SF Creative Writing Institute

Dear Writers, It’s hard to know what to say, after such a turbulent month in our culture and in our hearts and minds. If you’re a sensitive, thinking, artistic person like me, you’ve probably been consumed by the news the past few weeks and your attention has been particularly on Minnesota and all of the drama that is happening there among the ICE raids. It’s hard to be an artist and not be affected by the world around us. In fact, as artists, it’s our job to notice very keenly what is going...

Dear Writers, Despite many challenges, 2025 has been a year of progress for SF Creative Writing Institute. Thanks to amazing creatives like you, we've grown our class enrollment by 25% – hitting our goal for the year. Here are just a few highlights: SFCWI was awarded a SVANE Culture Forward Grant for 2026, and our students and instructors achieved recognition: Tongo Eisen-Martin was awarded the very prestigious Windham Campbell Prize from Yale University and released an album of his...

Finding the Golden Thread Poetry reading & mini workshop An evening w/ Alexandra Kostoulas Join us tomorrow, Sat, December 6, 7pm at Project Artaud Studios. Finding The Golden Thread: Poetry Reading Discussion & Mini-workshop Founder of SF Creative Writing Institute Free RSVP Dear Writers, If you're free tomorrow evening and in the City of SF looking for something writing-related to do, I hope you'll join me for this reading and mini-workshop that I am presenting at Project Artaud. The Golden...

Dear Writers, How do you keep going amid all the chaos from a noisy life? It feels to me – and maybe this is only me—but saying it anyway in case this applies to you too, I feel overwhelmed often by the state of the world. And – also the state of the world – and all of my to-do’s that still keep going during this time, makes my life crazy sometimes because it causes me to deal with more drama than normal. And sometimes my attention is bombarded by a thousand things, and I am sandwiched...

Dear Writers, Happy Friday! I'm writing to let you know that we have a few classes coming up at SF Creative Writing Institute that you may like: I hope you're having a great fall. Remember to keep writing. Warmly, Alexandra Kostoulas, Founder & Executive Director, SF Creative Writing Institute Winter Workshops at SFCWI Revolutionary Poetry Workshop -Online Instructor: Tongo Eisen-Martin Tuesdays/ Thursdays 6:00pm-7:30pm PST Jan. 20-Feb. 19, 2026 | Online $450 Sign Up Advanced Prose Workshop -...

Dear Writers, Happy Fall. Our very own Introduction to Fiction Instructor Nick Mamatas has just published his book Kalivas! Nick Mamatas' latest novel, Kalivas, came out this week on Clash Books. Nick teaches Intro to Fiction with SF Creative Writing Institute on Saturday afternoons. In this science-fiction revision of Shakespeare’s The Tempest, Kalivas lives in solitude on the Farallon Islands, off the San Francisco Bay, until the Master and his daughter M colonize his lonely realm. Kalivas,...

SF Creative Writing Institute Join us tomorrow...at 11am PDT in Zoom Dear Writers, I hope you're having a beautiful start to fall. Tomorrow we have Paul Corman-Robert's new workshop, Poetry without Borders live in zoom/online. Welcome seasoned poets and beginners alike. Write in form or break all the rules. Poetry without Borders 📌 Poetry Without Borders An online workshop with Paul Corman-Roberts — co-founder of a BeastCrawl, the East Bay Literary festival, poetry publisher, and respected...

Dear Writers. Here’s a pep talk. You can do it. Even if you put your writing down for a long time. You can still pick it up. I believe in you. Writing is thinking. Poetry is prayer. Writing can be both a shield a sword, a salve or a salvo. Writing can be a whisper, or a manifesto. Sharing your work brings a sense of community. Don’t let the bad actors of the world rob you of your joy. Or keep you from writing. I’ve almost given up so many times. And then like a riptide, something draws me...

Q: Do the students have to stay inside and be quiet the whole day long? A: No! We have a quiet space and a talking space. Because students have different learning styles and respond differently to different environments, we go outside, look at nature, work in quiet spaces, talk our ideas out, and even write to music. We have a quiet space and a talking space. We all have different learning styles that are activated when we go outside, look at nature, work in quiet spaces, talk our ideas out...

As an artist, I look back at my own teen years and I think, “Thank God, that’s over!” But I forget that the most important foundation of who I am now as a writer came to me when I was a teen in the form of a creative writing workshop. These classes helped me with my self-esteem, kill boredom, and they even helped me break the barrier in academics, I was able to use my passion for writing, to turn my grades around and get into a competitive UC. Who knew?! A lot of new writers feel insecure...