Begins Wednesday, January 7th, 2026

Class will meet weekly via Zoom on Wednesdays at 6PM - 7:30PM Pacific

Any questions about this class? Use the Chat Button (lower left) to talk with us. 

Instructor Christina Berke is a Chilean-American writer and trauma-informed educator with an MFA in Creative Nonfiction Writing from UNLV. Her work is in The Sun, Lidia Yuknavitch’s Khora, Pithead Chapel, Teen Vogue, and elsewhere.

In The Art of Memoir, Mary Karr writes, “A memoirist starts with events, then derives meaning from them."

In this 8-week survey workshop, we’ll explore the various ways in which techniques of narrative craft can be harnessed to impose order or shape compelling stories out of real-life material.

We’ll read examples of creative nonfiction, including personal essays, narrative reportage, memoir excerpts, and flash creative nonfiction, and we’ll draft new works of our own in a supportive community.

This class is for you if you are working towards a memoir, are new to creative nonfiction, or are looking for a fresh approach to the genre!

Reading material will include flash CNF, essays, and memoir excerpts from Melissa Febos, T Kira Madden, Kiese Laymon, and more.

CLASS OUTLINE:

Week 1: Key terms & Overview

Week 2: Characters

Week 3: Setting 

Week 4: Hermit Crab 

Week 5: Humor Essays 

Week 6: Hybrid Works 

Week 7: Flash Nonfiction 

Week 8: Wrap up & Next steps

COURSE TAKEAWAYS: 

Mastery of Diverse Creative Nonfiction Forms

Participants will gain hands-on experience writing across the full spectrum of creative nonfiction genres, including personal essays, narrative reportage, memoir excerpts, hermit crab essays, humor essays, hybrid works, and flash nonfiction. By the end of eight weeks, writers will have a portfolio of work in multiple forms and understand which styles best serve their unique voice and stories.

Strong Foundation in Narrative Craft Techniques

Writers will develop essential skills in character development, setting creation, and story structure specific to nonfiction writing. Following Mary Karr's principle of deriving meaning from events, participants will learn how to shape compelling narratives from real-life material, transforming raw experience into artfully crafted stories that resonate with readers.

Personalized Feedback and Revision Skills

With the opportunity to submit up to 5 pages of work for instructor feedback, participants will receive targeted guidance from Christina Berke, a trauma-informed educator with an MFA in Creative Nonfiction. This personalized attention will help writers identify their strengths, address areas for growth, and develop revision strategies they can apply to future projects.

Supportive Writing Community and Professional Confidence

Through weekly Zoom sessions and guided discussions of works by authors like Melissa Febos, T Kira Madden, and Kiese Laymon, participants will join a supportive community of fellow writers. Past students consistently report leaving the course with increased confidence in their writing abilities, clarity about next steps in their writing journey, and the encouragement of a network that's rooting for their success.

TESTIMONIALS:

"After taking this class, I feel more confident in writing overall. The professor really cared about creating a fun, healthy, and safe feeling environment for the class. The professor was very thorough with explaining assignments, as well as having clear instructions for each assignment." -former student

"This was by far my favorite class this semester--I really liked that all the writing projects were all fun to write. Professor Berke always brought positive energy to the class and is always willing to help her students." -former student

“This course taught me so much. I learned about new forms, styles, and formats of creative non-fiction that I feel like have given me a solid foundation to go forth and continue practicing the craft, and ultimately write my stories into their new, beautiful homes. I am also very grateful for the community space this course provided!” -former student

"This was my first class and Christina made me feel so welcomed and really sparked wonderful discussions among the students. She inspired me to write more and I am really grateful she taught the class. She clearly enjoys the subject as well!" -former student

"Christina is a wonderful instructor. I appreciated her intentionality in her selection of readings, and the ways that she guided us in working through examples and applying the principles to our own creative work. The free-writing prompts were also thought-provoking and have given me a lot of material to work with as well." -former student

"Christina is kind, humble, and helpful. She clearly has a heart that wants to help writers emerge into the literary world. Her class was helpful for learning how to pitch to editors. I'm sending my first pitch this week, and her class gave me the confidence to know that I'm covering the basics in the pitch. It also feels like I have one more person rooting for me as a writer." -former student

ONLINE COURSE STRUCTURE:

This class meets weekly via Zoom. Come prepared for a super fun class with live interaction on Zoom each week and plenty of writing, reading, and talking.

PAYMENT OPTIONS:

• Instructor: Christina Berke
• Begins Wednesday, January 7th, 2026
  
• Class will meet weekly via Zoom on Wednesdays at 6PM - 7:30PM Pacific
• Tuition is $495