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 the New York Times, 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. 

Workshop Description:

Parenthood reshapes every part of who we are: our time, our attention, our ambitions, our sense of self. In this 4-week intensive, we’ll explore how to write about the complex, often contradictory experiences of parenting. From tenderness to rage, joy to invisibility, we’ll study how writers transform the daily realities of care into powerful, publishable personal essays.

Through close readings, guided exercises, and weekly workshops, we’ll examine the emotional, social, and creative dimensions of parenthood and how writing can make visible the private labor of care and reclaim our stories from stereotypes.

Who Should Enroll:

This course is for writers with some experience in personal essay writing who want to explore the intersections of parenting, identity, and creativity. Whether you’re working on essays, a memoir-in-progress, or simply want to begin writing about your life as a parent (or child of one), this class offers a generative, supportive environment to develop your voice and craft.

What You'll Learn:

Week 1: The Truth of Everyday Life

Reading: On Pandering by Claire Vaye Watkins
Focus: We’ll begin by looking at how to find meaning in the mundane: the domestic scenes, rituals, and routines that make up parenting life. You’ll experiment with writing vivid, scene-based essays that transform ordinary moments into narrative art.

Week 2: The Myths and Realities of “Good Parenting”

Reading: I Wasn’t Meant to Be a Mother by Meaghan O’Connell
Focus: This week examines cultural myths around “good” parents  and the ways writers resist or complicate them. We’ll explore honesty on the page, guilt as a narrative engine, and how vulnerability can build trust with readers.

Week 3: Inheritance, Identity, and Family Stories

Reading: Notes from No Man’s Land (excerpt) by Eula Biss
Focus: We’ll consider parenting as a site of inheritance, the stories, histories, and systems we pass down or resist. Through generative prompts, you’ll write about lineage, cultural context, and how personal essays can hold multiple generations at once.

Week 4: Writing Toward the Future

Reading: Operating Instructions (excerpt) by Anne Lamott
Focus: Our final week looks at writing parenting stories that are both intimate and expansive. We’ll discuss revision, structure, and publication and how to pitch parenting-related essays that move beyond the “mommy blog” stereotype. Class concludes with a live reading and discussion of next steps.

What You’ll Create:

• Four new essay drafts (or strong outlines) centered on a parenting theme or experience.

• One revised piece ready for workshop feedback or submission.

• A collection of prompts and strategies for sustaining a long-term writing practice about care, family, and self.

Course Takeaways:

• Learn to transform the daily experience of parenting into compelling narrative.

• Develop a personal voice that balances honesty, humor, and insight.

• Explore how cultural expectations shape parenting stories and how to subvert them.

• Leave with a portfolio of writing and a clearer sense of your publication path.

ONLINE COURSE STRUCTURE: