Writing Vulnerably Workshop: Write What Scares You | Dec 2026 Online

Writing Vulnerably Seminar: Write the Thing You're Afraid to Write with Elissa Bassist

Begins Sunday, December 6, 2026
Class will meet once via Zoom on Sunday, 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM ET

🌍 Class Times by Time Zone:

• Los Angeles (PST): 12:30 PM – 2:30 PM
• Chicago (CST): 2:30 PM – 4:30 PM
• New York (EST): 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM
• London (GMT): 8:30 PM – 10:30 PM
• Berlin (CET): 9:30 PM – 11:30 PM

Now Enrolling!

Any questions about this class? Use the Chat Button to talk with us.

Instructor Elissa Bassist has worked in media and publishing since 2007, as managing editor of The Best American Nonrequired Reading; associate editor at 826 National; assistant editor at Chronicle Books; a writer's assistant to screenwriters Joey Soloway and A.M. Homes; producer and co-host of international reading series Literary Death Match; creator and editor of the "Funny Women" column on The Rumpus; and as a freelance editor and TV writers' assistant for The Mark Twain Prize for American Humor and the Emmy-nominated series In Performance at the White House when it aired. As a founding contributor to The Rumpus, she's written cultural and personal criticism since the website launched in 2009. Since then, she's published her memoir Hysterical, a semifinalist for The Thurber Prize for American Humor, and co-authored the craft book Inside Jokes: A Comedy and Creativity Guide for All Writers. Her writing has appeared in over 30 publications and anthologies, and she's taught for over 20 writing programs. Elissa lives in Brooklyn and is probably her therapist's favorite.

Who is this class for?

This online writing workshop is for writers of all levels and all genres (fiction, nonfiction, and poetry) who want to write the thing(s) they're afraid to write. Come with a work in progress or start from scratch; you'll write in class with guided instruction and prompts. All levels are welcome.

What to expect:

It can feel awkward to write about your nightmare thoughts and gross feelings. This is writing vulnerably. Being vulnerable in your writing can feel uncertain, unstable, exposed, outside your comfort zone. It may seem stupid and embarrass you, and you may regret doing it. But to write well or at all, you must love looking like an idiot. If you worry about freaking people out, then you're writing correctly.

Vulnerability doesn't mean crying at readers or revealing everything. Being vulnerable is writing something true that feels a little scary. It's showing something you hide. It's assuming that someone will make fun of you for writing it, and chancing that someone will identify with it rather than use it against you. It's trying bangs. Writers bravely and selflessly give out their worst thoughts and worst moments (that they have processed via professional healers) to make readers feel less alone in their worst, and this can embolden us to put more on the page. (And then find editors and hairstylists we trust so we don't sell ourselves out or get bad bangs.) Elissa creates the safest of spaces to be honest, revealing, and fearless: no topic or experience is too dark or too sad to write your way into and out of.

This two-hour creative writing seminar on Zoom is part lecture on what, when, where, why, and how to write vulnerably without selling yourself out, and part generative writing session. Through guided instruction and writing exercises, you'll experiment with devices like speaker, controlling perspective, structure, and tone. And since writing and publishing are two different jobs with two different skill sets and two different timelines, we'll discuss how (and if) to publish vulnerable writing. Take this online writing class if you want to see how good your writing can get when you don't stop yourself. To quote the youth: "To be cringe is to be free."

What are the writing goals?

In this course, students will complete 10 writing exercises they can use and repeat for any and all future projects to make any piece of writing more personal and profound. This is a generative seminar with no formal feedback: no one has to share their writing, so every writer is free to write their worst.

Readings

Readings may include excerpts from Melissa Broder, Samantha Irby, Daniel Lavery, R. Eric Thomas, Laura Chinn, Lindy West, Lena Dunham, and Elizabeth Gilbert.

COURSE OUTLINE

This two-hour seminar moves between teaching and writing, then closes with an open conversation:

Lecture and brainstorming: What, when, where, why, and how to write vulnerably without selling yourself out, with craft instruction on speaker, controlling perspective, structure, and tone.

Writing exercises: Guided prompts woven through the lecture so students can practice what Elissa preaches, whether starting from scratch or working on a piece in progress.

AMA (final 15–20 minutes): Ask Elissa literally anything about writing, publishing, her personal life, and more, including how (and if) to publish vulnerable writing.

COURSE TAKEAWAYS:

• Leave with 10 repeatable writing exercises to make any piece of writing more personal and profound
• Learn what, when, where, why, and how to write vulnerably without selling yourself out
• Experiment with speaker, controlling perspective, structure, and tone to shape difficult material
• Write your way into and out of dark or painful subjects in a safe, no-pressure space
• Understand how (and if) to publish vulnerable writing, and why writing and publishing are two different jobs
• Get your questions about writing, publishing, and the writing life answered in a live AMA

TESTIMONIALS:

"I loved this class. Elissa was an extremely generous teacher/storyteller. I think listening to her talk about her experience/struggles to get words on the page was the most valuable part. I was amazed with Elissa's ability to focus and maintain passion and energy for 3 straight hours. I was completely engaged in her personal writing journey and was satisfied with spending 3 hours listening to her speak."
— Former Student

"This was a fun class! I found Elissa's personal takes and experiences in both the process and in finding a home for her writing most valuable. The process seems much more manageable to me now, and I would take another class with Elissa."
— Former Student

"I heard about WritingWorkshop.com via Hippocampus Magazine. I'm so happy I found Elissa's class, which was filled with many small insights that added up to a lot. I left the class feeling inspired. Thank you."
— Former Student

"Elissa's seminar exceeded my expectations! She provided real-world solutions for rejection and included so many thought-provoking prompts. This class was so rich with information it could have easily been a 6-week course."
— Former Student

"This class was SO, SO GOOD!!!! By far, my favorite ever of the many many I have taken with Catapult, Grubstreet, Porch, CFF, and WritingWorkshops.com. Big compliments! Thank you!!! Learned a lot and was furiously taking down notes; what marvelous advice and stories you have. Can't wait to read HYSTERICAL and the books that will come after that."
— Former Student

"Funniest writing class ever, 11/10 would definitely recommend."
— Former Student

"I've taken a lot of writing courses, and Elissa's was one of the most informative and entertaining."
— Former Student

"I've taken a variety of online writing classes and the amount of content Elissa was able to organize and provide was truly so impressive and genuinely helpful. Also she is a real-life comedy show."
— Former Student

"I love Elissa's teaching style, and I love that I walked away with clear tools to immediately start incorporating into personal essays."
— Former Student

"It is so refreshing to take a course and think, 'This is exactly what I was looking for.' Learned a lot, laughed a lot, and felt inspired to keep going in my pursuit of writing funny things. I hope to take more of Elissa's classes, and her spirit is now part of the writing shrine in my head where I burn David Sedaris prayer candles, recite lines from Patricia Lockwood, and cry."
— Former Student

"That was the greatest 3 hours I've spent in a long time!"
— Former Student

PAYMENT OPTIONS:

Tuition is $99 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: Elissa Bassist
• Begins Sunday, December 6, 2026
• Class will meet once via Zoom on Sunday, 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM ET
• Tuition is $99 USD.