Life and Memoir Writing Short Course
Course description
Course overview
Have you always wanted to write a memoir? Do you find yourself thinking about how to bring scenes from your life alive on the page? If so, then this course if for you.
This course will look at published examples of Life Writing by authors such as Maggie Nelson, Annie Dillard, Rebecca Solnit, Carmen Maria Machado, Colin Thubron, Laurie Lee, Joan Didion, David Sedaris and Cheryl Strayed among others who have used their lives in their writing and their writing in their lives. (Please note: Readings may change.)
You'll work towards honing your voice and sharpening your memories and observations in order to get your experiences onto the page. We'll workshop pieces every week and discuss genres of Life Writing that overlap with other creative non-fiction genres, such as personal essay, memoir, environmental and place-based writing to think about ways of shaping life experiences into prose.
The class will involve take-home written assignments as well as workshopping and reading work aloud in the classroom.
This course is available online and on campus. Please check location assigned to specific dates in the booking section.
Who this course is for
This course is aimed at anyone who has ever wanted to put aspects of their life down on paper, whether in the form of travel writing, reportage, family history or memoir. The course offers students the tools, time and discipline to get started on a personal project of Life Writing.
It would be an excellent fit for beginners and those who have started on a project but need some help developing it and taking it forward. Anyone who is curious about how writers shape their lives into essays and memoir would also enjoy this course.
Key information
Topics covered
- Life Writing and Memoir
- Workshopping
- Techniques of Good Writing and Editing
- Research
- Publishing
Learning outcomes
- Hone your voice and sharpen memories and observations to get your experiences onto the page
- Workshop pieces and discuss genres of Life Writing that overlap with other creative non-fiction genres
- Digital badge and certificate of attendance
Materials
- Laptop
- Notebook and pen
- For the first class, please bring a work of Life Writing that you have read or are currently reading
- If you are taking this course online, please see our Guide to taking online short courses.
Tutor
Joanna Pocock
Joanna Pocock is the 2018 winner of the Fitzcarraldo Editions Essay Prize for 'Surrender', her book-length memoir and meditation on the American West, its land and its people. 'Surrender' has been compared to the writings of Rebecca Solnit, Lauren Elkin and Iain Sinclair and described as a 'necessary read for our times'. The book was published in the UK, US and Canada, and translated into French and Spanish. Joanna was awarded the 2021 Arts Foundation Prize in Environmental Writing and was shortlisted for the Nature Chronicles Prize in Nature Writing. Her second book with Fitzcarraldo Editions, 'Greyhound', was published in the US by and Soft Skull in August 2025. 'Greyhound' has been well reviewed and has been shortlisted for a National Book Critics Circle Award (US) and the Sherborne Travel Writing Prize (UK). Her writing and photo essays have been published in a variety of outlets in the UK and US, most notably The Los Angeles Times, The Nation, Orion, The New Statesman, The Spectator, The Times Literary Supplement, Granta, Dazed & Confused and Tank Magazine. She has been teaching creative writing, both fiction and non-fiction, for two decades and brings a wealth of writing, editing and publishing experience to her classes. When she isn't writing and teaching, Joanna works as an editor at the Dark Mountain Project.
Lois Pryce
Lois Pryce is a travel writer, journalist and author of three books about her solo adventures, all of which have been translated into multiple languages and published throughout the world. Her latest book, Revolutionary Ride, about her motorcycle travels in Iran was shortlisted for the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Award and named a National Geographic book of the year.
She is a regular contributor to the Guardian and BBC Radio, and has written for the Times, Observer, New York Times, Telegraph, CNN, and the Independent on subjects ranging from travel, music and culture to personal essays and current affairs.
She is a Fellow of the Royal Literary Fund, assisting undergraduates with their writing skills and has taught life-writing, memoir and non-fiction courses for The Arvon Foundation since 2015. She is co-founder of the Wild Writing Weekend, an immersive life-writing course in Wales, and is a judge for the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards.
For more information about her writing and teaching see loispryce.com
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