Writing the Story Only You Can Tell with Vanessa Walters

Everyone has a story to tell. This course will enable you to write your authentic and vulnerable self—whether in fiction, nonfiction, or poetry—to create truly unique writing. 

Through independent writing that surprises one on the page, participants will learn the art of freewriting—writing without stakes or an agenda—to open themselves up emotionally. There will be opportunities to share and discuss our work, and to give and receive positive feedback on our writing from other participants. Additionally, each session will explore a different aspect of the authentic, vulnerable story. By examining illustrative texts from authors like Zora Neale Hurston and Tim O’Brien, participants will gain perspective on how to dig deeper into memory and vulnerability to develop confidence and uncover truth in our writing.

Course Outline:

• Week 1: Warm-up (writing for 5 minutes to a prompt, with an opportunity to share and discuss the writing), investigating object memory in texts, and undertaking an object memory exercise
• Week 2: Warm-up (writing for 5 minutes to a prompt, with an opportunity to share and discuss the writing), investigating and examining texts that demonstrate emotional honesty, and undertaking an “I am…” personal writing exercise
• Week 3: Warm-up (writing for 5 minutes to a prompt, with an opportunity to share and discuss the writing), a discussion about why writing about what you don’t know is just as important as what you do know, and a TED Talk writing exercise
• Week 4: Warm up (writing for 5 minutes to a prompt, with an opportunity to share and discuss the writing), exploring truth in form by looking at ghazals, sonnets, and haikus, and attempting to write ghazals as a way of finding truth

Teaching Style: The style will be conversational and participant-driven, guided by texts and exercises.