Exterior of Stouffer Place Apartments
For 2026, Chris McKitterick once again offers his residential two-week workshop on speculative-fiction storytelling and "Repeat Offenders" advanced spec-fic writing workshop for alums, and Kij Johnson and Barbara Webb offer their Novel Architects Workshop and "Repeat Offenders" advanced workshop. These traditionally meet in the same building to encourage cross-pollination and larger community-building. We also offer a writing retreat for alums who've worked with us before.
Last year marked the conclusion of the centenary of our mentor and friend, James Gunn, so we're likely to celebrate his life and the effect he had on the "Young Gunns" (his students).
We plan to again stay and work in the new Stouffer Place Apartments on the University of Kansas campus. It's a dorm-style structure divided into full-featured apartments.
Stouffer Place accomodations come fully furnished. Living room furniture includes a couch, two accent chairs, coffee table, two end tables, entertainment stand, and four bar stools. The full kitchens have a stove, refrigerator, dishwasher, and washer-dryer. Bedroom furniture varies slightly by number of apartment-mates.
Video tour of Stouffer Place Apartments (click to watch YouTube video)
More info and virtual tours on the Stouffer Place Apartments website.
Participants gather the day before critiquing begins, so plan to arrive on Sunday. If you wish to arrive early to settle in, please let us know so we can see if we arrange that with the Housing department. In addition to workshop sessions, you also have time for writing, recreation, socializing, and individual conferences. This workshop is very much a community-building event!
KU Housing recently gave us a tour of Stouffer Place Apartments - here follows a bunch of photos Chris took during our walkthrough of the building and the model apartment they showed us (yours will be similar but without the KU decor or TV - Chris will supply one for our group hangout space).
Address: 1835 Ousdahl Road, Lawrence, Kansas 66044
First up are the apartment layouts, followed by live photos:
Stouffer 2-bedroom apartment
Stouffer 2-bedroom corner apartment
Stouffer 4-bedroom apartment
View of the kitchen from the living room (with our tour guide and Kij)
Living room from the kitchen
Another living room shot
Washer-dryer near the kitchen
In a bedroom
Another bedroom shot
Bathroom in a bedroom
One of many common areas in Stouffer Place
Each building has a vending and ice area
One of many meeting areas in the building
A large meeting room with an industrial kitchen (we can request to use for large dinners)
An activities room in the building
An exercise room in the building
Layout plan of the first floor of Stouffer Apartments North building
As you can see, this place is made for us! No more shared bathrooms, no more living on cold cereal and paper plates, no more trips to the gym, and (for those who joined us before 2011) no more worrying about other occupants wandering in to our dorm gathering areas - each apartment has its own hangout space! Last year participants frequently made group dinners, saving a ton of money, too.
Stay tuned for more details about housing arrangements. As a college town in summer, Lawrence also boasts a number of AirBnB-style places, and we have worked out special prices at local hotels.
If you'd like to help future attendees, please consider making a donation!
Please complete your registration and make all payments before you arrive, unless you make special arrangements.
Meals, housing, and incidental costs rise the longer you stay, so plan appropriately.
Attendees have the opportunity to sign up for a special discount for the year-round series of upcoming Ad Astra Presents and Science into Fiction workshops, seminars, talks, and more especially designed for speculative-fiction writers and led by a variety of SF authors, editors, and scholars as well as professors and other experts in a variety of specialties to provide participants with deeper understanding of SF and the vast array of human expertise necessary to stay on top of the ever-accelerating change that shapes human civilization - and even what it means to be human. Join the Ad Astra community and reach for the stars!
Everyone enjoys equal access to our offerings, and we actively encourage students and scholars from diverse backgrounds to study. Click here to see our thoughts on diversity, equity, accessibility, and our commitment to inclusivity.
The Academic Achievement and Access Center (AAAC) coordinates accommodations and services for eligible KU students. If you have a disability for which you wish to request accommodation and have not contacted the AAAC, please do so as soon as possible. Their office is located in 22 Strong Hall; their phone number is (785)864-4064 (V/TTY). Also please contact us privately about your needs in this course.
By car, Lawrence is at the intersection of US 59 and
The nearest major airport is Kansas City International (MCI), about 55 miles from Lawrence. Transportation to Lawrence from Kansas City International (MCI - the "M" is for "Mid-Continent") airport can be arranged through one of several airport transport services, including:
Notes:
Google Maps centered on the KU Kansas Union.
