“It still comes as a shock to realize that I don’t write about what I know: I write in order to find out what I know.” –Patricia Hampl
This writing workshop will expand and deepen your understanding of creative nonfiction—a genre that ranges from the lyric essay to narrative journalism. Most commonly, it describes a form wherein writers apply the craft of fiction to true stories. We will read a range of styles and experiment with subject and form. We will learn from literary mentors, including Zadie Smith, Anthony Doerr, T Kira Madden, JoAnn Beard, and others. We will determine how to accurately render people, places, and experiences, and how to create honest, engaging work. We will ask hard questions: How much can we trust our reader to “get” our intentions? What’s the best structure to house the story we want to tell? How do we write about real people? We will practice the art of looking closely, of honing in on salient details. The workshop-style seminar will depend on active participation, in-class and take-home writing assignments, thorough critiques of one another’s work, and a commitment to the process of revision.
This writing workshop will expand and deepen your understanding of creative nonfiction—a genre that ranges from the lyric essay to narrative journalism. Most commonly, it describes a form wherein writers apply the craft of fiction to true stories. We will read a range of styles and experiment with subject and form. We will learn from literary mentors, including Zadie Smith, Anthony Doerr, T Kira Madden, JoAnn Beard, and others. We will determine how to accurately render people, places, and experiences, and how to create honest, engaging work. We will ask hard questions: How much can we trust our reader to “get” our intentions? What’s the best structure to house the story we want to tell? How do we write about real people? We will practice the art of looking closely, of honing in on salient details. The workshop-style seminar will depend on active participation, in-class and take-home writing assignments, thorough critiques of one another’s work, and a commitment to the process of revision.
- Teacher: Courtney Zoffness