Meet Our Collective
Founded in 2018 by writer Molly Rosen in the basement of her Brooklyn building, BWC has grown into a fierce, multi-generational community of online workshops and retreats devoted to the power of personal storytelling. Our classes are vibrant, boundaried spaces rooted in empathy, active listening, and integrity, where rules are bent, comfort zones are torched, and breakthroughs happen in real time. We welcome unconventional learners and neurodiverse thinkers ready to mine their hard pasts and turn them into propulsive, poetic narratives. Over the years, BWC students have written New York Times bestselling memoirs, taken the mic at The Moth, appeared in Vogue, The Cut, The Rumpus, i-D, and the New York Times, and landed book deals with Random House, Doubleday, and Metropolitan Books. Guest speakers have included Melissa Febos, Danyel Smith, Jessamine Chan, Carvell Wallace, and more. We believe stories are medicine — there is no wrong way to write.
Adrienne Jacobson Oliver — artist and writer.
Kayla Burney — writer and PhD student at Tulane.
“I started What The Plot without an outline or any idea of how to make one… I loved this class because it helped writing a book go from an abstract process to something approachable.”
Misha Sumar — low-residency master’s student at Bennington College and BWC teaching assistant.
“When I first joined BWC, I was so hesitant to call myself a writer. Three years late I’ve written several chapters of my book, been published in Thimble Lit Mag and am in the process of applying for my MFA.”
Michelle Schulz — writer.
“This class made the ethereal idea of creating a book become suddenly practical. Molly’s intense creativity allows for freedom to flow.”
Michelle Woods — writer, editor, musician, MFA Creative Writing candidate at The New School.
“BWC has encouraged me to write the memoir I’ve always wanted — a deep dive into what it means to be Black, trans, a woman, a musician, a writer, and a recovering addict in today’s divided world. Prompts I started in workshops have also become published pieces in Them, NYLON, Vogue, and the LGBTQ zine, Club Curran.”
Katy Allen — writer.
“The people who were strangers Thursday morning were friends be Thursday night. I left the retreat with a full first draft of an essay and have been returning to it daily ever since. I believe I’ll be reaping the benefits of what was sown at the retreat for a long time.”
Lexie Robinson — storyteller.
“Since starting BWC classes in 2020. I’ve published an essay in Playgirl, a story in i-D magazine, and I’ve interviewed both Carvel Wallace and Melissa Febos about their creative process. In BWC I’ve found my soulmates and my sisterhood.”
Julie Chang — writer and copywriter.
“Every time I take a BWC class I find new inspiration and the words to shape the random memories and yearnings that have been haunting me. I’ve already published two stories in The Rumpus that began as workshop prompts.”
Janjay Sherman — strategic storyteller and multi-hyphenate marketer.
Tauri Janeé — creative writer and art educator — scene from BWC collaboration with Tauri Janeé and Wonderland Dreams by Alex Meade.
“Participating in Molly’s workshop brought up stories I hadn’t realized I needed to share. It was a transformative experience that helped me settle into my identity as a writer…a gentle push towards much needed self-reflection.”
"I owe so much of my growth as a writer to the space Molly has created."
Takia Shemique Cushnie — writer.
Darriea Clark - published multimedia storyteller and founder of Unblushing Media.
Rachel Fleit — writer and director of Introducing, Selma Blair and Bama Rush.
“Molly helped me accomplish my best writing to date”
Sophie Caird — comedy writer.
Lyndsey Claire Fox — brand developer and writer.
“Molly’s daily writing meditations forced the most excruciating catharses — they have my writing a heartbeat, a spine and a soul.”
Natalie Ponte — writer and editor; Byline, 2024.
"Since taking my first Brooklyn Writer's Collective class four years ago, I've developed pieces that have been published in The Rumpus and Pigeon Pages. I'm currently finishing my final semester of an MFA at NYU. My thesis project is a novel, which also grew from a piece I began in BWC."
Salma Hindy — comedian, actor, and writer.
“The Woodstock retreat was a cathartic weekend that helped me output one of the most clarifying pieces of my life. Every prompt was an effective portal to fresh new personal stories. Plus, the other students are like-minded, high-quality writers.”
Lilah Fisher Wise — writer and health nerd.
“We gather, we share, we read, we reflect, we challenge. Somewhere along the way, Molly guides us to be more authentic storytellers. I can’t wait to do more.”
