These are events available for free to members of the Florence Literary Society. To attend an event, sign up as a member here and reserve your place following the links below. Looking for free writing events in Florence? Sign up for the newsletter to see the list of ALL English speaking writer and author events in Florence.
January
FLS Launch Party & Raffle
Join us at Todo Modo for an aperitivo and the the official launch of the Florence Literary Society. Learn about the scope and objectives of FLS while enjoying a glass of wine in a cozy bookshop in the heart of Florence. There will be an opportunity to become a member at the event and learn about the upcoming events in 2025 as well as a literary minded raffle!
Free ticketed event. You must have a free ticket to attend.
Saturday, February 8th
Writing Workshop: Beginnings and Endings with Mark Jarman
In this workshop on beginnings and endings of short stories, we will look at inspiring models and very handy techniques from writers James Joyce, Alice Munro, Flannery O’Connor, Denis Johnson, Ernest Hemingway, and Elizabeth Tallent, and from Jarman’s own stories.
Mark Anthony Jarman is a Canadian fiction writer. Jarman’s work includes the novel Salvage King, Ya!, the short story collection Knife Party at the Hotel Europa and the travel book Ireland’s Eye. His latest book Burn Man was reviewed in the New York Times.
A graduate of the Iowa Writer’s Workshop, Jarman has taught at the University of New Brunswick and the University of Victoria.
Jarman’s writing has won the O. Henry Award, the Gold National Magazine Award in nonfiction, the Jack Hodgins Fiction Prize, and has been a finalist for the Journey Prize. Jarman has been awarded the Maclean-Hunter Endowment Award twice.
Free Ticketed event for members and non members. You must have a ticket to attend. Click below for information on timing & location.
Saturday, March 29th
Submission Strategies with Monica Sharp
Do you dream of seeing your work in print? This workshop focuses on a potential first step: publishing in literary magazines and journals. We’ll explore the diverse world of publications, from prestigious journals to niche online magazines, and how to identify the perfect fit for your writing. Learn how to craft submissions that stand out, understand editorial processes, and manage rejections gracefully. We’ll discuss building a publication history, networking within the literary community, and using these early successes to leverage future opportunities. Let’s strategize your path to publication together – one poem, story, or essay at a time.
Monica Sharp is a founding member of the Florence Literary Society and has regularly published articles, poetry and short fiction in publications across Europe. You can find out more at her website here: sharpmonica.com.
This event is open only to members of the Florence Literary Society. Click here to become a member in advance, or you can pay the membership fee of €35 at the event on the 29th. Membership gets you free access to all upcoming events (see below) and early bird access to publishing day on October 25th.
Saturday, May 10
Writing Workshop: Log Lines with Andrea Zurlo
Are you struggling to write a logline that grabs attention? In this hands-on workshop, writer Andrea Zurlo will guide both novice and seasoned authors through the art of crafting powerful loglines, key to getting your work noticed by agents and publishers. You’ll learn how to summarize your story, learning to condense your concept into one powerful sentence without losing its essence; and the dos and don’ts, avoiding common mistakes that can weaken your pitch. You’ll also get inspired by successful loglines and practice crafting your own.
Whether you’re just stepping into the publishing world or refining your submission strategy, this session will help you sharpen your hook and boost your chances of getting published.
A writer and translator, Andrea Zurlo was named finalist for the award “Premio Planeta de Novela” in Spain, and other literary prizes, both with texts in Spanish and Italian. Her short stories were published in several anthologies in Europe and Latin America. She published three novels and a collection of her short stories, with different publishers. She also loves teaching writing techniques and creative writing.
This event is open only to members of the Florence Literary Society. Click here to become a member in advance, or you can pay the membership fee of €35 at the event on the 10th. Membership gets you free access to all upcoming events (listed here) and early bird access to publishing day on October 25th.
Ticketed event: Free for members.
Saturday, June 7
Writing Workshop: Writing Historical Fiction with Katherine Mezzacappa
The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there’: how to write convincing historical fiction – Workshop
Living in Florence, are you inspired to write historical fiction but don’t know where to start, or are daunted by the research you need to do? In this session, Katherine Mezzacappa will help you to craft convincing and immersive historical fiction, by observing and writing through the all the senses. In this richly illustrated session, you’ll learn practical tips to ensure accuracy not just in facts but also in ‘voice,’ drawing on Katherine’s own experiences as a historical novelist and also as a reviewer and manuscript assessor. And yes, we’ll look at some howlers and how you can avoid making them.
Research is crucial in writing historical fiction, but how do you avoid turning that into information dump? What about sources other than history books: maps, memorials, novels of the period, newspaper reports, paintings, costume? And how do you evoke a sense of place when centuries have intervened? We’ll take a look too at the publishing of historical fiction as well as organisations supporting historical novelists, to help you find your tribe.
Katherine Mezzacappa is an Irish author of six historical novels under her both her own name and a pseudonym (including Booker nominated The Maiden of Florence, 2024) with another in-press. Under yet another name she has also published three short contemporary novels. Her short fiction has been published worldwide in a range of journals. She holds degrees from the University of East Anglia (History of Art), Durham (an MLitt in Eng Lit) and a Masters in Creative Writing from Canterbury Christ Church. Katherine has been awarded competitive residencies from the Irish Writers Centre, the Danish Centre for Authors and Translators and the Latvian Writers House. She also works as a manuscript assessor for The Literary Consultancy, London and for the Romantic Novelists Association. She reviews for the Historical Novel Society’s Journal and is a reader and shortlister for a number of literary prizes. Katherine has been living in Carrara for nearly two decades.
Ticketed event: Free for members.
September
Pitching Workshop
In preparation for publishing day in October, join us for a workshop on how to pitch your work to an editor or agent.
Ticketed event: Free for members.
October
Publishing Day 2025
Florence Literary Society’s flagship annual publishing day event! See more information on the official page.
Ticketed event: Publishing day will have an additional cost to membership costs. Early access for members.