Windows and Mirrors: Personal Narrative Workshop

​February 22 - March 22  |  5 Saturdays  |  10am - 12pm 

For registration and more information click HERE 

 

Personal narratives are testament to the universality of the human experience, a potent antidote to the divisive rhetoric of our time. Through a commitment to a rigorous depth of inquiry into the self, writers of personal narrative offer their readers both windows and mirrors: a chance to peer into a world outside one’s own life, and the opportunity to find oneself reflected in stranger.

 

In this 5-week course, designed for writers with a work-in-progress ready to share, we’ll explore the powerful potential of personal writing. Each class will begin with a discussion of assigned readings by a diversity of established writers working across the genre, from essay to memoir. We’ll use these examples to explore elements of craft including structure, tension, detail, dialogue, and voice.

 

The second part of each class will be devoted to discussing your own work in a supportive and focused workshop designed to provide useful and specific feedback for each participant while offering opportunities to develop one’s own editorial eye. Throughout, we’ll build community, kindle inspiration, and gain new momentum on our projects. We’ll also grapple together with practical questions related to personal writing (how to negotiate the challenges of writing about family or friends, publishing pathways, establishing a writing practice). Participants should be ready to share a work-in-progress (up to 4500 words, due the first week of class) with the group.

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