The Driftless Publishing Compass: Owning Your Voice in Revision

When we are revising, how do we separate voices of constructive feedback from our own?

How do we filter out subjective desires from agents, editors, and our writing & reading communities to let go of publishing-related fears and stay true to our original voices?

In this class, you will learn how to take voices from workshops, from your writing circle, and from the publishing world and reframe them in terms that align with your core writing intentions. You will learn strategies for returning to “old” drafts with a fresh eye, and you will learn how to separate “stalling” feedback from “generative” feedback that keeps the spark alive through multiple drafts. You will also learn how to invoke the voices of the writers and artists your work is in conversation with in a roundtable way that keeps you focused on the process of writing, of experimenting, of channeling rather than willing your work into being.

Bring five pages you’ve been stuck on to class. Pulling from their experiences as agents, authors, and editors, Adrian Shirk and Jaclyn Gilbert will provide you with a self-reflective list of questions and strategies for framework for orienting around the voices and texts that serve you, leaving behind the rest. You will leave this comprehensive course with a new approach to reentering stories, novels, poems and memoirs that feel too over-worked to be revived, buoying you through a second wave submission plan for 2025. You will also leave with a new language for talking about your writing in ways that articulate what ONLY you can do in your voice as you prepare to market your work for journals, indie presses, agents, and BIG 5 Publishers.

What We’ll Cover:

• Revising with a Purpose: How to identify the core intention of your work so that you can revise with clarity, and cross-check that the changes you implement are in service of your vision

• Separating the Voices: Learn how to discern constructive feedback from misaligned suggestions; reframe past critiques so that you’re internalizing only those that support the work’s intentions.

• Revisiting Old Drafts: Develop strategies for approaching “stuck” pieces with fresh eyes and renewed energy.

• Articulating Your Intentions: Find empowered language for talking about your work in the world, preparing you for submission to journals, indie presses, agents, and major publishers.

• Ask Driftless: Participate in a live Q&A session to demystify the publishing process and gain tailored advice for your specific needs.

What’s Included:

• A live, interactive presentation with Q&A to address your most pressing questions.

• A downloadable packet with templates, tips, and links to publishing opportunities.

• A comp'd paid subscription to The Whole Utopianotes Catalog, a bi-monthly opportunities list featuring open calls for submissions, residencies, grants, and more.