The annual North Words Writers Symposium  is in its 14th year in Skagway. 

This year the gathering of writers and fans takes place May 29 – June 1, 2024  in Skagway and Dyea. 

North Words is an intimate gathering that mixes panel discussions about various aspects of writing with workshops, breakout sessions, consultations, readings, and a variety of outdoor activities, culminating with a keynote banquet. Much of the conference is devoted to the honing of the craft.

This year’s featured author is Jamie Ford, bestselling author of Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet and a 2023 winner of the Pacific Northwest Book Award for his latest novel, The Many Daughters of Afong Moy. 

Ford’s fiction draws on his Chinese-American roots and movingly transcends the historical to the speculative.

North Words added a new scholarship for an Alaska university student that would waive the entry fee and offer a $200 travel stipend. While that deadline has passed, the Skagway Arts Council has also added scholarships to North Words available on their website at SAC BlogSpot.

Joining Ford on the North Words 2024 faculty will be Alaska-Northwest writers: Lily Tuzroyluke, Daryl Farmer, Melinda Moustakis, John Messick, Christine Byl and Don Rearden. 

Registration is now open. Interested participants are encouraged to act soon as the symposium is limited to 40 participants, and organizers report that accommodations fill up fast. The registration fee, $425, includes all conference sessions, activities and many meals. Registration is open until filled.