Everything You Need to Know to Bring Your Memoir to Life (HH)
- Dates: Saturday, January 31, 2026 & Saturday, February 7, 2026
- Time: 10:00 am – 1:00 pm PST
- Where: Online, Zoom
Memoir projects begin in fragments: pages from freewrites, moments we return to, scenes we can’t forget even if we’re not why. If you have memories burning brightly—whether in your head or on the page—and the unmistakable feeling of something larger forming around them, this two-session intensive will help you identify the story your writing is already pointing toward.
We’ll begin by uncovering your core narrative: the themes that keep resurfacing, the turning points that shape your arc, and the throughline that holds your project together. From there, you’ll learn how to develop a flexible structure and create a roadmap that organizes your existing material into a coherent, compelling book.
In the second session, we’ll turn to the craft techniques that bring memoir to life. We’ll look at openings that draw readers in, how to build yourself and others as characters on the page, how to use dialogue and setting effectively, and how sensory detail and emotional clarity give scenes their shape. You’ll explore practical strategies for transforming raw pages into vivid, focused moments.
This class is ideal for memoirists at all stages, whether you’re at the very beginning of your project, you’ve been generating writing for years, or you’re knee-deep in something that feels unfinished or unclear. You don’t need a polished draft or a fully formed concept; our goal is to help you discover it.
By the end of the workshop, you’ll leave with a clearer understanding of your central narrative, a working book structure, and practical tools for developing your memoir on the page.
Each student will receive a 30-minute individual story-structure session with me.
