Memoir and biography have long been the domain of politicians, philosophers, and “great men.” This 8-week workshop will provide a background on memoir and creative nonfiction while also investigating how women authors have been queering the genre since its inception. What are the ethics of writing about family, loved ones, and the domestic sphere? How can gossip, myth, and reimagining constitute nonfiction?

This course will include readings of Sei Shonagon’s The Pillow Book, Natalia Ginzburg, Vivan Gornick, Saidiya Hartman and Jamaica Kincaid alongside contemporary Asian American writers like Kat Chow and Nicole Chung. Each student will have the chance to workshop a 10 to 15 page work-in-process.

This 8-week course will meet on Saturdays from 1:00 PM–3:30 PM ET from October 16th–December 18th, skipping class on November 27th. This workshop is open to Asian American writers with a scholarship spot available. There’s limited space to enroll; see the class page for more information!

To see all of our summer and fall classes, visit kundiman.org/online-classes.