Viable Paradise is an annual one-week residential writing workshop held each autumn on the island of

Martha's Vineyard Martha's Vineyard, often simply called the Vineyard, is an island in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, lying just south of Cape Cod. It is known for being a popular, affluent summer colony, and includes the smaller peninsula Chappaquiddick Isla ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

and is focused on

speculative fiction Speculative fiction is an umbrella term, umbrella genre of fiction that encompasses all the subgenres that depart from Realism (arts), realism, or strictly imitating everyday reality, instead presenting fantastical, supernatural, futuristic, or ...

. The workshop began in 1997, as part of a science fiction convention presented by the Martha's Vineyard Science Fiction Association. After 1998, the convention was discontinued, but the workshop continued. Present and past instructors include:

Patrick Nielsen Hayden Patrick James Nielsen Hayden (born Patrick James Hayden January 2, 1959), is an American science fiction editor, fan, fanzine publisher, essayist, reviewer, anthologist, teacher and blogger. He is a World Fantasy Award and Hugo Award winner ...

Teresa Nielsen Hayden Teresa Nielsen Hayden (born March 21, 1956) is an American science fiction editor, fanzine writer, essayist, and workshop instructor. She is a consulting editor for Tor Books and is well known for her weblog, ''Making Light''. She has also worke ...

, James D. Macdonald,

Debra Doyle Debra Doyle (November 30, 1952 – October 31, 2020) was an American author in multiple related fiction genres, including science fiction, fantasy, and mystery, for young adults and adults. Her works were co-written with her husband, James D. ...

Steven Gould Steven Charles Gould (born February 7, 1955) is an American science fiction writer. He has written ten novels. His 1992 novel '' Jumper'' was adapted into a film released in 2008. Biography Steven Charles Gould was born in Fort Huachuca, Arizo ...

, Laura J. Mixon,

Lawrence Watt-Evans Lawrence Watt-Evans (born 1954) is one of the pseudonyms of American science fiction and fantasy author Lawrence Watt Evans (another pseudonym, used primarily for science fiction, is Nathan Archer). Biography Born in Arlington, Massachusetts, as ...

Elizabeth Moon Elizabeth Moon (born March 7, 1945) is an American science fiction and fantasy writer. Her other writing includes newspaper columns and opinion pieces. Her novel ''The Speed of Dark'' won the 2003 Nebula Award for Best Novel, Nebula Award. Pri ...

, Maureen McHugh,

James Patrick Kelly James Patrick Kelly (born April 11, 1951) is an American science fiction author who has won both the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award. Biography Kelly made his first fiction sale in 1975. He graduated magna cum laude from the University of N ...

Elizabeth Bear Sarah Bear Elizabeth Wishnevsky (born September 22, 1971) is an American author who works primarily in speculative fiction genres, writing under the name Elizabeth Bear. She won the 2005 Astounding Award for Best New Writer, John W. Campbell Awar ...

Cory Doctorow Cory Efram Doctorow (; born 17 July 1971) is a Canadian-British blogger, journalist, and science fiction author who served as co-editor of the blog ''Boing Boing''. He is an activist in favour of liberalising copyright laws and a proponent of th ...

John Scalzi John Michael Scalzi II (born May 10, 1969) is an American science fiction author and former president of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. He is best known for his ''Old Man's War'' series, three novels of which have been n ...

Sherwood Smith Sherwood Smith (born May 29, 1951) is an American fantasy and science fiction writer for young adults and adults. Smith is a Nebula Award finalist and a longtime writing group organizer and participant. Smith's works include the YA novel '' ...

Steven Brust Steven Karl Zoltán Brust (born November 23, 1955) is an American fantasy and science fiction author of Hungarian descent. He is best known for his series of novels about the assassin Vlad Taltos, one of a disdained minority group of humans livi ...

Daryl Gregory Daryl Gregory (born 1965) is an American science fiction, fantasy and comic book author. Gregory is a 1988 alumnus of the Michigan State University Clarion science fiction workshop, and won the 2009 Crawford Award for his novel ''Pandemonium''. P ...

Scott Lynch Scott Lynch (born April 2, 1978) is an American fantasy author, best known for the ''Gentleman Bastard Sequence'' series of novels. His first novel, ''The Lies of Locke Lamora'', was purchased by Orion Books in August 2004 and published in June 2 ...

Nisi Shawl Nisi Shawl (born 1955) is an African American writer, editor, and journalist. They are best known as an author of science fiction and fantasy short stories who writes and teaches about how fantastic fiction might reflect real-world diversity o ...

Fonda Lee Fonda Lee (born March 10, 1979) is a Canadian-American author of speculative fiction. She is best known for writing ''The Green Bone Saga'', the first of which, '' Jade City'', won the 2018 World Fantasy Award and was named one of the 100 Best F ...

, and C.L. Polk. Past students include authors N. K. Jemisin,

Marko Kloos Marko Kloos is a German author of military science fiction and high fantasy. Born in Germany, Kloos lives and works in the United States. Work Kloos is best known for his ''Frontlines'' series of military science fiction novels. Featuring the p ...

, Sandra McDonald, Paul Melko, David Moles, Greg van Eekhout, and

Fran Wilde Dame Frances Helen Wilde (née Kitching, born 11 November 1948) is a New Zealand politician, and former Wellington Labour member of parliament, Minister of Tourism and Mayor of Wellington. She was the first woman to serve as Mayor of Welling ...

; and podcast editors and authors Serah Eley and

Mur Lafferty Mur Lafferty (born July 25, 1973) is an American podcaster and writer based in Durham, North Carolina. She was the editor and host of ''Escape Pod'' from 2010, when she took over from Serah Eley, until 2012, when she was replaced by Norm Sherman. ...

References

External links

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What Is Viable Paradise

1997 establishments in Massachusetts Organizations established in 1997 Creative writing programs Martha's Vineyard {{US-org-stub