By Bri Brands 

Even as the University of Iowa academic year wraps up, the learning doesn’t stop in Iowa City. 

From June 15 to July 25, 2025, the Iowa Summer Writing Festival will bring 45 writer-instructors to Iowa City to lead over 70 in-person workshops across genres for writers of all levels and backgrounds. 

Instructors for the workshops are well-known writers and many have been named New York Times bestselling authors, Pushcart prize winners, National Book Award Finalists, and more. Program manager Becca Klaver said many of the instructors are not University of Iowa staff and faculty, allowing for more variety in course offerings. 

"Our faculty members come from all over. It makes the background of the faculty and their skillsets more diverse, and that's good for the Festival," Klaver said. 

Klaver and program coordinator Alisa Weinstein said the Festival draws in a variety of participants, from current University of Iowa students, to residents across Iowa, to people traveling from out of state and around the world. Participants are often looking for inspiration, a writing community, or dedicated time to write.  

"That welcoming, all-inclusive aspect of the Festival is what's really important for us," Klaver said. "People come for all different reasons and from all different backgrounds. They get to be part of this community of writers in a writing town for a week or a weekend." 

Each year, Festival staff surveys attendees to get feedback on course offerings for future years. Klaver said this has led to an expansion in genres for the 2025 Festival offerings, including a brand new humor course with Robin Hemley, Iowa Writers' Workshop graduate and former director of the Nonfiction Writing Program.

"We've expanded into different genres that used to be part of the Festival but haven't been for a long time or are just part of the Festival for the first time now. There's a lot of variety this year," Klaver said.  

Registration for a weeklong course is $875 and is $425 for a weekend. A limited number of financial-need-based scholarships are available through the Ann L. Forsaith Scholarship Fund. 

Registration is still being accepted for the 2025 Festival, with class sizes limited to 12 participants. Those who want to sign up should do so soon to secure their space. 

In addition to workshops, the Festival offers a free Eleventh Hour Lecture Series, comprised of hour-long presentations each weekday of the Festival, which is open to the general public, beyond Festival attendees. Online workshops are also offered year-round, which take place synchronously via Zoom. 

Whether it's online or in person, Weinstein said the Festival remains a space for writers to reconnect with the writing community. 

"We are a space where people can come together and write," she said.