Register 20 Seats Remaining
How to Begin a Story
Writer’s Workshop
Wednesday, September 02
7:00pm - 8:00pm
Main Library
The StudioLearn the basics of how to plan out and start writing a your story.
About the presenter: Jeanette Watts is the author of Jane Austen Lied to Me, My Dearest Miss Fairfax, Wealth and Privilege, and Brains and Beauty. She has an honorable mention in the Rainbow Awards for her adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion. Jeanette also won the 2023 Firebird Awards in both Chick Lit and Romance for her latest novel, My Dearest Miss Fairfax. Besides writing historical fiction, satires, and LGBTQ+ romance, she has also written television commercials, one-act melodramas, Old West saloon shows, dance textbooks, and marketing newspapers. She has also written unproduced television and movie scripts and unpublished erotica. You could say she just like words.
Registration is encouraged.
- Sep 2, How to Begin a Story, 7 pm
- Sep 16, Story Elements: Point of View, 7 pm
- Oct 7, Story Elements: Setting, 7 pm
- Oct 21, Story Elements: Conflict, 7 pm
- Nov 4, Finishing Your Story, 7 pm
- Nov 18, Short Story Awards Ceremony & Reading, 7 pm
- Dec 2, Writing Creative Nonfiction, 7 pm
- Dec 16, Crafting Chemistry: How to Write a Romance, 7 pm
Interested in our Short Story Contest? Entries are due by Friday, November 6, 2026. Visit champaign.org/short-story for additional details.
Main Library
Our beautiful, state-of-the-art Main Library opened on January 6, 2008. You’ll find a wide variety of books, movies, and music, as well as free events for all ages. Looking for tech options? We offer free Wifi, dozens of public computers with internet access, and public meeting rooms.