Instructor Samantha Mann is a Brooklyn-based writer covering queer life, popular culture, mental health, and motherhood. She is a contributing writer for Vogue and The Cut. She has written for Elle, Today Show, Huffington Post, Bon Appetit, Bustle, Washington Post Magazine, Romper, BUST, and others. Her essay, "The Orgasm Gap and DJ Khaled," was featured in Roxane Gays newsletter, The Audacity. Samantha is the author of the essay collection, Putting Out: Essays on Otherness. In 2023 Putting Out was added to CLMPS recommended reading list for Women's History Month. Samantha edited and curated the anthology, I Feel Love: Notes on Queer Joy. And Buzzfeed Book review said, "This is the perfect collection for readers looking to appreciate and celebrate the many talented writers within the LGBTQIA+ community." Her sophomore collection, Dyke Delusions, debuts June 2025 with Read Furiously. 

In this 4-week intensive workshop, you will learn how to explore your past and distill your experiences into complex ideas into focused, personal essays.

By examining works from celebrated authors and engaging in weekly brainstorming and drafting exercises, you'll develop the skills to transform your big idea into a compelling narrative.

Who Should Enroll:

This course is ideal for writers at all levels who want to dig into their personal narrative by exploring their past- primarily youth and teenage years. Whether you’re working on essays for publication, a collection, or simply looking to sharpen your storytelling skills, this workshop will provide you with the tools and support needed to craft impactful, resonant essays.

What You'll Learn:

Week 1: Understanding how your past experiences relate to who you are today and the importance of incorporating that into your personal narrative reading. You’ll read Sweet Charity by Zadie Smith, and learn to brainstorm and draft a personal essay that connects This week will explore how a person of your youth changed present day you.

Week 2: Read and discuss David Sedaris’s essay Big Boy as example of exploring your youth through uncomfortable experiences. Time for brainstorming and drafting essay on the same theme.  
  
Week 3:  This week we will look at how a place change shape you. We will read Growing Up in Miami Beach by Jaquira Diaz and brainstorm and draft how growing up in specific culture/place/environment as a young person shaped who you are today.

Week 4: We will examine common misconceptions about the personal narrative though a reading from Melissa Febos memoir/craft book, Body Work. You will have time to edit one of your three essays and share in class for live feedback. Time will be spent discussing next steps for your essays and a Q & A on pitching and publishing. 

What You’ll Create:

By the end of the workshop, you will have three essay outlines, each rooted in a poignant experience from your youth. You'll also have the opportunity to receive formal feedback from one of your essays from peers and your teacher. 

This workshop will equip you with the tools to transform an experience into compelling, personal narratives, leaving you with a deeper understanding of how your youth has shaped who you are today.

Course Takeaways: 

• The importance of exploring our past to connect to our present selves in the narrative form.
• Take away exercises and prompts to brainstorm experiences from long ago, which can be turned into essays.
  
• How utilizing new stories, pop culture, and/or politics from specific times can .add nuance and depth to a story about your personal history.
  
• Learning about misconceptions about personal narratives.
  

ONLINE COURSE STRUCTURE: