Upcoming Online Classes

I'm teaching two online classes this spring for two great organizations. I'm excited to be teaching my first online class for The Writer's Center, based in Bethesda, MD. And I'm happy to again teach Flash Essays for Creative Nonficiton's online classes. Registration for both is currently open. 

Write Into the Heart of Your Story
March 5 - April 1, 2018
The Writer's Center online classes

 Writing stories from your life is about more than recording a series of events; it's about creating meaning and connection with readers. Whether you're writing personal essays, memoir, or blog posts, how do you write beyond what happened and into the heart of a true story? This course will give participants a treasure trove of techniques to improve their writing, deepen their stories, and connect with readers. Through close reading, writing prompts, and creative exercises, participants will learn how to use the building blocks of writing personal stories, how to create texture and depth in those stories, and how to deal with common challenges that hold us back in our writing.

This 4-week session is part of The Writer's Center online classes. Details and registration ($195) are available here.

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Flash Essays 
April 2 - May 2, 2018
Creative Nonfiction online classes

Some experiences beg us to write about them, but we often feel overwhelmed when trying to capture the whole story at once. In this class, we'll explore the art of flash nonfiction and short essays—pieces that tell a complete story in no more than 1000 words. Life is made up of moments: big showy ones and small quiet ones—many of them infused with deeper meaning. Sometimes we can easily articulate a moment’s meaning, but often we can only make sense of it peripherally. In a flash essay, the moment and the meaning must be distilled to their purest essence. Through a series of writing exercises, participants will generate a list of potential essay ideas and identify key details and imagery to help them dig into the heart of those stories. Students will also write up to five flash pieces of varying lengths.

This 5-week class starts with my popular One-Moment Memoirs curriculum and then expands into other aspects of flash essays. Full details and registration are available on Creative Nonfiction's website. Price: $260 if registered by March 12; $310 after March 12.