Class

Art and the Anecdote: Giving New Form to the Stories We Keep Telling

We all have style when it comes to narrativizing our lives. Even a dull day or a dreadful date can fuel a good story. But when faced with the blank page, our skill and delight might abandon us.

In this generative workshop, we’ll turn the stories we tell friends into narrative poems, flash memoirs, and fictions. We’ll explore our voices, as veteran storytellers, as they translate to the page. We’ll play with truth and fiction. Regardless of your genre, our goal will be to mine our memories and find new uses and meaning in the stories we keep telling.

This course is for memoirists who don’t know where to start. For poets and fictionists who wish to generate work from the richness of lived experience. It’s for anyone who wants to bring the intimacy, energy, and humor of the oral art to the page. We’ll draw inspiration from published work across genres, building an arsenal of stylistic and structural approaches. We’ll engage in guided discussions and generative writing exercises. Participants will share their work and receive oral feedback from the instructor and their peers. This class is for beginning and experienced writers alike.

Instructions for Accessing This Online Class

In order to access live class meetings, you must have the Zoom application downloaded to your computer. You will also need a WiFi/Internet connection throughout the duration of your scheduled meeting and a computer with audio and video capability. The information to join your Zoom classroom will be provided in your confirmation email upon registration. Please check spam folders if you do not see this email upon registration. For more information on how to use Zoom, please see our training manual here.