The Writer's Center, founded in 1976, is an independent literary center that is housed in a 12,200-square-foot (1,130 m2) facility in the arts and entertainment district of

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Located just northwest of Washington, D.C., it is a major business and government center of the Washington metropolitan region ...

. The organization consists of approximately 2,500 writers, editors, small press publishers and other artists who support each other in the creation and marketing of literary texts. The Writer's Center offers workshops, hosts readings and literary events, and maintains a community of writers, workshop leaders, publishers and audiences for contemporary writing at its Bethesda headquarters as well as in

Leesburg, Virginia Leesburg is a town in and the county seat of Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. It is part of both the Northern Virginia region of the state and the Washington metropolitan area, including Washington, D.C., the nation's capital. European se ...

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county is located in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from Washington, D.C., the nati ...

, and at other locations around the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The Writer's Center also publishes '' Poet Lore'', the longest continuously running poetry journal in the United States. Materials from the center’s history, including issues of their quarterly magazine ''The Carousel'', workshop brochures, and issues of ''Poet Lore'', are maintained in the Special Collections Research Center of the Estelle and Melvin Gelman Library at the George Washington University. The Writer's Center annually conducts hundreds of workshops in various genres of writing. Workshop participants share with one another their work-in-progress under the guidance of an experienced instructor who is also a published author. The Writer's Center is a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

nonprofit organization. The Writer's Center is supported in part by The Arts and Humanities Council of

Montgomery County, Maryland Montgomery County is the most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, the county's population was 1,062,061, increasing by 9.3% from 2010. The county seat is Rockville, Maryland ...

, and by grants from organizations including the Maryland State Arts Council, and the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

. The Writer's Center also hosts literary events, readings and conferences; sells books and literary magazines; and offers an environment for writing groups to meet. It is a voluntary, membership organization open to all skill levels.The Writer's Center Official Website
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Notable instructors

* Sandra Beasley * Richard Blanco * Brenda Clough * Nan Fry * Barbara Goldberg * Lee Gutkind * Rod Jellema * Stanley Plumly

References

External links

*
Writer's Center official blog
Buildings and structures in Bethesda, Maryland Non-profit organizations based in Maryland Writing circles Buildings and structures completed in 1976 1976 establishments in Maryland Arts organizations based in Washington, D.C. {{Maryland-struct-stub