About this Event
Ten Thousand Words Presents: The Studio
Six weeks. One piece of writing. A real draft.
You have the idea.
The story you've been thinking about in the shower. The essay you've started three times. The memoir chapter sitting in a folder. The story you keep telling your friends you should write down.
This is where you actually write it.
The Studio is a six-week, small-group writing experience designed to help you take one piece of work from idea to substantial draft—with structure, accountability, thoughtful feedback, and a community of writers alongside you.
- No waiting for inspiration.
- No writing alone in a vacuum.
- No endless tinkering without knowing what you're trying to fix.
Just six weeks of focused attention on the work.
Over six weeks, you'll develop one meaningful piece of writing—an essay, memoir/personal piece, short story, reported piece, chapter, or another substantial work. You'll move from idea, through direction, into draft, feedback, and revision. You'll have a finished piece at the end. And you'll do it all with a small group of writers who are doing the same thing.
This isn't a writing class. The Studio is a working room.
We'll spend our time figuring out what your piece is trying to do, helping you get it onto the page, looking at it through other readers' eyes, and making deliberate choices about what comes next.
You'll write between sessions, submit your work, get feedback, and revise.
The work will progress.
Here's how it works:
- Week 1, Find the story: We'll identify the central question, tension, idea, or story underneath your intitial concept. You'll leave with a clear working premise and direction.
- Week 2, Find the heart: We'll identify the matieral that matters most and begin turning your idea into actual writing.
- Week 3, Build the architecture: We'll look at the structure, pacing, scenes, turning points, and what the reader needs to know-- and when. You'll leave with a working architecture and a substantial draft underway.
- Week 4, See your work through others' eyes: You'll share a substantial portion of your work with the group and receive structured peer feedback, along wiht developmental feedback from Lela. You'll leave with clear revision priorities.
- Week 5, Make the piece stronger: We'll turn feedback into action and focus on the changes that will have the greatest impact. You'll leave with a significantly revised draft.
- Week 6, Bring it home: We'll look at the piece as a reader would experience it-- opening, ending, pacing, voice, clarity, and what's still unfinished. You'll leave wiht a developed draft and a clear plan for what comes next.
And then we'll read. We'll close the experience with a small, informal (and optional) Ten Thousand Words reading and celebration, where you can share an excerpt of your work with the group and invited guests.
- You don't need to consider yourself a "real writer."
- You don't need a publishing plan.
- You don't even need to know exactly what your piece is about yet.
You do need:
- An idea.
- A willingness to write.
- A willingness to share.
- And a commitment to doing the work.
The Studio is designed for writers at different stages and with different kinds of stories. What matters is that you have something you want to explore, and you're ready to give it your attention.
Details
🗓️ October 10 – November 14, 2026
📍 Hybrid: In-person + Virtual (Google Meet)
⏱ Session Schedule
-- Saturday 10/10: 9AM - noon IN-PERSON
-- Tuesday 10/13: 6:30PM - 8:30PM VIRTUAL
-- Tuesday 10/20: 6:30PM - 8:30PM VIRTUAL
-- Saturday 10/24: 9AM - noon IN-PERSON
-- Tuesday 11/3: 6:30PM - 8:30PM VIRTUAL
-- Tuesday 11/10: 6:30PM - 8:30PM VIRTUAL
-- Saturday 11/21: 10AM - noon IN-PERSON Celebration
💲 $497
🎟 Limited to 8 writers (minimum of 3)
Your experience includes:
- Six weeks of guided development
- In-person and virtual sessions
- Independent writing time and structured assignments
- Peer feedback
- Developmental feedback from Lela
- Final reading and celebration
- A small community of writers doing the work alongside you
- A finished draft -- not necessarily perfect. Not necessarily publication-ready. But real, substantial, and yours.
Event venue & nearby stays
Romance Diamond Co. Jewelers Rogers, 3712 South Pinnacle Hills Parkway, Rogers, United States
Concerts, fests, parties, meetups — all the happenings, one place.