Schedule & Curriculum
Phase I (Twelve Weeks): September 6th – December 6th, 2023
Class does not meet on October 11th.
Class meets weekly. Students will:
- Review the theory and basic tenets of the Writing to Heal genre, outlining guidelines and boundaries, steps and goals.
- Review Grub Street’s expectations and policies, and decide, together with the instructor, on specific expectations and guidelines for this particular workshop community.
- Have one individual meeting with the instructor to outline personalized goals and plans for the program.
- Read essays, poems, articles, columns, op-eds and memoir excerpts that demonstrate the transformative power of healing narratives.
- Study craft particularly related to this genre, and do weekly in-class writing prompts with on-the-spot feedback.
- Create and share a self-care list, which we’ll return to throughout each phase.
- Submit two pieces for full-class workshop.
- Write a process journal for every workshop submission.
- Learn revision guidelines and techniques.
Phase II (Four Weeks) : January 3rd – January 24th, 2024
Weekly group work and check-ins with instructor. No class meetings. Students will:
- Spend time on their own either generating new work or revising one or two pieces from Phase I.
- Meet in small assigned accountability groups.
- Check in with instructor over email for encouragement and trouble-shooting.
Phase III (Twelve Weeks): February 7th – May 1st, 2024
Class does not meet March 30th.
Class meets weekly. Students will:
- Workshop new material or revisions from Phase II with the full group.
- If project-appropriate, polish revised pieces to get them ready for submission.
- Learn about the publication process for this genre.
- Have one individual meeting with the instructor to check in on writing goals and progress, and plan next steps.
- Have the opportunity to hear from and talk with guest authors.
- Write and share a final process journal for the entire Writing to Heal journey.
- Potentially participate in a community reading.
Class Times
Classes will take place on Wednesday evenings from 6:00-9:00pm (EST).