Learn how to write well-rounded protagonists and other characters that add depth and complexity to your work.

This event was organized by and for participants in the bimonthly trans writing circle, but others are welcome to join in!

Multi-published authors Elle Ire and José Pablo Iriarte discuss techniques you can use across diverse genres and audiences to write better, more believable characters that your readers will relate to and root for (or against).

Elle Ire writes speculative fiction featuring kickass women who fall in love with each other. She has ten novels in publication from DSP and Bywater Books including the Goldie Award winner Dead Woman's Pond, and her most recent release, the paranormal murder mystery romance Speak EZ.

José Pablo Iriarte is an author of fantasy and science fiction stories mostly focusing on the magical in the world around us. Their stories have been published in Uncanny Magazine, Lightspeed Magazine, Strange Horizons, and many other venues. Their debut middle grade novel, Benny Ramírez and the Nearly Departed, was published by Knopf Books for Young Readers in spring of 2024, and the follow-up, AJ Torres and the Treasure of Captain Grayshark, was published in June of 2025.