Writing the Journey: Navigating the Three Phases of Memoir

A Hybrid Workshop with Mary Emerick – Attend In-Person or Online
Wednesdays, May 6, 13, 20 
5:00 to 7:00pm Pacific Time
Registration $120 or $110 for Fishtrappers

Is the registration fee an obstacle for you to attend this workshop? Fishtrap offers a limited number of scholarships to help with the cost. Contact Program Director Mike Midlo for more information. mike@fishtrap.org

Some say that any journey passes through three phases: the physical, the mental, and the spiritual. A memoir writer must navigate these: physical (structure, arc, time and place), the mental (How much do you keep secret? What is your “why” in writing this story? How do you speak for other characters?) and the spiritual (what have you learned? How has your story changed since you began telling it?). This can be a lonely and brave journey!

In this workshop, with sessions on each phase, we will use generative writing, prompts, and examples from our lives and our works in progress to help each other through the phases of memoir–long or short, for our eyes only, or for eventual publication. The goal is for us to learn from each other. Reading and workshopping your work in progress is encouraged.

Mary Emerick is obsessed with huskies, long distance hiking, and the power and beauty of a finely told memoir. She never thought she would publish anything about herself, but somehow  is the author of two critically acclaimed memoirs, Fire in the Heart and The Last Layer of the Ocean. She is also the author of two nature-based novels, The Lightning Within and The Geography of Water. She is a regular contributor to creative non-fiction anthologies, mostly based on stories of her life as a wildland firefighter, wilderness ranger, and kayak ranger. She lives in Wallowa County, Oregon, where she tries to avoid chores by escaping into the wilderness to swim in high alpine lakes.