Workshops — March April

Upcoming Events & Workshops

Writing Camp

11am–2pm
Sunday, October 19, 26 + November 2, 9, 16, 23

Facilitated by Peter Ferris

For writers of all genres and experience levels. Screenplays, prose, poetry, etc. are all welcome!

A cozy and supportive space for creative writers to stay productive, inspired, and motivated. Each week, three students will bring in several pages from a work-in-progress for group discussion. These workshop sessions are aimed at increasing motivation, finding the golden nuggets within each person's project, and fostering connection.

Writing Camp is six weeks long, with the option to drop in 3x or 6x. All students will get workshopped twice. All students must attend Week 1 in order to meet one another and build rapport. Students get one Day Pass per week to come in and use March April as a writing studio M–W, 12pm–8pm, for the duration of the workshop.

Max: 8 people
Attend 3 meetings: $200 (incl. 3 Day Passes)
Attend 6 meetings: $300 (incl. 6 Day Passes)

Early Bird Discount: Register by October 12 for 15% off registration. Use code CAMP at checkout.

Peter Ferris has developed & written original series for Netflix, Nickelodeon, and FredFilms (Adventure Time, Castlevania). They've written and directed award-winning short films, as well as kids’ books, poetry, and fantasy romance erotica. Peter has taught writing and DJ workshops at March April Studio and REACH LA.

Grad Apps: Writing Workshop (Virtual)

5:30pm–7pm PST
Mondays, October 20, 27 + November 3

Facilitated by Somi Jun

This virtual writing workshop provides a structured and supportive space for anyone preparing application essays for graduate school, including Masters, PhD, and credentialing programs.

During Week 1, Somi will walk students through the anatomy of a personal statement and answer questions. If time permits, they will look over each student’s draft beforehand. During Week 2, Somi will make personalized suggestions on each student’s personal statement, focusing in particular on the organization and theme of each essay. During Week 3, each student will sign up for a 30-minute one-on-one with Somi to receive feedback and ask questions.
Read reviews here.

Max: 4 people
$190

Grad Apps (Virtual): Register

Early Bird Discount: Register by October 16 for 20% off registration. Use code GRAD at checkout.

Somi Jun is a writer and educator from Los Angeles. They received their BA in Comparative Literature from Princeton University and MFA in Creative Writing from UC Irvine. They have been teaching essay-writing with a focus on college applications since 2016.

Past Events & Workshops

Light into Material: Queer Ritual and Craft
Opening Reception

7m–8:30pm
Tuesday, October 7

Circa: Queer Histories Festival

“Light into Material” is an exhibition honoring queer histories of photography, craft, and ritual by the queer and trans staff of March April Studio. The work emerges from our collective experimentation with early photography techniques such large format film, anthotypes, tin types, cyanotypes on textiles, wet collodion glass plates, and toning with natural dyes in the March April darkroom.

Through the process of translating light into images on tin, textile, and paper, we explore themes of ritual and ornamentation. This emphasis on analog photography, textile, and communal experimentation places this exhibition in a lineage of queer and trans artists, who have used traditions of craft to blur the line between nature, body, and art object.

Get Tickets

“One Institute is proud to present Circa, the first and only LGBTQ+ histories festival in the United States, held each October during LGBTQ+ History Month.
Established in 2023, Circa: Queer Histories Festival is a month-long, LA County-wide programming series showcasing the trailblazing histories and vibrant cultural contributions of LGBTQ+ communities through the lens of present-day challenges and triumphs. Through exhibitions, performance, readings, screenings, lectures, dialogues, and parties, Circa features queer and trans artists, activists, and educators leading the movement for LGBTQ+ liberation.” Learn more

Fermentation 101: Miso

11am–1pm
Sunday, October 12

Taught by GPS Tony

What is fermentation? How can you ferment food safely in your own kitchen?

