Through The Writers Studio, I’ll be teaching a new special 6-week class starting next month, Writing About Childhood.
Childhood from the perspective of an adult writer can seem like “another country,” a strange land where our powers, responsibilities and perceptions were vastly different. And yet it is the place we all come from. And while the lens through which we viewed the world as children may have seemed innocent and magical, our sensibilities were always vulnerable to the hard truths of encroaching adulthood. In this class, we will examine techniques and voices crafted by celebrated writers of poetry and prose such as Sandra Cisneros, Seamus Heaney, and Ray Bradbury. How did they use imagination and memory to regain a foothold in childhood’s not-so-distant realm, conjuring its wonder, joy, and pain? Whether working in poetry, prose, or creative nonfiction, can we apply similar voices and techniques to our own unique material? Let’s bring the world and experience of childhood to vibrant life again through our creative work.
This class is open to all writers of poetry and prose, including those who are new to The Writers Studio as well as those who have already taken classes. Students will respond to weekly exercises, posting their assignments to an online class space where feedback will also be posted by other students and the teacher. Our class will then meet for a one-hour online video discussion focusing on the technique described in the exercise using the Google Meet. No special software needed, and no transcript will be available for those who miss the discussion.
Write Yourself Sane 