UPCOMING WORKSHOPS
“This week was trajectory-changing. It opened up spaces in my brain that I have returned to again and again.” – L.O.
I’ve been teaching memoir and personal narrative nonfiction to writers of all skill levels since 2011. I teach both on Zoom and in-person, from single-day to multi-week curricula. I also facilitate ongoing groups of writing students that meet on Zoom weekly to share work, receive feedback, and talk writing and reading. These groups are currently closed to new members. If you’d like to arrange a workshop for your organization or school, please contact me.
October 27-31, 2025: Food as a doorway to memory
MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA
In this memoir-writing workshop on the rugged California coast, we’ll explore how the sensory details of food can help us unlock our most fertile memories. We’ll spend our mornings in discussion, and in the afternoons, we’ll write, applying what we’ve been learning to our own work. All levels are welcome. This workshop will take place at Asilomar, a national historic landmark of Arts & Crafts style, designed by pioneering architect Julia Morgan.
January 13-30, 2026: FROM MEMORY TO STORY
ON ZOOM, Tuesdays & Fridays, 9:30am to 11:30pm Pacific
This is my most-requested online curriculum. Together we practice techniques for tapping into memories, rebuilding them on the page, and searching for meaning in the raw material of life. This intimate class — just 12 students, maximum — combines readings, discussion, generative exercises, and constructive workshopping. All skill levels are welcome.
March 22-27, 2026: SMALL MOMENT, BIG STORY
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
New! This memoir-writing workshop is offered as part of Los Angeles Center of Photography’s “Sunscape,” a week of in-person workshops, lectures, and excursions. In this workshop, I will share writing exercises to help you unlock stories contained within the ordinary objects, places, and habits of your own life, using the mundane to reveal and write what matters most. You’ll leave with a handful of fresh drafts and ideas to carry you forward. All skill levels are welcome, and this course may be especially useful for photographers seeking to incorporate autobiographical writing into their projects.
June 14-19, 2026: TO BE ABSOLUTELY YOURSELF
PAINTROCK CANYON RANCH, WYOMING
New! A five-night retreat at the Paintrock Canyon Ranch, where – amidst the dramatic western landscape, inspired by horseback rides that lead us worlds away from our regular lives – we’ll cultivate, harness, and make writing driven by our obsessions. In addition to practical and generative exercises, we’ll read work by writers including Melissa Febos, Claire Cameron, and CJ Hauser. Participants will share work and receive constructive feedback from the instructor and the group. All levels of writing and riding experience are welcome. The only prerequisites are a willingness to explore new landscapes on horseback, and a desire to use writing to better understand your life.
“I've taken writing classes on and off over the years and have rarely experienced the talent in facilitation and teaching that you brought to us. You created a safe supportive space immediately and made everyone, no matter where they were in their writing, feel welcome and encouraged. I also really appreciated your practical tips and showing your own processes; it made the writing process feel attainable, rather than a secret only a lucky few get to unlock.”—B.G.