I am a Teaching Fellow at
the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis, as well as an Advisor in Creative Nonfiction for the Loft's new Master Track Program.
See my bio. During summer term 2008 I am teaching a creative process course called "Start. Stuck? Start Again," and a weekend-long memoir class held at St. John's University in Collegeville, MN. In the fall, I'll be teaching a new course called "Memoir from the Masters," in which we will read at least three complete memoirs.
Start. Stuck? Start Again: A Writing Intensive
Do you ever wish you had a literary boss who would sit you down and make you write, give you something to write about, and push you out of the mud holes you get stuck in? For six weeks you can have your wish, with a compassionate yet forceful boss and some amiable coworkers who feel the way you do. There will be time in class to discuss problems of discipline and craft, but most of each session will be spent writing in response to both imaginative prompts and focused assignments. At least once during the term, you will be invited to turn in a short, troublesome piece of work to the teacher and meet privately with her for suggestions on how you might write around or through the trouble. There will be no “workshopping” in this course; its purpose is to generate writing and keep it flowing.
70% in-class writing exercises, 30% discussion of craft issues
Wednesdays, July 19-August 13, 6:30-8:30 pm.
RegistrationMemoir: From Private Life to Public Story
A good memoir witnesses to the human condition and resonates with reader's lives while staying true to the particulars of the individual life. What will it take to turn the private data of your life into a deeply personal story with public resonance? Come and spend the weekend with other writers caught up in the same endeavor. Writing exercises, discussions, and small-group work will address self-revelation, motivation, story arc, voice, time and place as anchors, the convergence of private and public, and other issues involved in memoir writing. Writers at all stages of work are welcome. Please bring along a favorite published memoir.
Saturday, August 2, 9:00 am through Sunday, August 3, 2:00 pm, St. John's University, Collegeville, MN
Registration
