Chuckanut Writers Conference

Ready to pitch your book? In addition to providing invaluable information during conference sessions and masterclasses, these four are available for one-on-one pitch sessions with conference attendees! 📚 Laura Mazer - Agent, Wendy Sherman and Associates Laura Mazer is a WSA literary agent focused on adult nonfiction in psychology, personal development, culture, and reported ideas, along with select commercial and upmarket fiction. Formerly an acquisitions editor, she guides authors in shaping distinctive, high-impact proposals and manuscripts designed to resonate with editors, serve readers, and succeed in a competitive market. @lauramazer 📚 Elise McHugh - Senior Acquisitions Editor, University of New Mexico Press Elise McHugh is a senior acquisitions editor for the University of New Mexico Press and teaches classes on publishing and creative writing through Hugo House. She is founder of Publish and Perish, a coaching and teaching organization. She holds an MA in creative writing from the University of New Mexico. 📚 Donald Maass - Donald Maass Literary Agency Donald Maass is a longtime literary agent, author and teacher of fiction craft. He is the author of Writing the Breakout Novel and The Emotional Craft of Fiction. He has presented hundreds of craft workshops around the world and online. @donaldmassliterary 📚 Katie Reed - Katie Reed Literary Katie Reed, president of Katie Reed Literary, represents romance, upmarket fiction, fantasy, and psychological thriller. She is especially looking for stories from underrepresented voices and perspectives. You can find her on Instagram at @katiereed_literary , and a full wish list can be found at . Chuckanut Writers Conference, June 25-27, 2026, Bellingham, WA Visit chuckanutwritersconference.com to register for the conference and sign up for your one-on-one pitch session!

CALLING ALL WRITERS! The 2026 Chuckanut Writers Conference is bringing to Bellingham a wealth of knowledge with these publishing professionals: 📖 Kelly Russell Agodon, Editor, Two Sylvias Press 📖 Donald Maass, Agent, Maass Literary Agency 📖 Laura Mazer, Agent, Wendy Sherman and Associates 📖 Elise McHugh, Senior Acquisitions Editor, University of New Mexico Press 📖 Katie Reed, Agent, Katie Reed Literary Chuckanut Writers Conference, June 25-27, 2026, Bellingham WA Visit / to learn more about each of these amazing faculty members, and register today! @kelliagodon @donaldmaasliterary @lauramazer @katiereed_literary

Kelli Russell Agodon @anastaciarenee5CALLING ALL POETS! The 2026 Chuckanut Writers Conference is bringing to Bellingham a wealth of knowledge with these poets and teachers: 📖 Kelly Russell Agodon 📖 Anastacia-Reneé 📖 Maya Jewell Zeller 📖 Sati Mookherjee 📖 Derek Sheffield Chuckanut Writers Conference, June 25-27, 2026, Bellingham WA Visit / to learn more about each of these amazing faculty members, and register today! @kelliagodon @anastaciarenee5 @mayajewellzeller @satimookherjee @derek_sheffield

What do faculty have to say about the Chuckanut Writers Conference? "I left feeling inspired and happy. It was wonderful to have time with the writer attendees as well as the faculty. A splendid conference! Everyone I spoke to was so grateful to be there and to enjoy all that was offered. LOVED ALL OF IT!" - Kira Jane Buxton, 2025 faculty 🌲📝✨🌲📝✨ Visit chuckanutwritersconference.com to learn more about the 2026 Chuckanut Writers Conference and to secure your spot! June 25-27, 2026, in Bellingham, WA.

CALLING ALL NONFICTION AND MEMOIR WRITERS! The 2026 Chuckanut Writers Conference is bringing to Bellingham a wealth of knowledge with these nonfiction writers and teachers: 🌲 Maya Jewell Zeller 🌲 Sasha taqʷšəblu LaPointe 🌲 Brenda Miller 🌲 Peter Mountford 🌲 Brendan O’Meara 🌲 José Orduña Chuckanut Writers Conference, June 25-27, 2026, Bellingham WA Visit / to learn more about each of these amazing faculty members, and register today! @mayajewellzeller @sashalapointe @madrone2 @mountfordwriting @brendanomeara

CALLING ALL FICTION WRITERS! The 2026 Chuckanut Writers Conference is bringing to Bellingham a wealth of knowledge with these fiction authors and teachers: ✍️ Sarah Hawley ✍️ Glen Hirshberg ✍️ Sonora Jha ✍️ Scott Lambridis ✍️ Donald Maass ✍️ A. Muia ✍️ Emily Nemens ✍️ Lucy Tan Chuckanut Writers Conference, June 25-27, 2026, Bellingham WA Visit / to learn more about each of these amazing faculty members, and register today! @sarahhawleyauthor @dronesclubwest @sonorajha1 @slambridis @donaldmaassliterary @amuia.writes @emilynemens @lucyrtan

