who I got to mention in our Virginia post, lives, and has written most of his great books, in Washington.
Presented in no particular order, here are 12 Washington writing resources, from conferences to local critique groups to literary magazines. If you are an Evergreen Stater or are planning to become one, these are some organizations you might want to take a peek at.
1) Hedgebrook
Located on Whidbey Island near Seattle, Hedgebrook offers one of the few residency programs exclusively dedicated to supporting the creative process of women writers.
The preeminent independent publisher of poetry; fosters the work of emerging, established and world-renowned poets for an expanding audience.
A literary journal dedicated to publishing the best poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction.
Biannual journal founded in 1977 and publishing contemporary fiction, nonfiction and poetry, as well as interviews with some of the most notable authors in contemporary literature, including Marilynne Robinson, Stuart Dybek, Aimee Bender and Robert Bly.
5) Port Townsend Writers’ Conference
With a focus on community and rigorous attention to craft, it offers morning and afternoon workshops, residencies, guided freewrites, and readings and lectures by vital, contemporary writers.
6) SPLAB
Promotes spoken word performance, develops the audience for poetry, develops resources to support poetry, and builds community through shared experience of the spoken and written word. Based in Seattle, it hosts an annual poetry festival, as well as workshops and readings.
Provides classes, events and resources for writers, readers and audiences in and around Seattle.
8) Pacific Northwest Writers Association
Provides the opportunity to connect with other writers, visit the Writers’ Cottage, and attend an annual writers’ conference.
9) Women in Digital Journalism
A professional association of editors, writers and producers in new media. Monthly meetings in Seattle to network and discuss matters of common interest.
10) Washington Center for the Book
Through book discussions and other literary and humanities programs, the Center strives to broaden and deepen appreciation for literature that expands the world of the reader.
This popular event came to Seattle for the first time in 2012 and features some of the Northwest’s most groundbreaking and beloved writers onstage.
12) Write on the Sound Writers’ Conference
A long-standing annual conference for writers of fiction, nonfiction and poetry.
Help us add to this list, Washingtonians! Do you run a local writing group or a lit journal we should be aware of? Feel free to share info and links in the comments section below.