After what seems like strange aeons of dreaming about it, Mark Finn, Jason Waltz, and  I (Adrian Simmons) have pulled the trigger on running an in-person Sword & Sorcery writing workshop.  Added bonus, we’re holding it in the heart of S&S history, Cross Plains Texas, Robert E. Howard’s home during his days of creating characters like Conan, Soloman Kane, Brikenridge Elkins, El Borak, among others.

Our workshop will take place during the fortieth anniversary of the first Robert E. Howard Days gathering, and not only will help writers level up their skills, but serve as a fundraiser for necessary repairs to the Howard House.

The 2026 Emerging Writers Workshop is a one-day event designed to help provide advice, answers, and encouragement to new and upcoming writers of Howard’s genres — from historical fiction to weird Westerns to sword and sorcery. We won’t be doing poetry this year, but this is the first of what we hope to be a regular component of Howard Days, and perhaps we’ll be able to include verse in later years.

This will be an in-person affair, happening Thursday, June 11^th, the day before Howard Days officially kicks off.  The plan is to have some short lectures, a bit of Q& A about S&S, but lion’s share of the time time will be spent in critiquing submissions by breaking into smaller groups for in-depth discussions.

We realize that there are plenty of writing workshops, but the reality is that S&S and its related sub-genres are often the odd-swordsman/woman-out.  Sometimes it is waaaay out.

While the number of S&S and adventure fiction venues has grown massivlely in the last decade, they are in the business of publishing stories, not helping writers get better at their craft.  The cold reality is that you already have to be a good writer to get any feedback (and even then, given time constraints…), otherwise you get a form rejection letter.  Without that editorial feedback, you’re mostly groping in the dark.

That’s the strongest parts of the Emerging Writers Workshop, you aren’t going to get ‘writers group’ feedback, you’re going to be buffeted by the cold winds of Valhalla from three editors looking at your work with their editor-eyes.

And who are we to pass judgement upon your writing?  Behold!

Mark is an author, an editor, and a pop culture critic. His writing can be found in various books, anthologies, comics, and elsewhere. When he’s not waxing passionate about popular culture or Robert E. Howard, Finn writes stories, publishes RPG zines, and sporadically appears on various podcasts.

Jason M. Waltz – Long-time reader, writer, publisher, facilitator and promoter of the heroic. THE MAIN ROGUE of Rogue Blades Entertainment (published popular heroic anthologies such as Return of the Sword and Neither Beg Nor Yield) & Rogue Blades Foundation (published award-winning REH titles Hither Came Conan and Robert E. Howard Changed My Life). Host of author interviews @ ’24 in 42.’ Connect via https://linktr.ee/jasonmwaltz

 

And me?  I’m a founding member and primary editor of Heroic Fantasy Quarterly ezine (heroicfantasyquarterly.com), have produced 67 issues and four best of anthologies.  I’ve  had fiction published at Tales from the Magician’s Skull, Savage Realms, and Swords and Larceny.  Some of you here may remember me from my various reviews and musings here at Black Gate.

We’re already about 1/3 of the way to our membership cap (although there has been some talk of an online option, but those dragons have yet to hatch).

The cost is $50, and the deadline to get your work in is Sunday, May 10^th.

We discussed the workshop in some detail during a livestream of the Robert E. Howard Foundation.  We talk about the workshop starting at the 6:30 mark.  Check out the link below to get a feel for the vibe.

Full details can be found here.