We had the good fortune of connecting with Blake Kimzey and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Blake, what do you attribute your success to?
At WritingWorkshops.com, we are successful because of the talented teaching artists who offer their time, talent, and expertise to the 3,000+ writers who have taken our classes in the last three years. Our instructors are New Yorker contributors, NYT bestsellers, National Book Award nominees, and more. We’re lucky to attract the most motivated emerging writers to our workshops, writers who have the work ethic and determination to improve their craft and face the blank page every day. Our students are successful because they are dedicated to getting better and our staff care just as much about our student’s success as their own. In this way, we’re able to offer high-quality creative writing classes in fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and screenwriting. 

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Writing Workshops is for writers who want to strengthen their voice, develop a greater understanding of craft, and forge a path to publication along the way. With the current pandemic, we have Moved All of Our Classes Online and created a virtual book club called The Big Texas Read. In these uncertain times our mission remains the same: to bring your writing out of the wilderness and into community. We offer writing courses, seminars, and individual consultations to fiction writers, nonfiction writers, poets, and screenwriters. No matter the stage of your career, there is a place for you at Writing Workshops. Our classes are inclusive and intentionally small, offered on a rolling basis throughout the year, and taught by award-winning authors. Our programs have been featured in Poets&Writers, Book Riot, Forbes, The Dallas Morning News, San Francisco Chronicle, D Magazine, KERA Art&Seek, and elsewhere. You can Browse All Classes Here.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
When you come to Dallas, be sure to rent a bike and cycle around White Rock Lake. You can also walk, but either way you should check out the prettiest part of the city in east Dallas, where many of the best restaurants also happen to be.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I love what Matthew Limpede has done to grow and nurture the literary community through Carve Magazine. I’m also thrilled that I get to partner with Matthew and Carve Magazine to put together our summer workshop in Paris, France (Writing Workshops Paris will return post-COVID). Matthew is a thoughtful editor, a generous member of the literary community, and a great friend. Learn more about Carve here: https://www.carvezine.com/home

Website: https://writingworkshops.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writingworkshopsdallas/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blake-kimzey-1a46945/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DallasWriters
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Writing-Workshops-103624214612820
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWqj6RnCy2jgPJCQrzDIjyA

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutDFW is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.