Writing Your Memoir through Vignettes (Online)

Whether you’re a newcomer to creative writing or more experienced, this hands-on workshop will foster real progress in developing your memoir by focusing on the creation of vignettes. Your collection of vignettes organized in a strategic sequence can become a moving memoir.

Vignettes provide a short, concise way to capture and bring together your lifetime experiences and their related emotions. They are episodes, glimpses, or snapshots of life, all of which can be used to develop your memoir. Vignettes are also a critically important aspect of effective speech and writing. They challenge you to be concise and to the point, while being creative. 

Your instructor will work with you and fellow students in a roundtable format to maximize interaction, foster openness, and build trust among the group, so that you can share and refine your writing. The workshop combines structure and deadlines for the vignette writing process, along with space to take risks in an empowering, invigorating environment. In addition to the weekly group sessions, you will be able to receive personalized feedback on your writing from your instructor throughout the experience. 

This workshop is a three-part series, the aim of which is to offer you the cumulative opportunity to grow as a writer while developing a collection of vignettes, and producing it as a pilot memoir in a handmade book. You will also have the opportunity to learn about how you can present your memoir through a podcast.

Contact the instructor, Johnston M. Mitchell, at johnstonmmitchell@gmail.com with any questions or to discuss your writing goal and vision.

Writing Your Memoir Through Vignettes - Part I

Learn how to identify, brainstorm, and complete your own vignettes through weekly writing tasks. You will not only gain an understanding of the vignette genre and writing process, but learn techniques to further develop your voice and writing style.   

Workshop Dates: Thursdays, May 4 - 25, 2023, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.  
Workshop Fee: $300  
Workshop Location: Online  
Prerequisite: None  

Register Here for Part I

Writing Your Memoir Through Vignettes - Part II

Continue exploring the writing of vignettes for your memoir. Using a roundtable format, you and fellow participants will delve into a deeper application of imagery, reflective voice, and repetition to strengthen your writing and work toward the goal of compiling a collection of vignettes for your pilot memoir.  

Workshop Dates: Thursdays, May 4 - 25, 2023, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.  
Workshop Fee: $300  
Workshop Location: Online  
Prerequisite: Writing Your Memoir Through Vignettes - Part I

Register Here for Part II

Writing Your Memoir Through Vignettes - Part III 

In the third installment of the three-part series, you will work to develop a pilot memoir of 10 vignettes, writing new vignettes each week, in addition to a preface and epilogue. You will also dig deeper into dialogue, lexical repetition, free verse, and formatting in a roundtable format. The final session will feature how to make a chapbook for your pilot memoir.   

Workshop Dates: Thursdays, July 6 - 27, 2023, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.  
Workshop Fee: $300  
Workshop Location: Online  
Prerequisite: Writing Your Memoir Through Vignettes - Parts I and II  

Register Here for Part III