Nonfiction | Workshop

Memoir: Finding & Telling Your Best Story

You have a story to tell, but how do you sift through all of the details, facts, documents, etc. to find the heart of your narrative? The art of memoir is just as much about what we leave out as what we put in. This course will offer some tried and true methods for finding your stories; it will also provide examples and short prompts for generating strong material. By the end of the course, it is my hope that we will all walk away with a renewed sense of excitement and purpose.

Garrard Conley

Garrard Conley is the author of Boy Erased: a memoir (Riverhead/Penguin 2016). His fiction and nonfiction can be found in TIME, VICE, CNN, The Common, Lit Hub, The Virginia Quarterly Review, and elsewhere. He has received scholarships from the Bread Loaf, Sewanee, and Elizabeth Kostova Foundation writers’ conferences.

Testimonials

"A necessary, beautiful book."

Garth Greenwell author of WHAT BELONGS TO YOU

"In 1982, Edmund White broke literary ground with his memoir A. Now it’s Garrard Conley’s turn to bring his own story to readers. As White was three decades ago for his generation, Conley is an important and necessary contemporary voice."

Ann Hood author of THE KNITTING CIRCLE and COMFORT

"Conley writes vividly, with intelligence, wit, and genuine empathy. By embracing complexity and compassion, he reclaims his life and reminds us that a story rarely belongs to one person alone."

"Many readers of BOY ERASED will be as enraged as Conley. But they will also see the story through the lens of his compassion for those who genuinely thought they were trying to help, particularly his mother, who’s finally the one to say, 'We’re stopping all of this now,' when Conley reaches the breaking point."

Meghan Daum NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW

"Exceptionally well-written… This timely addition to the debate on conversion therapy will build sympathy for both children and parents who avail themselves of it while still showing how damaging it can be."

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY starred review

"Conley bears witness to something history will eventually condemn as too horrible to have happened, but he also takes the pain of ‘ex-gay therapy’ and makes of it not just a record but a wonder."

Alexander Chee author of THE QUEEN OF THE NIGHT