SFWA Science Fiction Grand Master James Gunn established the workshop in 1985 and led it (with appearances from many authors and editors) until 1995, when author and long-time co-instructor McKitterick began co-teaching; Kij Johnson also co-taught from 1995-2002, before branching off her own Novel Architects Workshop (the development of her and Barbara Webb's previous SF&F Novel Writing Workshop), which traditionally meets in the same space. At 87 years young, Gunn stepped down from teaching in 2010, handing off the workshop to his protegé McKitterick but still dropping in from time to time as our permanent special guest to offer words of writing wisdom (until his death at 97 in 2020) - July 12, 2023 marked the start of Jim's centenary year during the Repeat Offenders Workshop, when we celebrated his life.
From 1985-2019, we held the Speculative Fiction Writing Workshop exclusively as an intensive, two-week, residential program. The pandemic changed how we offered things, and between that and our move under the umbrella of the new Ad Astra Institute for Science Fiction & the Speculative Imagination means we've learned a ton of new ways to offer not only our traditional workshops but also an ongoing, year-round series of interdisciplinary bi-monthly workshops (series 5 is coming soon!), seminars, talks, masterclasses, write-ins, and much more led by a wide diversity of experts in many fields - plus of course the best spec-fic authors, editors, and educators - designed to help writers gain what we hope is the most well-rounded educational experience in SF offered anywhere!
Recent guest instructors have included Philip Baringer, Pat Cadigan, Bradley Denton, Andy Duncan, James Gunn, Kij Johnson, and John Kessel. Earlier guests included Betty Anne Hull, Theodore Sturgeon, and Frederik Pohl (who served as special-guest instructor for nearly two decades). Stay tuned for upcoming announcements!
James
Gunn's 1992 SF Workshop - what first brought Ad Astra director McKitterick
to Kansas.
Back row:
Frederik Pohl, Chris
McKitterick (my first year!), John Ordover,
James Gunn.
Front row: Tom Crice, Dan Gollub, Rebecca Bates, Sheila Hartney, and...
For anyone who hasn't visited, Lawrence is a wonderful, lively, small city in the Kaw River valley, filled with art, events, and activities. Lawrence and the University of Kansas are about 30 miles west of Kansas City and 20 miles east of Topeka. Summers can be hot, but meeting and housing spaces are air-conditioned.
Among its many amenities, the University of Kansas contains a large science-fiction collection (including a number of single-author paper and manuscript collections, such as Theodore Sturgeon's) and other great reference collections; museums of natural history and art; and sports, theater, and lots more. Lawrence offers many excellent restaurants and shopping and recreational opportunities. Kansas City is less than an hour away. Nighttime opportunities include dinners, games, movies, live concerts, star-gazing sessions, and of course discussion about writing and more.
View of KU from the Ad Astra library.
The Ad Astra Institute holds a beautiful collection of speculative-fiction books and writing and science reference libraries, plus a great deal of SF historical paraphernalia - one of our attendees describes it as a "shrine to science fiction." For many years, our office and library lived on the KU campus, first in the run-down Humanities building but then for two years overlooking Potter Lake and the lovely central park. We bring selected works and custom displays from this wonderful collection to many of our events. This is where we've held some of our writing workshops plus some write-ins and other events, as well as in KU scholarship and residential halls, the Lawrence Public Library, at conventions around the world, and other venues.
Part of the Ad Astra library and
SF artifact collection.
The nearest major airport is Kansas City International (MCI), about 50 miles from
Lawrence. Transportation to Lawrence from Kansas City International can be
arranged through one of several airport shuttle services, or by arrangement
through Ad Astra staff. By car, Lawrence is at
the intersection of U.S. 59 and
We request that attendees demonstrate vaccination status and stay away if feeling signs of illness - many of our events stream live via our YouTube and Discord channels, so you won't miss out even if sick. We want to help keep our AdAstranauts healthy!
Learn to write SF that sells.
Using the short-story form, we help you master the elements that create great fiction.
Led by McKitterick since 1995, continuing James Gunn's tradition starting 1985.
