E.L. and Helen Henslee Doctorow, Karen Ackerson (Founder and Executive Director), Gail Godwin, and Peter Matthiessen
at a 1990 benefit for The Writers' Workshop of Asheville.

Serving writers in the Southeast and beyond since 1985

"The Writers' Workshop is a community treasure that deserves to be nurtured and supported" -   John Le Carre
​     Award-winning writers have supported our programs by giving benefit readings in Asheville, including Eudora Welty (broadcast on N.P.R.'s "All Things Considered"), John Le Carre (featured in The Washington Post), Peter Matthiessen, Kurt Vonnegut, E.L. Doctorow, Don De Lillo, Sue Monk Kidd, Gail Godwin, Reynolds Price, Pat Conroy, Alex Haley  - and many others.   
     Our mission is to provide top-notch workshops, readings, retreats and contests for the benefit of the community at large.

Volunteers and interns needed!
   We need volunteers to help with media publicity, programming and fundraising in exchange for free classes.
    Please email writersw@gmail.com - or call 828-254-8111.

Hot off the press... Check out our calendar for more!

Annual Literary Fiction Contest

Submit your short story or chapter of a novel to our annual literary fiction contest! Entries should be 5,000 words or less and postmarked no later than September 30th, 2018. Fabulous prizes include free workshops, a stay at our Asheville Mountain Muse bed and breakfast, or up to 50 pages of writing line-edited and revised by our editorial staff!

For further guidelines, prize information, previous contest winners, and entry, please visit our contests page!

2018 Hard Times Writing Contest Winners Announced

We are thrilled to announce the winners of our 2018 Hard Times Writing Contest! 1st place went to Erin Duffy of Raleigh, NC for "A Terrible Beauty". 2nd place went to Sara Baker of Anna, TX for "Butterflies". 3rd place went to Dayla Haynes of Asheville, NC for "The Crying Ape". We also had several honorable mentions among our many fantastic entries, listed above.

Thank you to all of our entrants, and a BIG thank you to Anne Barnhill, our final judge!

Are you a literary professional interested in teaching a workshop with us? Click here to get in touch!

2018 Fundraiser

​Our goal is to raise $65,000 this year to continue our award-winning programs in NC & SC; to offer free writing classes to young people in Western North Carolina at area libraries; and to give workshop scholarships to low-income writers.
Your tax-deductible donation will make these worthy goals possible! A $50 donation or more will establish you as a Friend of the Arts, and includes a year's membership, which entitles you to discounts on all workshops and contests.

Thinking about publishing your work?

The Renbourne Editorial Agency provides expert assistance with revising and editing your work - memoirs, fiction or creative non-fiction. We use a fine-tooth comb to ready your work for publication, in person or online. We also have writing coaches available to help organize and ready your work for publication, in person or online. In addition, personal tutorials and writing classes are also available. Please contact us at writersw@gmail.com, or call 828-254-8111 to discuss our services in further detail.

The Renbourne Editorial Agency is a division of The Writers' Workshop of Asheville, NC, a literary center founded in 1985.