The Short Novel
Instructors: Gary Schmidt & Shelley Tanaka
Sundays, March 23 - August 24, 20205
See description for schedule breakdown | Online | Workshop recorded
Level: Advanced
Short novels are in demand. Teachers want them, librarians want them, and kids want them. And yet authors continue to churn out 200-page-plus books for young readers.
In this new and unique offering, beloved faculty members Gary Schmidt and Shelley Tanaka will walk you through the process of writing a short novel (approximately 80-120 pages) from beginning to end. That’s right, you will come up with a novel premise and by the end of the workshop you should be able to write the full manuscript with the help of these two amazing mentors.
We can only accept ten students for this intensive workshop. Registration opens December 15, 2024.
THIS CLASS IS FULL
Workshops will be recorded, but we recommend attending all workshops.
Your Summer Writing Companion
July - August 2025
Online | Letters that spark craft, imagination, and creative action.
Level: All Levels
Each Wednesday from July 9 through August 27, you’ll receive a letter from a Whale Rock faculty member, written to help you reconnect with your writing, your characters, and your creative spark. These aren’t blog posts or worksheets, they’re real letters. Thoughtful. Encouraging. Personal.
Inside each one, you’ll find a reflection on craft or process and a writing prompt, practice, or creative invitation. You’ll also receive designed PDFs to save, print, and return to whenever you need inspiration.
The series also includes optional “Write Now” community sessions
Sliding scale: $65–$200
All proceeds support Whale Rock’s 2026 scholarship fund, helping us say yes to more writers in the year ahead. Participants will also receive early access to our fall “Buy It Now” fundraiser, featuring one-of-a-kind offerings from mentors, editors, and publishing professionals.
Whale Rock Mentorships, Fall 2025
Instructors: Liz Bicknell, Kathryn Erskine, Liz Garton Scanlon, Gary Schmidt, and Shelley Tanaka
September - December 2025
Times TBD | Online | Workshops recorded
Level: Advanced
Our Mentorships are immersive, writing experiences designed to offer writers one-on-one attention, feedback and skill building from expert, MFA-level faculty members.
Our mentorship faculty members team up for this unique online program designed for picture book, middle grade, and young adult authors. With award-winning authors, editors, professors and former professors from Hamline University and Vermont College of Fine Arts, students receive one-on-one guidance and stewardship. For authors contemplating an MFA program, this is a wonderful alternative to grow your skills without the steep price tag. For authors who have an MFA or never considered one, this is your opportunity to get pages read and critiqued by expert instructors.
*Please Note: We do not yet have confirmation of availability from all our mentors, but 80% of our mentors return session after session. If you wish to register early in order to confirm your spot, you will be able to revisit your mentor choice once we have our faculty in place.
Payment plans are available for this program. Email us for more information.
The Art of Children’s Non-Fiction
Instructor: Katie Scott
Sundays, September 14 - October 5, 2025
1:00 - 3:00 PM EST | Online | Workshop recorded
Level: All Levels
Have you contemplated writing a children’s non-fiction book but are unsure of where to start? Or maybe you have a book idea and want to know how to make your pitch stand out to an editor. Perhaps you already write non-fiction, but you're stuck on an idea or looking for more industry insight. In this four-week workshop, Senior Kids Can Press editor Katie Scott will explore what goes into making an outstanding children’s non-fiction book. Each session will include mentor texts, breakout room workshops, and a 30-minute Q&A discussion, where participants can get direct feedback from Katie on their ideas.
You’ll walk away with:
An understanding of where good ideas come from and how to turn them into great books.
Strategies for finding an original way into your topic.
Tools for making your proposal stand out to an editor.
Insight into how to apply craft to create a strong non-fiction manuscript.
This workshop is for you if:
You are an experienced author who wants to break into the non-fiction market to diversify your portfolio and skill set.
You are a published non-fiction author looking to sell your next book idea.
You're not yet published, but you are want learn more about and write non-fiction for young readers.
You are looking for insider knowledge about the non-fiction children’s book market today and what editors are looking for.
You’re looking for constructive feedback from a publishing professional.
In Person Master Skills Workshop
Patti Gauch and Gary Schmidt
Sunday, September 7 - Saturday, September 13, 2025
All day | In-Person | Lexington, MI
Level: Advanced
Join Patti, Gary and other children’s literature authors for a week designed to help you dive deep into your craft and take your writing to the next level. Each year, our instructors bring new lessons, new prompts and new exercises to help you master your craft.
This class is full
DO YOU LIKE MY HAT?: A Seminar on Character Tags
Instructor: Laura Shovan
Thursday, October 9, 2025 7:00-8:30 PM EST
Online | Workshop recorded | $30
Level: All levels
Linus’s Blanket.
Katniss’ bow and arrow.
“Ewww David.”
”Inconceivable”
Character tags are an essential part of a writer’s toolbox. This versatile craft element can work as a shorthand to help readers remember a minor character from one scene to the next. Character tags can can also give readers insight into a protagonist’s inner workings. Who can forget detective Hercule Poirot’s glorious mustache? Annabeth’s baseball cap? Cher’s “As if?”
In this seminar, we will look at examples of character tags from children’s literature and discuss tips for using this craft element effectively.
Whether you’re imagining a new project or working on an existing manuscript, this workshop will help you create memorable cast of characters!
Virtual Master Skills Workshop
Patti Gauch and Gary Schmidt
Sunday, October 19 - Saturday, October 25, 2025
All day | Online | Partially recorded
Level: Intermediate / Advanced
Join Patti, Gary and other children’s literature authors for a week designed to help you dive deep into your craft and take your writing to the next level. Each year, our instructors bring new lessons, new prompts and new exercises to help you master your craft.
All workshops are recorded.
Payment plans are available for this program. Email us for more information.
This class is full
Caboose Retreat 2025:
WEEK ONE DATES: November 2 - November 7, 2025
WHERE: Sabillasville, MD
SPECIAL GUEST: Patricia Lee Gauch
ONLY FIVE SPOTS LEFT
WEEK TWO DATES: November 9 - November 14, 2025
WHERE: Sabillasville, MD
SPECIAL GUEST: Agent Miranda Paul, Erin Murphy Literary Agency
ONLY THREE SPOTS LEFT
Join Whale Rock Workshops faculty for a cozy writing retreat in Sabillasville, MD. Make lifelong writer friends with this six-day, five-night getaway. Faculty and writers will cook together, eat together, walk together, laugh together, and of course write together.
Payment plans are available for this program. Email us for more information.
Fall 2025 Write Now!
WHEN: September - December, 2025
Wednesday & Thursday mornings
10:00 AM - 12:30 PM ET
Tuesday evenings 7:30 PM - 9:30 PM ET
WHERE: Online
There’s nothing like a regular meeting time and space to keep your writing commitments honest. Our Write Now! groups are FREE and offer the support you need to show up and work each week. (Note: You must be a newsletter subscriber to participate in Write Now!)
Details Coming Soon