Cat Cohen — comedian, actress, singer, and poet.
Pi-Isis Ankhra — founder of P.S. 314, inc., advisor, speaker, writer — pictured here at a Brooklyn retreat in 2022.
Pi-Isis Ankhra — founder of P.S. 314, inc., speaker, writer, and advisor — pictured here at BWC 2022 retreat
"The Brooklyn writers Collective is a community of women who are there to listen, to learn, to write, to simply be in community with each other."
Milo Longenecker — theatremaker, movement artist, educator; Autostraddle, 2024.
Madeline Howard — writer and editor; Vogue, 2023.
Michelle Woods - writer, editor, musician, MFA Creative Writing candidate, The New School; Vogue, 2023.
Mamie-Claire — writer.
Natalie Yepez — musician and performer.
“I’m a musician / performer who has struggled with writers block for years. But after taking close to ten classes with #brooklynwriterscollective, I finally feel unlocked. I’m writing the best music I've ever written and putting the finishing touches on my book proposal about growing up in NYC as the daughter of the downtown ‘Gangster Peacher’ in the underbelly of the NYC music scene. BWC has not only been a game charger but a life changer.”
Jessica Elefante — writer, tech critic, child safety activist, author of Raising Hell, Living Well.
“BWC is for everyone. Molly has helped me stretch and flex every creative muscle I have. Whenever I’ve felt pigeonholed in my writing (brand copywriter, nonfiction author, Substack how-to’er.) I take one of BWC’s classes to see what else I am capable of.”
Ali Bird — SVP and managing director at The Wall Group.
“Molly is a gentle and fearless teacher."
Alexandra D’Amour — NYT, 2024.
“Molly gave me the tough love I needed when I was editing my New York Times Op-Ed — an essay about toxic beauty culture that grew out of one of her classes.”
Pat Regan - standup comedian, TV writer (Hacks), and podcast host (Seek Treatment.)
"Molly is the first person who made me feel like I might actually be capable of writing a book."
Manouska Jeantus — writer and community strategist.
Kerry Docherty — writer and cofounder of Faherty Brand.
“Molly holds a safe container for any novice or expert writer to explore and hone their voice. I will undoubtedly take this class again.”
Jessica Defino — writer and advice columnist.
“BWC always encourages me to do deeper in my writing. One of the personal essays I wrote for a summer workshop about death, beauty, and my grandfather ended up being one of my top-performing Substack articles of all time.”
Katie Nugent — writer and photographer; The Cut, 2023.
“Brooklyn Writers Collective turned my quiet dream of becoming a writer into a reality when an assignment I started in class was published in The Cut. Molly’s one-on-one mentorship and steadfast belief in my work was the encouragement I needed to get my stories out into the world.”
@maryredjam - Dublin writer.
Pat Regan — standup comedian, TV writer (Hacks), and podcast host (Seek Treatment.)
“In Brooklyn Writers Collective I generated several essays that became the basis for my first book, which I sold to Doubleday this past summer.”
Ayala Skopp — writer.
Andrea Gray — writer and former BWC summer teaching assistant.
Justine Lupe — actress and producer.
Christine Whitney — writer, editor,
Liz Hammond — writer; Vogue, 2023.
“I came to BWC because I knew I wanted to write about my postpartum experience I didn’t have the framework or motivation to sit down and get it done. Molly’s classes and the BWC community were the dose of inspiration I needed. My recent story in Vogue started as a prompt in a summer workshop.”
Julie Chang — writer and copywriter; McSweeney’s, 2024.
Lyndsey Claire Fox — brand developer, writer — excerpt from Substack: Desperately Seeking Schmaltz.
Kathryn Everett — director, producer, writer, and advocate.
“Molly is a seriously tough teacher and she will make you work, but she will also listen and push you to give yourself the attention you deserve.”
Samantha Ellis — novelist and social media strategist.
“This challenging, cathartic course opened up creative walls inside of me that I didn’t know existed.”
Julia Childs Heyl - writer, therapist, and graduate of Tin House Summer Workshop at Reed College
“I made huge progress on my memoir this past year in the “I Feel Scene” + “Oh Snap” workshops. Molly and the community of brilliant BWC writers has completely shifted my creative life.”
Anna Sullivan — writer; Vogue, 2023.
Gretchen Mol — actress and writer; Rose&Ivy Journal, 2022
“Molly allows writers to hone their stories in an environment that is vital and supportive.”