Writing Real Sex for Memoir and Personal Essay — 4-Week Online Nonfiction Workshop with Sarah Gallucci Starts Tuesday, March 2nd, 2027
Writing Real Sex Workshop: Memoir and Essay | March 2027 Online
Writing Real Sex Writing Workshop: Memoir and Personal Essay with Sarah Gallucci
Begins Tuesday, March 2, 2027
Class will meet weekly via Google Meet on Tuesdays, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM ET
🌍 Class Times by Time Zone:
- Los Angeles (PST): 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM
- Chicago (CST): 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM
- New York (EST): 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Now Enrolling!
Any questions about this class? Use the Chat Button to talk with us.
Instructor Sarah Gallucci is the author of Laid: A Memoir of Love, Sex, and Marriage. She has written reported features for Business Insider, CNN, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, Harper's Bazaar, among others. She has given two TEDx talks and is a professor of English. Read more about Sarah Gallucci on her website.
Meet the Teaching Artist
Meet the Teaching Artist: Writing Real Sex with Sarah Hosseini
Who is this class for?
This online writing class is for nonfiction writers exploring sex writing who want prompts that generate raw material, along with the craft techniques, structures, and pitching skills to bring that material to publication. All levels are welcome.
What to expect:
Sex writing in nonfiction breaks rules and literary conventions, which is what makes its craft so distinctive. This four-week nonfiction writing workshop takes you from the sentence to the scene to the pitch. You will leave with outlines for a personal essay and a first-person reported piece, a draft pitch to an editor, and a list of publications that fit your style.
We will study and analyze model texts from a diverse, curated list of writers and practice the techniques that best suit your own voice. Through poetry exercises and generative writing prompts, you will draft sentences from sexual experiences (real or imagined) that get as close to the sensory experience as possible. From there, you will write sex scenes for an essay, a first-person reported piece, a memoir, or whatever project you are working on. With that body of work in hand, you will select your most potent writing, tailor it to the publications you want, and shape your pitches to editors.
Historically, many voices, especially women, LGBTQIA+ writers, disabled writers, writers over 50, and writers of color, have been discouraged or outright silenced when it comes to writing about sexuality. We are told it is inappropriate, over-sharing, too dark, too gross, too arousing, or "attention seeking." Putting language to sex is vital to our safety. It is vital for literature. This course aims to help sex writing claim its rightful place as high art.
What are the writing goals?
In this course, students will build a collection of seven generative writing prompts for sex writing, draft at least three sample paragraphs of sex writing that can be used across forms, and complete three outlines: a personal essay, a hybrid or reported first-person article, and a publication pitch. Students will also leave with a list of publications that align with their style. After the course concludes, each student may submit one piece of writing (up to two pages, double-spaced) and receive instructor feedback within one week.
Readings
Readings may include excerpts from:
- "Why Is It So Hard for Women to Write About Sex?" by Claire Dederer
- "On Craft, Rhythm, and Writing About Sex" by Megan Pillow
- "Love All the Way" by Erin Clark
- I Can't Date Jesus: Love, Sex, Family, Race, and Other Reasons I've Put My Faith in Beyoncé by Michael Arceneaux
- Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body by Roxane Gay
- Love Warrior: A Memoir by Glennon Doyle
- The Kiss: A Memoir by Kathryn Harrison
- The Chronology of Water by Lidia Yuknavitch
COURSE OUTLINE
Week 1: Exploring Sex Writing Pillars and Craft. An introduction to the pillars of sex writing, its three main craft categories, and three introductory generative prompts.
Week 2: Addressing Guilt, Shame, and Taboo. Identify the messiest, most "unsexy," "dark," "weird," and "inappropriate" areas of sex writing, and turn them into your beat, your art, and your superpower on the page.
Week 3: The Anatomy of a Sex Scene. Close reading of three sex-focused personal essays and first-person reported articles, with two in-class exercises covering both styles, outlines, and at least a one-page draft.
Week 4: The Path to Publication. Two generative exercises to find your "Hell Yes" audience and possible publications, a list of at least three works to pitch, and one draft pitch to a publication or editor.
COURSE TAKEAWAYS:
- Sex writing craft techniques drawn from close study of model texts, matched to your own style
- Sentences and scenes that bring readers close to the sensory experience of sex
- A collection of seven generative prompts and at least three sample paragraphs of sex writing
- Outlines for a personal essay, a hybrid or reported first-person article, and a publication pitch
- A draft pitch to an editor and a list of publications that fit your work
TESTIMONIALS:
"Sarah Gallucci's "Writing Real Sex" workshop is an invaluable, transformative experience that provides a safe haven for exploring heavily stigmatized topics. Her unique blend of expertise, humor, and unwavering encouragement frees writers to be deeply vulnerable and authentic on the page. Her supportive environment helped me unlock my potential and delve fearlessly deeper into writing in ways I never thought possible."
— Maya Golden, author of The Return Trip
PAYMENT OPTIONS:
Tuition is $330 USD. You can pay for the course in full or use Shop Pay or Affirm to pay over time with equal Monthly Payments. Both options are available at checkout.
ONLINE COURSE STRUCTURE:
- Instructor: Sarah Gallucci
- Begins Tuesday, March 2, 2027
- Class will meet weekly via Google Meet on Tuesdays, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM ET
- Tuition is $330 USD.