So you have these stories you want to tell and you need help telling them. Or, say, you have these stories about your life that you want to write but you don’t want to piss anyone off or aren’t ready to admit this really happened to you–label it fiction! Or, perhaps, you’ve been writing fiction forever and want to dig into what it means to use your real life as fodder for your fiction. Or perhaps you’re mostly a memoir/personal essay writer and you’re interested in writing fiction. No matter where you’re coming from, if the title of this class piqued your interest, there’s a reason for it.

What I love about fiction is that we are free to use all of the materials of our human experience in writing it.

What do I know about writing fiction from real life? I wrote two novels running away from memoir: A Woman’s Cry (Augustus Publishing, 2007) and The Write Play (shopping). I’ve also had short stories published that were written using materials from my life, like the flash piece Dollhead, published in SmokeLong Quarterly earlier this year.

I know that using my life, the people I’ve known, the experiences I’ve had, have given me a wonderful foundation to work with in my stories. 

In this class, I will share insights into my inspirations and methods, which will help you take away some fresh ideas for your own writing. This is a generative class, meaning you will be writing a lot and generating material to take with you and hopefully keep working on. 

Class Information:

Dates: January 21st, February 4th

Times: 12pm-5pm

Location: A central location in the West Village (exact location will be provided when you register)

Price: $70 for one class, $130 for both

To register: send an email with “Writing Fiction from Real Life” in the subject line to writingourlivesworkshop@gmail.com. I will respond with further information including payment methods.

I look forward to hearing from you all soon. Let’s start 2017 with some writing and dream chasing! Word.