Award-winning SF author, scholar, and educator Christopher McKitterick continues our residential, two-week workshop on speculative-fiction storytelling, and usually invites a Special Guest Instructor. The Ad Astra Speculative Fiction Writing Workshop is designed to serve writers at all levels: those who have just begun to publish, those who need the final bit of insight or skill to master the elements that create great stories editors want and readers love, and published authors who want to grow their writing or refresh their skills through an intensive workshop experience with a diverse, focused cohort of enthusiastic writers.
We work with all flavors of speculative fiction including fantasy, hard SF, horror, magical realism, slipstream, speculative philosophy, and so on. Though the workshop is useful for writers of all lengths of fiction, for practical reasons we use short-form works to master the art and craft of creating great spec-fic.
McKitterick strives to put together a creative cohort that's diverse in genre, backgrounds, and experience, with an emphasis on developing a mutually supportive cohort adept at respectfully offering useful critiques and accepting feedback in the positive spirit they're offered to help everyone learn and grow not only as authors but as members of the spec-fic community.
full info
on the
Spec-Fic Workshop page
Return to the scene of the crime to reinforce lessons from prior workshops and reconnect with alums. Since 2016.
Chris McKitterick offers an advanced (and less formal) two-week workshop exclusively for alums (aka "AdAstranauts" and "Young Gunns") of the Spec-Fic Workshop.
Repeat Offenders offers the opportunity to work with similarly trained writers - and special guest instructors - on whatever projects you have underway. Details are customized for each year's attendees, but we usually plan project-development sessions (either short and long work), traditional workshopping, theory and business talks, and so forth, and time for writing (some come primarily for a writing retreat and to find inspiration from participating in discussions): Details to come as we work out everyone's wishes. This is not only a time to further develop your writing, but also a great chance to get advice and feedback on ongoing, longer projects - and to meet up with your cohort again!
full info
on the Repeat Offenders page
Return to the scene of the crime to reinforce the lessons from your workshop, and reconnect with other alums.
Since 2010.
This follow-up workshop to Kij Johnson and Barbara Webb's annual two-week residential writing workshop is offered to alums of that program only. Develop in-progress work while re-connecting with your past cohort!
full info
on the Novel Workshops page
"I had no TV, no internet, and no other distractions. Just a hermit-like room with a view of the Kansas horizon.
I wrote 30,000 words in a week, and built momentum on my book that didn't fade until October.
When I needed human company (better yet, the company of other writers), I had lunch and dinner with the Workshop participants.
It was glorious."
- Wolfgang Baur
As in prior years (space allowing), we also offer a Writing Retreat for alums wanting to focus on their writing and reconnect with fellow AdAstranauts and Young Gunns. Alums of our writing workshops are welcome to co-habitate in the same building as those attending the Speculative Fiction Writing Workshop or "Repeat Offenders" Workshop for up to four weeks, coinciding with either or both of the formal workshops. There are no classes, though Retreat writers may choose to organize their own critiquing sessions or sit in on workshop sessions so you can enjoy the creative energy that develops around a workshop with the freedom and privacy to use your time as you wish. Attendees are free to write, revise, study, socialize, sightsee, and consult privately about their writing with other Retreat or Workshop attendees.
full info
on the
Writing Retreat page
"Science into Fiction" Spec-Fic Writing Workshops:
Series 1: "The Higgs Boson in This Particular Universe"
Series 2: "Creativity and the Brain"
Series 3: "Writing in (and about) the Age of Artificial Intelligence"
Series 4: "Six great stories and what makes them work: The science of SF writing"
Series 5: "Writing Spec-Fic Humor" coming
Fall 2026:
apply Summer
2026
Chris McKitterick's Spec-Fic Writing Workshop & Repeat Offenders Workshop
Kij Johnson & Barbara Webb's SF&F Novel Writing Workshops and Masterclasses
Speculative-fiction writing resources
We believe strongly in the free sharing of information, so you'll find a lot of content - including course syllabi and many materials from our classes - on this and related sites and social networks as educational outreach. Feel free to use this content for independent study, or to adapt it for your own educational and nonprofit purposes; just please credit us and link back to this website. We'd also love to hear from you if you use our materials!
This site is associated with the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), the Science Fiction Research Association (SFRA), AboutSF, and other organizations, and its contents are copyright 1992-present Christopher McKitterick except where noted, and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License: Feel free to use and adapt for non-profit purposes, with attribution. For publication or profit purposes, please contact McKitterick or other creators as noted.
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updated 1/11/2026