If you’d like some company or guidance on your writing journey, here are a few writing workshops/classes offered in July and August. All classes are online (virtual) unless otherwise indicated.
If you are an instructor and have a writing class you think would be of interest to the Writer-ish community, you can submit it here for consideration.
Scholarships are available for Writer-ish workshops. To be notified of upcoming classes and discounts, join the Writer-ish newsletter.
Personal Essay I
Info here: Darien teaching UCLA Personal Essay I, Asynchronous, 7-5-9/12 (10 weeks) – Registration opens in May. Sign up here.
"Personal Essay" is a broad term that encompasses essays, opinion pieces, and mini-memoirs—but which always details the writer's journey through a specific experience. This workshop teaches aspiring personal essayists how to be a compelling first-person narrator and employ craft elements such as theme, character development, voice, pacing, scene-setting, and exposition to tell their stories. The goal is to complete at least one personal essay (600-2,500 words) and develop material for future essays.
July 2023 Micro Memoir Workshop: The Micro Prose Submission Course
with Darien Hsu Gee (Writer-ish.com online), July 16, 2023, Sunday, from 1-2:30 pm PST. $49. Sign up here.
If you’re written micro prose (300 words or less), revised your micro prose, and feel ready to submit, this course is for you! We’ll look at submitting individual micro prose as well as larger bodies of work (micro prose chapbooks and/or full-length collections). We’ll discuss the ups and downs of submission, how to craft a submission strategy, and how to manage your submissions. We’ll also talk about options for getting your work out into the world on your own. Includes office hours immediately following the workshop.
I Ate That: Food as Personal History
with Darien Hsu Gee (Hugo House online), August 8-29, 2023, Tuesdays, from 5:00-7:00 pm PST. Sign up here.
This generative workshop explores the food of our lives as a way of mapping our personal history. We’ll write about childhood cravings, fad diets, comfort foods, overpriced groceries, tantalizing take-out, exhilarating exotica, and more through a series of micro narratives (300 words or less) and prose poems. You’ll finish the workshop with several short pieces, plus an appetite for more.
August 2023 Micro Memoir Workshop: The Micro Prose Submission Course
with Darien Hsu Gee (Writer-ish.com online), August 20, 2023, Sunday, from 1-2:30 pm PST. $49. Sign up here.
If you’re ready to get a few stories on the page, come join me! We’ll start with a check-in and quickly outline the micro memoir format, then jump into some writing. You’ll leave with two to three pieces, plus inspiration to keep you going. This workshop is perfect for writers who need a little push to get the words flowing, writers who want to develop a consistent writing practice, or writers who are working on a more extensive body of work.
If you’re more private and would like to work with me one-on-one, consider a 75-minute literary consult. If you can’t find a date that will work, reach out via the contact page. I’d love to help you reach your creative goals.
Looking for more resources? Check out the Writer-ish blog for free writing prompts and recommended books.
