Class Description
Often, we begin writing our memoir drafts using the simplest structure of all: the order in which things happened. Chronological time is seductive, because we think we know what it is and we think we know how to write it. We lived the events in order, after all! But perhaps you’ve had the experience of writing a chronological draft only to realize that what came out on the page felt wan and thin, with none of the richness of real life.
The source of this missing magic—and the culprit for its absence—are one and the same: time. As Sven Birkerts writes in his transformative text The Art of Time in Memoir, “the search for patterns and connections [across time] is the real point and glory of” memoir, not flat recounting. Living, we experience time as layered, not as simple chronology, with every moment of existence infused with memories of the past and hopes for the future. Much of the magic of memoir lies in trying to evoke that multi-layered experience for the reader using only one sentence at a time on the page. But how do you evoke time without hopelessly confusing the reader? We’ll look at how time is handled in a number of published works, examining both overall structure and how transitions across time may be signaled. We’ll then extract techniques from these published works and, through a series of exercises, practice using them in our own prose. Please bring a contiguous draft of approximately 15-20 pages that includes at least two different moments in time, whether sequential or not. The third in a series of one-day classes intended for memoirists in the beginning or advanced stages of their projects.
Part of GrubStreet's "Memoir Essentials" Series, led by Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich and dedicated to exploring the core elements of memoir writing. Classes in this series include:
- Memoir Essentials: Finding Your Story
- Memoir Essentials: Me, Myself, I (Refining the Narrator)
- Memoir Essentials: Nothing But Time
- Memoir Essentials: The Structure of Memoir
- Memoir Essentials: They’re Such Characters! (Characterizing Others)
- Memoir Essentials: You’re Such a Character! (Characterizing Yourself)
- Memoir Essentials: The Spotlight and the Shadows
- Memoir Essentials: Shaping Your Story
Thanks to the excellent literary citizenship of our donors, scholarships are available for all GrubStreet classes. To apply, click the gray "APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIP" button. In order to be considered for a scholarship, you must complete your application at least one week before the start date of a class. Please await our scholarship committee's decision before registering for the class. We cannot hold spots in classes, so the sooner you apply, the better. Scholarships cannot be applied retroactively.
For more detailed information about GrubStreet scholarships, including how to contribute to scholarship funds for other students, click here.
This class will take place using Zoom videoconferencing. About 15 minutes before your class is scheduled to begin, you'll receive an email from your instructor with a link to join the class meeting!
Zoom Participation:
Students are not required to turn their camera on, but are encouraged to participate any way they feel comfortable through functions such as the live chat, emoji reactions, and unmuting the microphone. Learn more about using Zoom here.
Zoom Accessibility:
We ask that instructors enable closed captioning and send a transcript of the session after class. You can also enable closed captioning at any time during the meeting. If your instructor forgets to send the transcript, just send ’em an email!