Learn this and more during Fermentation 101: Miso with GPS Tony, a chemical engineer and fermentation enthusiast. This two-hour session will include a lecture on fermentation basics, a sampling of homemade and storebought miso pastes, and time for each student to start their own 12 oz. jar of miso. Leave with a mason jar of inoculated beans and the confidence to begin fermentation projects in your own kitchen.

No experience necessary. All materials included.

Max: 8 people
$80

Fermentation 101: Register

GPS Tony has a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering and a Master's degree in Bioresource Engineering, where he focused on research in agricultural bioproducts. Currently working as a Bioprocess Engineer, he focuses on fermentation and downstream purification processes for enzymes.

Tony has been experimenting with food fermentation since 2016, when he first made kombucha and yogurt in his dorm room. Since then, he has researched fermentation in food and agriculture, led a sourdough bread group (featured in the Wall Street Journal), and fed many friends.

Writing in Color

11am–2pm
Saturday, October 4

Taught by Helen Sword

Don’t miss this one-of-a-kind writing workshop and fundraiser with international writing expert Helen Sword, author of Writing with Pleasure (Princeton UP 2023).

Over three hours of playful exercises and experiments, we’ll explore how color — colorful materials, colorful techniques, colorful imagery — can nourish your creativity, sharpen your cognition, and deepen your pleasure in the process and craft of writing. You'll leave with a colorful handmade notebook and a toolbox of creative and critical approaches that you can continue to refine in your everyday practice.

This workshop is suitable for writers from any background (creative, academic, professional, personal) working in any genre (fiction, nonfiction, poetry, memoir, research). All funds raised will go towards March April Studio’s forthcoming exhibition “Light into Material: Queer Lineages of Craft” produced in celebration of Queer History Month (October 2025).

Max: 8 people
$150

Helen Sword is a scholar, poet, teacher, writer, and the founder of the WriteSPACE, a global online writing community. She is Professor Emeritus in the Centre for Arts and Social Transformation at the University of Auckland, a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand, and the recipient of several major research and teaching awards. Helen has facilitated writing workshops at more than 100 universities, conferences, and research institutes worldwide on every continent except Antarctica. www.helensword.com

Fire Cider Skill Share

11am–12:15pm
Saturday, September 27

Facilitated by Lucha Zamora

Prepare and take home a jar of fire cider in time to infuse for the holidays! Lucha Zamora will facilitate this skill share, guiding participants in the preparation of fire cider, an immunity-boosting herbal remedy. This skill share is also a great way to ground oneself in time for the colder months.

Bring your own pickling jar or add one on for $10. All other materials are included and will be provided on the day of the activity.

Max: 8 people
$30

Lucha Zamora is an artist, queer homemaker, and self-taught herbalist. They have been making natural medicines with herbs and plants since 2020. Zamora’s artwork, centering queer and BIPOC perspectives of Los Angeles, has been supported by REACH LA and March April Studio.

B&W Darkroom Demo: Safety & Etiquette

6:30m–8pm
Monday, September 22

Taught by Maj Roshandel

Learn the basics of the March April B&W Darkroom! Maj, Visual Media Producer, will walk students through the B&W film developing process, emphasizing safety and best practices.

No experience required.

Optional: Bring a roll of B&W small format film to test-develop in the darkroom!

Max: 8 people
$30

Maj Roshandel (they/them) makes experimental prints and jewelry informed by family archives, MENA and SWANA gendered resistance movements around the world, and local organizing within Los Angeles.

They run the B&W darkroom at March April Studio.

Grad App Working Group

11am–2pm
Saturday, September 6

Facilitated by Somi Jun

This working group provides a structured and supportive space for anyone preparing an application for graduate school, including Masters, PhD, and credentialing programs. Participants will organize key deadlines, develop personalized timelines, and workshop personal statements, ultimately leaving the workshop with a renewed sense of direction and confidence.
Read reviews here.

Max: 8 people
$60

Why March April? March April is the season of growth, facilitated by surprising changes in the weather. One day, sunshine. The next, pouring rain. It’s the variation, sudden turns in fate, and good, deep soil that make growth possible.