Workshops for Writers
Award-winning author Laura Shovan teaches in-person and virtual workshops for writers.
She teaches through the Vermont College of Fine Arts, Boyds Mills (formerly the Highlights Foundation), Whale Rock Writing Workshops, and Writing & Illustrating for Young Readers (WIFYR) as well as her private class, Poetry Techniques for the Verse Novelist.
Upcoming Workshops:
February 2026
Intro to Novels in Verse: Drafting and Deepening Your Story
Online at Boyds Mills
Boyds Mills (formerly The Highlights Foundation) is running Intro to Novels in Verse: Drafting and Deepening Your Story again! This popular class includes three instructional sessions and time for faculty-led peer feedback. Each week, you will learn from a different verse novelist – Meg Eden Kuyatt, Hannah V. Sawyerr, and me. In the final, fourth session, you’ll have the opportunity to participate in an instructor-guided peer-to-peer workshop.
More information can be found here.
Registration for this Course Available Until February 19, 2026
June 2026
The Deciding Factor: Creating Character-Driven Scenes: Virtual Intensive Workshop
2026 WIFYR Conference, June 15-19th, 2026
What makes a compelling scene? Scenes are the vertebrae that, together, hold up a plot’s structure. But how do we know when our scenes have the right shape, size, and craft elements to keep our characters’ stories moving forward?
In this intensive led by Laura Shovan, we'll study the anatomy of scenes, including setting, external events and internal response, and using cause and effect to move from one scene to the next. We will examine how to structure a character-driven scene that hinges on a moment of decision rather than an external crisis.
September 2026
Feeling It: Creating Emotional Depth in Your Novel
Online with Whale Writing Workshops
September 16-October 7, 2026
Laura and author Karen Krossing are once again running this four-part deep dive into the emotional layer of long-form fiction.
Workshops Through:
Past Workshop Topics Include:
Introduction to Novels in Verse: Drafting & Deepening Your Story
Virtual Highlights Foundation Course with Meg Eden Kuyatt, Hannah Sawyerr, and Laura ShovanBreaks, Blank Space, and Gaps: Poetic Gutters in Novels in Verse and Poetry
2-part Webinar with The Highlights FoundationThe Character Compass: Letting Characters Lead the Way
Workshop led by Laura Shovan and Bridget Hodder at Bay to Ocean Writers ConferenceEscape Room Plotting
Vermont College of Fine ArtsFeeling It: Creating Emotional Depth in Your Novel
Online workshop led by Laura Shovan and Karen Krossing through Whale Rock Writing WorkshopsMonster Poems: A Multi-Modal Social Emotional Learning Workshop
Educators’ Workshop with State of Maryland Literacy AssociationPlot Meets Poetry: Verse Novel Workshop
Vermont College of Fine ArtsSpin the Genre Wheel Generative Workshop
Vermont College of Fine Arts
Upcoming & Recent Events and Appearances
Follow the links below for event details and registration information.
AWP (Association of Writers & Writing Programs) Conference
March 4-7th, 2026
Baltimore Convention Center, MD
“Getting Real in MG and YA Fiction: Writing with Honesty, Nuance, and Heart” panel with authors Ona Gritz, Kimberly Kenna, Gume Laurel, Laura Shovan, and Kalela Williams.
March 5, 2026, 1:45 pm
How do writers of kidlit offer stories that are hopeful but also probing and true? A panel of writers whose books reflect the challenges of growing up in a fractured, sometimes dangerous world, share craft advice for exploring sensitive themes with authenticity and care. Panelists will share how their identities and experiences shape their work, how they approach research and sensitivity reading, and how they connect with today’s teen and tween readers. Panelists include: Ona Gritz, Kimberly Kenna, Laura Shovan, and Kalela Williams.
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Past Events:
National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Conference, Denver, CO (November 2025)
Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival, Chappaqua, NY (September 2025)
“Spilled Milk” Storytelling Event, Books in Bloom Festival, Columbia, MD (May 2025)
Reimagine the Rainbow, Ellicott City, MD (April 2025)
Navigating the Margins: Writing Our Own Stories, Panel with National Council of Teachers of English (November 2024)
The Disappearing Bookshelf: Why You Should Write Kidlit in the Era of Book Challenges, Panel at Bay to Ocean Writers Conference (March 2024)
Unlocking Emotions: Poetry as a Social Emotional Learning Practice, Panel - National Council of Teachers of English (November 2023)
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Private Class from Laura
Poetry Techniques for the Verse Novelist
Laura is excited to offer a private class for people who would like to write a verse novel, or are drafting one, and want to learn the best tools for working on an extended narrative in verse.
“Laura’s wonderful class is practical and helpful to verse novelists needing a primer on fundamental poetry techniques and how to use them effectively in novels in verse.”
Come study with me at VCFA!
Laura Shovan is a faculty member at Vermont College of Fine Arts (VCFA), advising MFA candidates in the Writing for Children and Young Adults program.
Schedule a Workshop With Laura
Laura is available for virtual and in-person workshops.
Send Laura a message to get started.