We’re excited to formally announce our 2026 featured speakers! 🎤 Opening Keynote: Emily Nemens, “Water, Water Everywhere: Wellsprings, Rivers, and Floods in our Writing” Emily Nemens is the author of the novels Clutch (2026) and The Cactus League (2020). Nemens spent over a decade editing literary quarterlies, including leading the Paris Review and serving as coeditor and prose editor of the Southern Review. She teaches in the MFA program at Bennington College and lives in New Jersey. 🎤 Friday Plenary Talk: Brendan O’Meara, “Rage Against the Algorithm: How to Build a Lasting Author Platform without Social Media” Brendan O’Meara is the host and founder of the long-running Creative Nonfiction Podcast and the author of two works of nonfiction including The Front Runner: The Life of Steve Prefontaine. 🎤 Saturday Plenary Talk: Sonora Jha, “Wake Up, and Other Daily Writing Practices in a Time of Madness” Sonora Jha is the author of four books including the novel Intemperance (2025) and The Laughter, winner of the 2024 Washington State Book Award for Fiction. She also wrote the memoir How to Raise a Feminist Son. Formerly a journalist in India and Singapore, she is now a Loyola Endowed Professor at Seattle University. 🎤 Closing Keynote: Derek Sheffield, “Equipment for Living: On the Necessity and Nature of Poetry” Derek Sheffield is the 8th poet laureate of Washington State. His books include Cascadia Field Guide, winner of a 2024 Pacific Northwest Booksellers Award, and Not for Luck, selected by Mark Doty for the Wheelbarrow Books Poetry Prize. He edits poetry for Terrain.org and lives near Leavenworth, Washington. Chuckanut Writers Conference, June 25-27, 2026, Bellingham, WA‘ Visit chuckanutwritersconference.com to learn more and secure your spot! @emilynemens @brendanomeara @sonorajha1 @derek_sheffield

“There were choices for all the levels where writers are at, great because every year I'm in a different place. Plenary sessions, all were excellent and served well to bring us together, then into breakout sessions, then together and apart again--like breathing.” - 2025 CWC attendee Join us at the Chuckanut Writers Conference, June 25-27, 2026 in Bellingham, WA! Visit chuckanutwritersconference.com to register for the conference and masterclasses now. ✨📝

Pre-Conference special event opportunity: Join one of our faculty members for an immersive masterclass! Available as an add-on to registration and open to the public, we hope you'll consider the opportunity for a great deep-dive with a few of our amazing faculty on Thursday, June 25th, before our opening evening event. Register online and find more information at chuckanutwritersconference.com/masterclass/ 📝✨ @sashalapointe @donaldmaas @katiereed_literary

The Chuckanut Writers Conference is excited to announce that Maya Jewell Zeller will be a member of our 2026 faculty! Maya Jewell Zeller is a multi-genre author of several books and collaborations, most recently Raised by Ferns (Porphyry Press, March 2026); The Wonder of Mushrooms (AdventureKEEN, fall 2025); out takes/ glove box, selected by Eduardo Corral as winner of the 2022 New American Poetry Prize; and the co-authored textbook (with Kathryn Nuernberger) Advanced Poetry: A Writer's Guide and Anthology (Bloomsbury, 2024). Maya's prose appears widely, and her essay, "Scavenger Panorama," was honored by Vivian Gornick as a Notable in Best American Essays 2023. Maya is Professor of English for Central Washington University, and Affiliate Faculty of Poetry and Nature Writing for Western Colorado University's low-residency MFA program. Maya lives in the Pacific Northwest with her children, their two tuxedo cats, and an ever-expanding library. Register now at chuckanutwritersconference.com. We'll see you there! @mayajewellzeller #mayajewellzeller

The Chuckanut Writers Conference is excited to announce that Kelli Russell Agodon will be a member of our 2026 faculty! Kelli Russell Agodon is a bi/queer poet and editor whose newest book is Accidental Devotions (Copper Canyon Press). Her last book, Dialogues with Rising Tides was a finalist for the Washington State Book Prize and she co-edited Demystifying the Manuscript: Essays and Interviews on Creating a Book of Poems with Susan Rich. She is the cofounder of Two Sylvias Press and teaches in Pacific Lutheran University’s MFA program, the Rainier Writing Workshop. She cohosts the poetry series Poems You Need with Melissa Studdard. Kelli is an avid paddleboarder and lives in a sleepy seaside community in Washington State. / osylviaspress.com / /@PoemsYouNeed Register now at chuckanutwritersconference.com. We'll see you there! @kelliagodon

The Chuckanut Writers Conference is excited to announce that author Emily Nemens will be a member of our 2026 faculty! Emily Nemens is the author of the novels Clutch (Tin House/Zando, 2026), and The Cactus League (FSG, 2020), both of which were NYT Book Review Editor's Choice selections. Her stories have appeared in BOMB, the Gettysburg Review, n+1, and elsewhere; her illustrations have appeared in the New Yorker and in collaboration with Harvey Pekar. Nemens spent over a decade editing literary quarterlies, including leading the Paris Review and serving as coeditor and prose editor of the Southern Review. She teaches in the MFA program at Bennington College and lives in central New Jersey with her husband and dog. Register today at chuckanutwritersconference.com!