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Fuck the Big Five

Sunday, June 29
3 - 6 p.m. EST

$110

Every writer knows of the “Big Five”—the handful of publishing conglomerates that dominate the literary world, making the “author platform” all the more determinative of a book deal these days. But what if your book idea or finished manuscript isn’t “Big Five” material? How do you go about finding a non-corporate publisher that is right for you? If you do go rogue, what kind of publishing experience can you expect? What are the upsides, and what are the costs? Do you need an agent? What are some books and authors that have made a splash without a Big Five publisher behind them?

Writing the Body

Mondays: August 11 - September 8
7 - 9 p.m. EST

$400

We talk a lot in literary spaces about “writing the body,” but what does this really mean, and how can we practice it at an advanced level? Writing the body is not just writing about the body, but it is also writing about the meaning of the body, and the ways it determines our experiences. How do we occupy our bodies, what do we do with them, how do we feel in them? What is the relationship between the body and the self? What skills, craft tools, literary instincts, and embodied practices can we use to support our body work as writers?

Writing Picture Books

Tuesdays: September 16 - October 14
7:30 - 9:30 p.m. EST

$400 $340
(early bird pricing until May 22)

The modern picture book has become one of the most popular and protean of literary forms, ranging from playful biographies to contemporary fables to arty concept books, captivating child and adult readers alike. Whether you’re a prose writer with your first picture book idea, or an illustrator hoping to pair your art with words, this course is a practical and inspirational plunge into the world of visual storytelling. Together, we will examine the picture book from every angle—formal, literary, allegorical, biographical, physical, and interactive—and engage with some of the leading storytellers in the picture book genre. 

Past Courses

2025

• GENERATING THE PERSONAL ESSAY with BRIAN BENSON

• BUSINESS OF FREELANCING with ALI FRANCIS
  featuring Jess Tran, Elyse Inamine, & Chloé Caldwell

• WRITING PEOPLE: THE ART OF PROFILE & BIOGRAPHY with MAYUKH SEN
  featuring Doreen St. Félix, Jiayang Fan, Julie Phillips, & Julianna Escobedo Shepherd

• NONFICTION RE-VISION INTENSIVE with MARGO STEINES

• WRITING MOTHERHOOD with RACHEL YODER
  featuring Lidia Yuknavitch, Michelle Tea, Jocelyn Nicole Johnson & Rivka Galchen

• MODERN LOVE SUBMISSION WORKSHOP with LAVINIA SPALDING

• WRITING GRIEF with MEGAN STIELSTRA
  featuring Samantha Irby, Lulu Miller, Matthew Salesses, & Vauhini Vara

2024

• HYBRID MEMOIR with LILLY DANCYGER
  featuring Nicole Chung, Elissa Washuta, Jeanna Kadlec, & Chelsea Biondolillo

• NAVIGATING LITERARY PUBLICITY with LAUREN CERAND
  featuring Dan Sinykin, Kathleen Schmidt, Sonya Chung, & Andre Banks

• RESEARCH FOR WRITERS with JULIA COOKE
  featuring Álvaro Enrigue, Ingrid Rojas Contreras, May Jeong, & Jerry Saltz

• SCRAPPY: HOW TO BUILD AN ALTERNATIVE LITERARY LIFE with CHLOÉ CALDWELL
  featuring Courtney Maum, Alex Alberto, M. M. Carrigan, & Lidia Yuknavitch

• WRITING ABOUT FAMILY with MARGO STEINES
  featuring Safiya Sinclair, Maggie Smith, Dani Shapiro, & Casey Gerald

• WRITING FOOD with ALI FRANCIS
  featuring Bettina Makalintal, Mayukh Sen, Jaya Saxena, & Alicia Kennedy

• WRITING THE MODERN LOVE ESSAY with LAVINIA SPALDING
  featuring Susan Yoon, Kevin Renn, Staceyann Chin, & Miya Lee

• WRITING MOTHERHOOD with RACHEL YODER
  featuring Angela Garbes, Louisa Hall, Sabrina Orah Mark, & Erika Morillo

• WRITING TRAUMA with MARGO STEINES
  featuring Stacey Ramsower, Athena Dixon, T Kira Māhealani Madden, & Lacy M. Johnson

• WRITING THIS WARMING WORLD with MEERA SUBRAMANIAN
  featuring Emily Raboteau, Helen Macdonald, Elizabeth Rush, & J. Drew Lanham

2023

• HYBRID MEMOIR with LILLY DANCYGER
  featuring Melissa Febos, Esmé Weijun Wang, Jeannie Vanasco, & Tyrese L. Colemen

• WRITING THE BODY with MARGO STEINES
  & featuring Aisha Sabatini Sloan, Melissa Febos, Natalie Lima, & Leslie Jamison

2022

• HOW TO BEGIN with LESLIE JAMISON & COLLEEN KINDER