Writers With Attitude is a free, creative writing workshop founded in New York City. We are a collective of experienced and amateur writers of all mediums, with a passion for storytelling and improving our craft. We meet biweekly on Sundays from 1:00-3:00pm to discuss all things from literature, writing, the world, and everything in between. We pride ourselves on being a safe space where new and returning members feel respected, heard, and supported in sharing their writing and ideas.

Each year, we focus on a different theme. This year, our theme is Love. We will explore and challenge our notions and experiences of love through the lens of bell hooks’ book, All About Love: New Visions. Through readings, discussions, and reflections, we will critically engage with hooks' insights on the complexities, ethics, and potentials of love in all forms of writing (poetry, fiction, non-fiction, essays and more). We will also read from other authors, engage in various texts and videos, that examine love in different ways in literature.

Week 1: INTRO TO THEORY OF LOVE

Week 2: GROWING PAINS

Week 3: LOVE IN PRACTICE

Week 4: LOVE AS A CULTURAL CRITIQUE

Week 5: FAMILY TIES

Week 6: REAL LOVE, NO MARY J BLIGE

Week 7: ROMANCE VS. LOVE

Week 8: LOVE IS TO CELEBRATE LIFE

Week 9: HEALING IN LOVE

Week 10: TRANSFORMATIVE WRITING/REFLECTION

Furthermore, we will host open mics and give many opportunities for writers to edit and share their writing in conjunction with our workshop. Our discussions will allow us to explore many themes in our writing, improve character development, challenge cultural and social commentary, and overall be a form of self discovery. At the end of the workshop, we will compile the members writing into our annual literary magazine, LUNA. 

The workshop is open for anyone ages 21+. No matter your writing style or preferred genre, we all come together for our affinity of putting a good story on paper.

What makes W.W.A unique?

Most workshops charge a fee to be member, but we thrive on being easily accessible and equitable for everyone without cost and commitment. Writing is a joy we want everyone to experience and harness whether you’re an experienced, amateur or newfound writer looking to express yourself. We also pride ourselves on reading most of our texts from BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ writers throughout the year and being a safe space for everyone to feel comfortable in expressing their thoughts and writing without bias.

How would you describe a typical meeting?

Our meetings begin at 1:00pm. We ask members to join ten minutes prior to settle in so we may begin promptly on time. Our meetings are only two hours long, so it’s important that we are able to fit so much into such little time.

From 1:00-1:30, we are discussing the assigned reading, afterwards, we write based off of the day’s writing prompt or activity. We take a brief intermission at 2:00 and spend the last hour sharing our writing and/or peer editing.

What events do you host annually?

To begin the literary year, we host a Meet & Greet, where we introduce ourselves to the new and returning members with refreshments, a panel about the writing workshop and a Q&A. We also host an open mic for writers to share their latest work and have the opportunity to mingle with other creatives and network. Finally, we host a literary magazine release for our annual literary magazine, LUNA. Each issue includes fiction, poetry, essays, graphic art and interviews submitted from the members and other miscellaneous writers.