ARCHIVE FOR Ethan Gilsdorf

The Essay Incubator is a 10-month intensive program for essay writers interested in drafting, revising, and publishing their work. We are now accepting applications for the 2022 - 2023 incubator. Apply here by Monday, August 1st at 11:59pm ET. Fellowships are available!

 

Here’s the number one challenge I see students in my Essay Incubator program face: What is my essay about?

Of course, we don’t always know what we want to write until we sit down to write it. But once you have that first messy draft on the page, students sometimes find it difficult to …

Author and GrubStreet instructor Ethan Gilsdorf shares some tips and practical insight into how to set and reach your writing goals in 2022. You can learn more about this subject in Ethan’s two upcoming Online: Zoom seminars, So You Want to be a Writer in 2022? on Friday, January 21st or Saturday, February 19th.

 

 

If you’re anything like me, then this will sound like a familiar scenario: The new year begins. You make a list of resolutions, hopes and dreams: to improve your diet, your fitness, your mindfulness, or to change any …

In anticipation of 75-degree-or-higher weather, endless waffle cones of ice cream, and later curfews, we’ve asked teen instructors to describe their upcoming teen class as a pop song. Our first instructor in our YAWP Summer Playlist series is Ethan Gilsdorf, author of Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms

If my class Storytelling with Dungeons & Dragons was a pop song, it would have to be Weezer's "In the Garage." Why? Well, just listen to the opening lyrics to the song:

"I've got a Dungeon …

GrubStreet runs on coffee, printer ink, and community. This series features just some of the Grubbies who make our community strong. In this edition, meet Grub Instructor Ethan Gilsdorf. You can catch Ethan in person this September, in his twelve-week class, Writing and Publishing the Risky Narrative Personal Essay, or online, in 6 Weeks, 6 Op-Eds, both of which begin on Tuesday, September 12th. If you're ready for the next level, check out Ethan's Master Narrative Personal Essay course, beginning Thursday, September 14th.

 

What favorite book of yours was made into a movie, which did you like better, …

GrubStreet instructor Ethan Gilsdorf had the chance to speak with Wild author Cheryl Strayed about what it's like to take risks in your personal essays and memoir writing. Here's what she had to say. 

 

Editor's note: Practice what Strayed preaches in Ethan's popular class, Writing and Publishing the Risky Personal Essay. There are still a few spots left -- click here for more info!