Centering the mentors who 'center your writing'

Greetings, writers.

Center Your Writing has seen a lot of growth on this platform, and so many of you have shared your own stories and writing lives with us that we thought it was time to introduce ourselves both as a collective and as individuals.

The Center for Creative Writing began in 1990 with in-person instruction. Courses moved online beginning in 2000, and the founder brought other instructors on board in 2014 before transferring directorship to Stacia Fleegal and retiring in 2017. Since then, hundreds of writers have enjoyed instruction in the craft of writing, plus guidance and support for their writing practices, first in group courses and now in one-on-one generative writing, manuscript development, and guided self-publishing sessions, as well as small-group virtual writing retreats. We host a free monthly Zoom for registered community members to read to one another and receive quick feedback on their latest work, and we do free consultations for anyone who wants to write but isn’t sure where or how to start.

These offerings, this community, exist because of the commitment of its mentors, all of whom are passionate, published writing professionals. We believe anyone can benefit from a writing practice, and everyone who wants to write should have access to spaces that help them do so. Here is a little introduction to each of the mentors who make the Center what it is today.

Shawna has been teaching writing for more than 18 years. Her areas of expertise are personal essays, longform nonfiction, short stories, giving the silenced a voice, and reframing challenging narratives, and she loves witnessing writers step into their power by reclaiming their voice. Shawna says, “My curiosity drives the deep connections I make with writers and their work. I come from a history of judgment. I have been shamed, silenced, and violenced. As a mentor, I work to support you in removing the barriers you are experiencing.” Read Shawna’s full bio.

Teneice has been teaching writing for 19 years and counting, and her areas of expertise include poetry, fiction, chapbook-length manuscripts, creative research, and tarot/spiritual practice for generative writing and meditative practice. In addition to teaching writing, literature, and composition, she has also spent more than 15 years as an editor and publisher. “Even if you aren’t interested in publishing,” she says, “my extensive experience in craft, theme, and narrative helps me to provide both line edits and structural guidance to work at any stage of development.” Read Teneice’s full bio.

Stacia has been directing the Center for nine years and teaching writing for more than 12 years, and her areas of expertise are personal essays, poetry, hybrid forms, and longform nonfiction. She relishes the opportunity to help writers identify and build upon their unique voices and perspectives so that their writing sounds like them. “I will show you what you do best on the page and how to do more of it,” she says. “I will help you structure fragments of writing into a whole, be it one story or a full-length book. I will keep you accountable and help you build a writing routine that will serve you long after we’ve finished working together.” Read Stacia’s full bio.

Helena has been teaching writing and art for 30 years, and her areas of expertise are shortform memoir, fiction, writing for children, line editing, and manuscript development. When Helena works with you, your writing becomes as important to her as her own. “When someone brings me a story, or writes a story [in session with me] that may have been knocking on the door to be written,” she says, “I can often see that there is another layer underneath the words of the draft, something the writer is trying to express.” Read Helena’s full bio.

Jennifer is on hiatus after 10 years of mentoring fiction writers with the Center. Please subscribe to Liminal with Jennifer Steil and read her novels Exile Music and The Ambassador’s Wife, and her memoir, The Woman Who Fell From the Sky.

One thing all of us have in common besides a love of the written word is a belief in the value of stories and storytelling. All our work through the Center is about helping writers get to the page and thrive there. We know our writers won’t be in sessions with us forever, so we invest time and energy into their work while they’re with us and help them build a sustainable practice to keep them writing long after.

This publication, Center Your Writing, requires all of us. We rotate writing our Wednesday posts—Shawna’s book reviews, Teneice’s tarot readings, Helena’s reflections, and Stacia’s presentation of a monthly talking point or Q&A with one of our writers. Those writing prompts we send out every Friday? We collaborate on them, each of us writing and contributing a dozen or so prompts every few months to keep that content fresh for everyone. All of this in addition to our mentoring work keeps us very busy!

In a little over a year, we’ve built a community of 18,500+ subscribed readers, and we’ve done it without turning on paid subscriptions. Until now.

For paid subscribers, we’re offering something brand new: a collection of 20 next-level writing prompts specifically designed to help you with works-in-progress. Starting today, all monthly paid subscribers will receive those prompts as a download. For those who want even more, an upgrade to an annual subscription will get you the prompts download, plus a free evaluation or edit of up to five pages of writing (within 30 days of subscribing) and, to keep your momentum going, a discount on a generative writing session—the same discount we give to all writers who return for more than one session (and that’s most of them!).

At this time, we don’t want to paywall our posts, so free subscribers are welcome to keep reading them all and enjoying the Monday motivational quotes and Friday prompts. We plan to start hosting some chats for you as well, to answer your questions about process, practice, publishing, and anything else that’s on your mind about your writing lives.

Writing is solitary, but being a writer shouldn’t be. We need community to keep going, and you are part of ours. Thanks for being here, and happy writing.

If you haven’t already, subscribe to get reviews, author Q&As, craft talks, writing advice, personal essays, tarot readings for writers, and more every Wednesday, plus a motivational quote by a literary great in your inbox every Monday morning and a new writing prompt every Friday. If you seek mentorship, join us in the next six-week writing session beginning Sept. 8. Come write with us.