Writing Your Story

Overview

Learn to transform your life experiences into compelling memoir writing with guidance from bestselling author Joyce Maynard.

Course No. 20000

Every person has a unique story worth telling. In this 26-lesson writing workshop, Joyce Maynard – author of 17 books including a controversial memoir about her relationship with J.D. Salinger – teaches you how to:

• Identify and structure your most powerful personal stories

• Master essential writing techniques like dialogue, rhythm and economy

• Develop an effective writing practice and overcome creative blocks

• Handle the emotional challenges of sharing personal truths

• Craft memoir pieces that resonate with readers

Whether you’re a beginner or experienced writer, these lessons will help you turn your life experiences into captivating narratives.

Video Lectures

1. What Happens When We Keep Secrets? (8 min)

2. Name Your Obsessions (13 min)

3. Stick to Your Story (17 min)

4. Identify Your Journey (6 min)

5. Take Your Story Apart (16 min)

6. The Landing Place (9 min)

7. The Honesty Question (5 min)

8. What’s the Worst That Can Happen? (7 min)

• Descriptive versus Interpretive Language (11 min)

10. Diagramming the Sentence (9 min)

11. The Importance of Economy (10 min)

12. Dialogue and Rhythm (9 min)

• Six Common Mistakes Writers Make (8 min)

14. The Paragraph (3 min)

15. Building the Arc (3 min)

• The Test of a Good Memoir (17 min)

• The Container (4 min)

18. Two Containers from Scratch (30 min)

19. Developing Your Container (18 min)

20. Dissecting a Good Container Essay (30 min)

21. The Writing Life (3 min)

22. Creating a Writing Practice (22 min)

• What Gets in Your Way? (15 min)

24. The Not-Writing Process (11 min)

26. Criticism and Rejection (4 min)
27. What Happens When We Tell Our Truth? (32 min)