Octavia E. Butler and Writing Workshops

Octavia E. Butler's Wikipedia article mentions that workshops helped her improve her writing significantly. More so than her college curriculum. I tried to find one of the workshops mentioned, it was for minority writers and sponsored by the Screenwriters' Guild of America. The best I could find was this list: http://www.wga.org/content/default.aspx?id=1042. Something of interest to people who may have already started exploring their writing capabilities extensively and want to take it to the next level.

The Next Sci-Fi Epic

Dear Will Charles,

I LOVE your foray into creative writing. Please keep going with that! I like your style.

It is Monday morning and I feel sick. Swine Flu? Only time will tell.

Saw Star Trek this weekend. Thought it was excellent. I've decided, as I've 'decided' many times before, that I want to write America's next sci-fi/fantasy epic. I am a fan of the boy wizard, the vampires of Forks, Luke, Spock, LOST, Heroes...the list goes on. I realize that my real loves in this world have be not quite of this world. I'd like to be able to bounce ideas around. Will, will you be my sounding board?

Things to be inspired by:
Octavia Butler, fluid gender identity, rendering and surrendering the body...

Any thought?

Love,
Little Sister
(going to the bathroom to hurl...?)