Creative Writing Seminars
Creative Writing MFA-level style courses taught by a university instructor
My seminars are not just another writing course. They are designed to replicate the rigorous and immersive experience of MFA courses in Creative Writing at universities. You will delve deep into texts, exploring form, narrative, and technique. The syllabi and intense reading schedules will push you to grow as a writer and reader, providing a unique learning experience.
Flexibility is key to my seminar offerings. Whether you prefer a full-semester (13-week) or a shorter seminar (5-weeks), there’s an option that suits your schedule. Both options focus on the craft of writing, using texts and generative exercises to enhance your skills.
So, if you have been interested in getting an MFA experience without going into debt, quitting your job, or moving to a new state, or if you would love to be in a classroom setting to learn, you can now take a graduate-level-type course without the grades and final seminar project. Get the instruction and deep study without the high cost and added pressure of earning a degree. My seminars are designed to provide the intensive study of narrative without the stress, allowing you to focus on your craft and how it can inform your own work.
The seminars I teach are built around independent study in “Voice in your Education” within a community/cohort of other writers committed to rigor, curiosity, and investigation. You are expected to put in the hard work of self-study and bring insights and questions to the community.
An undergraduate degree and previous graduate work or degree are not required.
Not ready to commit to taking a full seminar? My independent study program offers the perfect solution. Learn more about this opportunity.
**These seminars are not connected to a university or MFA program, nor are they credited. Taking these seminars will not lead you to an MFA degree or certificate. They are for personal study only.
“Reading widely makes you a livelier, richer person and that would feed into your writing” –Lisel Mueller
How It Works
No admissions testing/No application/No writing sample required. These entirely virtual courses are for writers at all levels (and you might not even consider yourself a writer but are interested in the deep study of text).read more
This program is informal, outside academia, and therefore not subject to bureaucracy. This program does not lead to credits or a degree, but it is designed to align with the same rigor and study as a graduate-level course.
And by taking one of the courses, you gain access to an editor and coach who cares about you and wants to see you thrive and grow as a writer. Learn more about my editing and coaching and the ways we can work together.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
Pricing
13-Week Seminars – $900; payment plan option $300/month over 3 months
5-Week Seminars – $375
Not ready to commit to taking a full seminar?
My independent study program offers the perfect solution. Learn more about this opportunity.
2025 MFA-like Creative Writing Courses:
January – February, 2025
(5-week seminar)
The Personal and Intergenerational Narrative
February – March 2025
(5-week seminar)
Studies in Creative Nonfiction: Graphic Memoirs
April – June 2025
(13-week seminar)
Studies in Creative Nonfiction: Writing Grief
2025 MFA-like Creative Writing Courses:
January – February, 2025
(5-week seminar)
The Personal and Intergenerational Narrative
February – March 2025
(5-week seminar)
Studies in Creative Nonfiction: Graphic Memoirs
April – June 2025
(13-week seminar)
Studies in Creative Nonfiction: Writing Grief
“Culture is lost when we neglect to tell our stories, when we forget the power and craft of storytelling” –Deborah A. Miranda
This course will examine the interconnection of personal, familial, and ancestral narratives. We will discuss how stories do not need to follow a linear structure and that circular/spiral retelling often aligns more with the interconnection between stories
January – February 2025 (5-week seminar)
Tuesday Course
January 14 – February 11
Thursday Course
January 16 – February 13
In this course, we will examine the genre of graphic memoir and how we tell our stories. We will investigate how stories are told and shaped by blending visual art and prose as a memoir structure.
We will explore and study the artwork and the story contained within. How does the author use visual art and prose to tell their story? Does the artwork add complexity to the narrative or simplify it to assist understanding? What role do graphic elements play in the narrative?
February 27 – March 27 2025 (5-week seminar)
Thursdays
In this course, we will examine creative nonfiction narratives that push into and circle around grief and loss. We will study how the stories emerge and how the loss is revealed. Readings draw from a range of nonfiction texts in various forms, and our discussion will raise questions regarding the overall structure of narrative development. How is the author unfurling their story? What is absent or withheld, and why? What can we learn from this intensive study of writing about grief and coming to terms with loss? How is time managed within the texts that reflect the cycles of grief?
April 3 – June 26, 2025 (13 week seminar)
Thursdays
How It Works
No admissions testing/No application/No writing sample required. These entirely virtual courses are for writers at all levels (and you might not even consider yourself a writer but are interested in the deep study of text).Pricing
13-Week Seminars – $900; payment plan option $300/month over 3 months
5-Week Seminars – $375
Not ready to commit to taking a full seminar?
My independent study program offers the perfect solution. Learn more about this opportunity.
