Write your memoir with award-winning author Edgar Gomez!
In this intensive, you will learn about the art of creative nonfiction and be given the tools to ready your memoir or memoir-in-essays for publication.
Format
We will begin our time together with discussions about essential craft elements, such as structure, voice, audience, setting, characterization, navigating time, and weaving in research. We’ll have lively conversations about ethics, including approaches to writing about people you love (and don’t love…) and what responsibilities we have to our readers.
Then, we will workshop your stories, spending time considering your larger projects as well as your specific goals as a writer. I will give you concrete, actionable feedback to guide your future revisions and help you to create a sustainable writing practice for yourself.
I believe learning about the business side of publishing is important, so along the way, I will invite guests in the field, from award-winning writers and editors, who can offer you advice based on their own experiences in publishing. I will also address any questions you have about writing book proposals, querying agents, and pitching your stories to magazines, using real examples from book proposals and pitches that have led to deals.
By the end of this intensive, you will leave with stories workshopped multiple times, a growing community of writers, and an understanding of what next steps to take to get your memoir out in the world.
Watch the Virtual Info Session recording
Meet Edgar and have your questions about the program answered!
Schedule
Generally this class will meet twice per month, from June 3, 2025 – March 24, 2026, although there may be one or two breaks for students to focus on writing. Workshops will be held via Zoom, with additional opportunities to meet 1:1 with Edgar upon request. Outside of class, students will generate new writing and read and respond to their peers’ work. All students will have the option to schedule an individual follow-up with Edgar during the first quarter of 2026.
Testimonials from Past Students
“I really wasn’t sure of myself walking into the class. But Edgar’s encouragement really gave me the go-ahead to just get my ideas out on the page, in all their candid messiness, in a way that I haven’t been able to accomplish otherwise…. I’m so excited to keep returning to the tools I picked up in class—I already know they’re gonna stick around for the long-haul!” —Patrick Mullen-Coyoy, poet and former student
“Taking a memoir class with Edgar was truly transformative for me. Their class was my first time taking my nonfiction writing seriously, and I credit his teaching as giving me both the confidence and the skills to turn the essay I worked on with my cohort into an entire book of personal essays…. And even years later, Edgar has continued to offer me guidance, mentorship, and support. I would highly recommend Edgar to anyone–they are a rare combination of deep expertise and boundless generosity. I wouldn’t be the writer I am today without this class and his guidance.” —Chaelee Dalton, author of Mother Tongue
To Apply
Deadline: May 23,2025
Submit a writing sample of 10-20 pages (double-spaced, Times New Roman font) and 1-2 paragraphs detailing your writing goals, intentions, and questions. You may also choose to include a one-page résumé or CV if you have one. Send your submission to laura.spencer@writer.org by May 23.
Acceptance into the workshop is required before registering.
