Instructor Lauren Brazeal Garza is an essayist and author of four books, most notably her memoir-in-verse, Gutter (YesYes Books, 2018), which chronicles her homelessness as a teenager. She earned her MFA in writing from Bennington College and her Ph.D. in Literature, focusing on testimonio and narratives from marginalized voices from the University of Texas at Dallas, where she teaches literature and creative writing. Her essays have most recently appeared in Waxwing and The Rumpus.

Read an Interview with Lauren on The Writing Life.

Now more than ever, memoir and personal essay allows us to speak of our own experiences on our terms. Unlike autobiography or biography, which are often preoccupied with the facts of an event, or when things take place on a timeline, memoir can instead focus on the feelings and senses of a memory’s architecture and the unique ways our memories connect to one another.

In this generative four-week intensive, we will study and discuss techniques used by a variety of memoirists and poets who have written their own stories and experiences in interesting ways. You will also draft one piece in a form of your choice (prose or poetry) each week that experiments with sharing a memory or experience and receive weekly feedback from me and your classmates.

At the close of the course, each student will have up to four new drafts that share or explore memory. Each student will be encouraged to choose one draft they are most proud of to share with the class during our final Zoom session as part of a celebratory reading.

We will read work from Catherine Cho, Flannery O'Connor, Jeanette McCurdy, and Carmen Maria Machado. All reading materials will be offered at no cost by the instructor.

COURSE OUTLINE:

Week 1: Introduction: The Life of Memory

Week 2: Small Details, Big Picture: the art of showing, not telling

Week 3: Dialogue: advancing the story through conversation 

Week 4: Finale: Final Reading, Reflections, and Looking Towards the Future

COURSE TAKEAWAYS:

• We will study and learn a variety of techniques used by contemporary writers who work within their own memories and experiences.
• We will explore and experiment with approaches to writing about our lives by creating one draft of a new piece in a form each student is drawn to (prose or poetry), begun during in-class writing sessions based on open-ended generative prompts.
• We will provide and receive supportive, constructive feedback within the course’s writing community by workshopping one draft per week to the class.
• We will also gain experience reading our finished work in front of a supportive audience of our peers at the end of the course.
• We will leave the course with a better toolbox for writing memories based on our own experiences, and thinking about ways in which we might read and write memoir and personal essay.

TESTIMONIALS:

“This class, and Lauren’s inspiring presence, has changed everything for me. I have a renewed confidence in my ability, voice, and story. And I loved encouraging my fellow classmates to achieve their best too. Tears are flowing down my cheeks as I write this, because Lauren’s class opened up for me the doors I had bolted shut on myself.” -DeAnne H.

“I love love loved this course! It was super fun and I had a great time. I especially appreciated how much freedom we were given for the writing prompts, and the structure of the workshop and peer comments were so effective and helpful.” -David R.

“This was one of the most charming and well-put-together courses I've had the pleasure of taking. Discussions were open and full of ideas, coupled with informative lectures. If you participated in class, the rewards were clear and obvious. Ms. Brazeal Garza was an excellent teacher for this subject and genuinely had me interested in new topics.” -Tiffany W.

"Lauren is phenomenal! She is extremely passionate, kind, and smart. She has the student's best interests at heart and makes great points on improving our writing. One of the best writing instructors I've had. I hope more writers take her classes in the future. She is also very organized and is a great overall teacher" -Megan K.

"This was most definitely one of my favorites from this year. The course was extremely flexible, and I found substantial value from the course material” -Mark L.

“I enjoyed everything about this class! Lauren did a wonderful job engaging us and giving us the space to grow and improve as writers. I'll definitely take more courses from her in the future." -Troy N.

"Lauren gave me room to grow and showcase what I can achieve as both a creative writer and reader. I'm so grateful for her class and her insights, which have genuinely made me a better writer." -Alex S.

ONLINE COURSE STRUCTURE: