by Nate Hoffelder | May 15, 2026 | Classes and Workshops
Join us on third Sundays for an informal social gathering. We want to meet you, hear about what you’re writing, share knowledge, cheer for and support each other!
CWC MARIN COFFEE SOCIAL
11 am – 12 pm
Studio Fourth Street
1569 Fourth St (bet 4th and F), San Rafael
- Bring your own coffee and crumpet
- It’s free, but a donation to the Tip Jar is appreciated
- Newcomers and old friends are loved equally
- Depending on schedules we sometimes skip a month, so subscribe to the newsletter so you don’t show up on the wrong date (https://cwcmarin.com/newsletters/)! We send out reminders and notices.
by Nate Hoffelder | Apr 26, 2026 | Events
Summer Salon
Summer Salon Open Mic Nights are back! Join us for a sparkling summer backyard party and sign up to read your work aloud.
July 26 (Sun) 4 – 6 pm Mill Valley (Member’s Home)
Aug 16 (Sun) 4 – 6 pm San Rafael (Member’s Home)
RSVP for July 26 Event HERE
- July Salon: Sign ups open June 1st. Registration link will appear HERE. Limited to thirty current CWC Marin Members. We will maintain a short waitlist.
- Members may bring one guest; specify on the RSVP form.
- Readers have five minutes only (about 750 words). We use a stopwatch, so plan ahead!
- Any original work is welcome (essay, excerpt, poem, etc.)
- You don’t have to read. You’re welcome to come and just listen
- Potluck. Please bring a food or dessert to share. Drinks will be provided.
- August Salon: You must renew your membership before signing up. 30 Members, plus guest. Membership renewals open July 1.
- Exact address will be sent just prior to the event to registered guests
- Questions? Ask at marin@cwcmarin.com
by Nate Hoffelder | Mar 18, 2026 | Events
A Writer’s Guide to AI
May 14 (Thurs)
6:00 – 7:30 pm
Online (Zoom)
Members (any CWC branch) $5
Non-Members $10
Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI, with Jane K. Cleland
You have a story to tell, an important story, your story. Getting that story down on paper is hard, though. We writers have to be good at so many different things, from coming up with worthy ideas to developing a twisty and clever plot, creating relatable characters, choosing intriguing settings, generating believable dialogue, and writing evocative prose—six crucial elements. With ChatGPT and other bots taking over the writing market, authors worry they’ll become irrelevant in the not-too-distant future. The answer isn’t to surrender to the doom and gloom predictions.
On the contrary, it’s time to lean into your humanity, to do what artificial intelligence can’t.
Based on Jane’s book, Beat the Bots: A Writer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI, this webinar shows you how to harness your innate creativity because if you bring your creativity, your individuality, and your judgment to your work, you’ll out-write a chatbot all day long.
Jane K. Cleland, author and teacher. Beat the Bots: An Author’s Guide to Surviving & Thriving in the Age of AI, which Louise Penny described as “Brilliant!” is now available. Agatha-award winning Mastering Suspense, Structure & Plot and Mastering Plot Twists. Also, the Josie Prescott Antiques Mysteries, including Jane Austen’s Lost Letters “Beguiling… Miss Austen would approve.” Publishers Weekly. www.janecleland.com
REGISTER USING THE PAYPAL LINKS BELOW
* Note: CWC Members of branches other than Marin, once you have paid, please email us separately at marin@cwcmarin.com with your current branch so we may verify.
by Nate Hoffelder | Jan 27, 2026 | Events
CWC Marin, Left Coast Writers, and Book Passage present
LOCAL AUTHOR BOOK FAIR
Celebrating National Independent Booksellers’ Day
April 25, 1:00 – 3:15 pm
Book Passage, Corte Madera
Join us in a celebration of independent bookstores like Book Passage and support fellow local authors! Twenty CWC Marin authors, along with twenty Left Coast Writers members, will be out on the patio selling their books.
At 1 pm, Jasmin Darznik, author of The Bohemians, will speak inside.
There will be water and ice tea available outside, and the café will be open inside as always.
When you buy a book from a featured local author, be sure to pay for the book inside at the Book Passage register, THEN ask the author to sign it for you.
Let’s show Book Passage and our fellow hardworking authors how much we love. Tell your friends and bring your neighbors!
by Nate Hoffelder | Jan 12, 2026 | Events
Your Path through Today’s Publishing Labyrinth
March 29 (Sunday)
1:00 – 2:30 pm
MVPL Creekside Room
This workshop will coach participants to consider what they want out of publishing, and which of today’s many paths is best suited for their personally defined success. As any journey to publication is long, even beginning writers will benefit by learning how to set themselves up early for success; and advanced writers who are ready to submit will benefit from being able to take away focused and actionable next steps. Get a behind-the-scenes look at the complex but exciting state of today’s publishing industry.
RESERVE MY SEAT
About the Presenters
Shirin Yim Leos, Retreat Leader and Writing Mentor
Shirin has been leading writing retreats and mentoring writers for more than a dozen years. Once the Head Goose of Goosebottom Books, she is the Ezra Jack Keats Award-winning author of 21 children’s books. The sale of her adult historical fiction, OF WIND AND DUST, to The Dial Press last year was a Publisher’s Weekly Deal of the Week, and the launch is scheduled for early 2027. Shirin likes to help writers with her perspective from both sides of the desk.
shirinyimleos.com
Lisa Manterfield, Author and Book Coach
Lisa is the award-winning author of five novels, two works of non-fiction, and five non-fiction eBooks. As a developmental editor and book coach, she has guided many writers through the process of drafting, revising, and publishing a novel or memoir. She teaches writing and publishing through Stanford Continuing Studies and in her small group workshops. Her superpower is coaxing writers to “The End.”
LisaManterfield.com
RESERVE MY SEAT
