Upcoming Workshops, Readings, and Events.
Space & Time for BIPOC Writers
Note: Enrollment fills quickly—register ahead of time!
Thursdays | Jan 15 - Apr 2, 2026 | 7pm - 8:30pm ET
Drop In
Online, Zoom
FREE
Grub Street
This winter, GrubStreet is holding space for 90 minutes of writing time every Thursday evening. Instructor Yasmine Ameli will be present to guide the group and facilitate connections with other BIPOC writers. Feel free to come with a blank page, or bring your works in progress, and use this time how you like: chip away at a draft, work on submissions, or start new projects.
Each session will begin with an optional writing prompt to spark creativity, as well as an invitation to set a personal writing goal. We'll then spend five minutes in small breakout groups to share our intentions for the session with each other. From there, the majority of our time will be dedicated to uninterrupted writing time in an encouraging, low-stakes environment. We will end our time together with an opportunity to share—whether that be an excerpt from that session’s draft, a writing conundrum you’d like help troubleshooting, or a favorite book you think everyone should read.
Writers in all genres are welcome to attend. Weekly attendance is not required – come as you like, whenever having this space and time feels like it would be useful for you and your writing.
*This program welcomes writers of all backgrounds and experience levels, and was created to center and support BIPOC writers within our community.
Jumpstart Your Writing in 2026
6 Tuesdays | Jan 13 - Feb 17, 2026 | 10:30am - 1:30pm ET
Online, Zoom
Investment: $415
Grub Street
Whether you’ve never written creatively before or you’re a more experienced writer looking for a recharge, your mission in this course is simple: kick off 2026 by devoting three hours a week to your writing. With an eye on craft and openness to the muse, we will read and discuss short pieces, including poetry, essay, and fiction. We also will discuss the process of writing with a focus on sustainable writing practices, creative play, writer's block, creative community, reading for inspiration, and revision as generation. Potential readings include works by Lucille Clifton, Sandra Cisneros, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Fatimah Asghar, and others.
At the end of six weeks, you’ll leave class with a fresh set of drafts, new ideas to keep you writing, meaningful connections with fellow writers, and a stronger sense of your own voice on the page.
Past Readings & Events
“Creating and Sustaining a Satisfying Writing Life.” WriteAngles Conference. Northampton, MA (2024).
Literary Reading & Open Mic for Palestine/UNRWA. Bookends, Florence, MA (2024).
Conversation with Ani Gjika. Odyssey Bookshop, South Hadley, MA (2024).
“Women, Life, Freedom: Iranian Writers Reading & in Conversation.” RAWIFest+Mizna 2023. Minneapolis, MN (2023).
RAWIFest+Mizna 2023 Reading. Minneapolis (2023).
The Elemental Salon. Florence, MA (2023).
The Thirsty Lab Reading. Zoom (2023).
2022 Edith Wharton / Straw Dog Writers-in-Residence Celebration. Lenox, MA (2022).
AGNI Launch of Issue 95. Goethe-Institut Boston. Boston, MA (2022).
QTWOC + QPOC Winnipeg. Zoom (2022).
Radius of Arab American Writers Festival (RAWIFest). Zoom (2021).
Poetry Reading with Fatemeh Shams. Blacksburg, VA (2019).
Contemporary Iranian-American Creative Nonfiction. University of Maryland Summer Language Institute Graduate Education Panel (2018).
Past Workshops
Creative Writing Workshops: Introduction to Creative Writing (12-week class), Introduction to Creative Nonfiction (12-week class), Jumpstart Your Writing: Poetry, Fiction, and Creative Nonfiction (6-week class), Introduction to Poetry (6-week class), Space & Time for BIPOC Writers (12-week class), Poet Tea: Making & Writing about Tea (3-hour class), Eat the Apple: Writing Sensual Experiences (3-hour class), Beloved: How to Write a Love Letter (3-hour class), Who Let the Dogs Out: Writing About Pets (1-hour class)
Arts Business Workshops: Submitting to Literary Markets & Magazines (3-hour class), Artist Residencies 101 (2-hour class), Fund Your Writing: Fellowships, Residencies, and Grants (3-hour class); MFA Application Crash Course (3-hour class), Writing the MFA Application (4-week course) Cultivating Sustainable Writing Practices (3-hour class); Finding Your Literary Community (3-hour class)
Teaching Artist Professional Development: Teaching Artist Summer Camp: Cultivating a Teaching Philosophy (6-week class)
Poetry Basics
Join me for 4 Mondays (August 2, August 9, August 16, and August 23) from 5pm-7pm EST (4pm-6pm CST) for an introduction to poetry through the Loft.
Lamplighter Literary Arts Summer Writing Institute
Join me for 2-week online writing course for students entering grades 7-12 this summer through the 2021 Lamplighter Literary Arts Summer Writing Institute (LLASWI). International students are encouraged to apply. Financial aid available.
RAWIFest
Join me for a poetry reading through the Radius of Arab American Writers Festival (RAWIFest). I will read alongside poets Zein Sa’dedin, Deema Shehabi, Shadab Zeest Hashmi, Aliah Lavonne Tigh, and Hazem Fahmy.
Loft Sampler Class: Poetry
Join me for an online 1-hour poetry class hosted through the Loft. Click on the link for registration details.
Follow Your Art Community Studios Poetry 101
Yasmine will teach an online 5-week introductory poetry class for adult beginners through Follow Your Art Community Studios. In this class, students will look at diction, syntax, the stanza and the line, sonic play, imagery, and figurative language in poetry as well as practice poetic forms (e.g. persona poems, odes, elegies, ekphrasis) that necessitate a curiosity about the outside world. Each class period, we will learn a new poetry concept, read a poem and discuss how we see the work at play, and then generate our own poems. There will be opportunities to share our work with peers. Click here to register.