
Writing the Radical Self
In this course we’ll question and deconstruct dominant concepts of memory, time, structure, and identity within modes of writing that draw from the lived experience of the writer. This includes, but is not limited to, memoir, autobiography, autofiction, personal essay, and fiction.

About the Course:
8 Weekly Sessions (+ 1 week mid-point break)
Marginalised people are rarely afforded the right to tell their own story. And when they are, they are expected to tell it in ways that maintain the status quo and reinforce dominant cultural narratives. In this course we’ll attempt to deconstruct dominant concepts of memory, time, structure, and identity within modes of writing that draw from the lived experience of the writer. This includes, but is not limited to, memoir, autobiography, autofiction, personal essay, and fiction.
Over eight weekly 2-hour sessions, we'll look at the creation of the self through memory & perspective, how we can build new structures to create counternarratives, how blurring the lines between realism and fantasy can allow us to get to the actual ‘truth’ of our lived experiences, and inventing our own language and stylistics.
Each session will involve group discussion around a topic and set readings, as well as experimenting with a variety of generative writing exercises. *All reading and writing set between sessions is fully optional.
We welcome writers of all experience levels, from complete novice to published professional.
Session 1 - Navel Gazing as Radical Practice: Febos, Feminism & Counternarrative
In traditional literary spaces, ‘autobiographical’ writing is often looked down on, treated as lesser than the ‘true’ literary form: fiction. Drawing from Melissa Febos’ essay, ‘In Praise of Navel Gazing’, we’ll unearth the radical roots of memoiristic forms of writing and give ourselves permission to tell our own stories.
Session 2 - Constructing the Self: Memory & Identity
When we write about ourselves, or as ourselves, we are always creating a character on the page. We are piecing together a particular narrative about who we are, using our past experiences as jumping off points for understanding ourselves. In this session we’ll consider how memories are really just stories we tell ourselves, and how we can use these stories to construct an authentic and compelling character voice.
Session 3 - Stepping Outside of Ourselves: Experiments in Narrative Perspective
It is generally accepted that the first person ‘I’ is the natural point of view for personal writing, and that more often than not, memories will be related in the past tense. However, what does it do to our stories to situate them in a different perspective? What might it feel like for a reader to be insinuated into your experiences through the use of the second person ‘you’? What difficult life moments might the distance of third person allow you to engage with? What happens when all events are recounted in the present or future tense?
Session 4 - Breaking the Rules: Neuroqueering Language and Style
*this is an extended version of a similar session in Neuroqueering Your Creative Practice
Do you ever find that the ‘right’ word for something you experience just doesn’t exist, and so you have to make one up? When writing, do you find yourself eschewing the rules of ‘standard’ English grammar? In this session, we’ll create and collect our own personal vocabularies and stylistics. We’ll look at examples of reclaimed and newly created language, as well as the ways we can bend & break the ‘rules’ of punctuation and sentence structure to fit our linguistic needs.
1 Week Break
Session 5 - F**k the Hero's Journey: Alison, Aker and Alternative Structures
*this is an extended version of a similar session in Neuroqueering Your Creative Practice
In both fiction and memoir it is often expected that your narrative should fit neatly into pre-ordained structures: Aristotle’s Arc, Freyag’s Triangle, The Hero’s Journey. But aren’t some stories spirals and explosions? Don’t some journeys meander? And what about maps and images that are also stories? Drawing from and reflecting on both Meander, Spiral, Explode by Jane Alison and Blood & Guts in High School by Kathy Aker, we’ll experiment with using alternative patterns, as well as maps and images, to create counternarratives, and deconstruct dominant concepts of structure in storytelling.
Session 6 - Fiction or Fact?: Breaking the Reader/Writer Contract
When we call our writing ‘memoir’, ‘autobiography’, ‘personal essay’, or any other form of non-fiction, we are entering into a reader/writing contract that essentially says: what comes next is the truth as I know it, expressed to the best of my capability. But what if the truth as you know it is ‘unbelievable’? We’ll discuss Akweke Emezi’s Freshwater, ‘unpalatable’ truths in the publishing industry, and both the freedom and restriction that comes from labeling your lived experience as fiction.
Session 7 - Monsters, Magic and Machines: When Realism Just Won't Cut It
*this is an extended version of a similar session in Neuroqueering Your Creative Practice
Have you ever felt like an alien, observing humans as an outsider? Have you ever strongly related to an android character, striving to understand what it means to be human? Were you ever convinced you had powers like Matilda? Or that you were psychic? Have you ever found yourself feeling like Alice in Wonderland, the only sane person, in an insane world? Or like Frankenstein’s monster, forever the ‘other’? Reflecting on Kai Cheng Thom’s Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars, we’ll consider how blurring the lines between realism and fantasy, autobiography and invention, fact and fiction, can allow us to get to the actual ‘truth’ of our lived experiences.
Session 8 - Do it on Purpose: Leaning into Yourself
Have you ever felt (or been told) that you always do a certain thing or use a particular element in your writing, and therefore, you should learn how to do the opposite? Dolly Parton says: “Find out who you are, and then do it on purpose”. We’ll apply this ethos to our writing by reflecting on what we already do, and where our interest and joy takes us, and applying this to our work and practice in active, purposeful ways.
There is one 1 free scholarship place available on each intake of the course, as standard. These are available on a first-come, first-served basis with no requirement to disclose financial or personal information.
Please note that all sessions will be recorded and shared with ticket holders, although video feed will not be included, and participant contributions can be edited out on request.
Ticket Pricing & Info
Tickets are available at three tiers.
General Admission Tickets represent the true cost of the course. Accomplice Tickets are for those who can afford to pay a little extra in order to subsidise a lower cost ticket. Subsidised Tickets are offered at a discount for those who can't afford the full course cost. Please choose whichever tier best suits your income and budget. A limited number of Subsidised Tickets are offered as standard. More may become available if an equivalent number of Accomplice Tickets are sold.
Ticket Tiers
Accomplice: £200
General Admission: £150
Subsidised: £100
Attendees have the option of booking a 1:1 mentoring session with KR to take place after the structured sessions end. This includes reading up to 2,000 words of creative work, and a 60-minute tutorial to discuss your writing practice, process and projects.
Mentoring Tickets:
Accomplice: £80
General Admission: £60
Subsidised: £40
*mentoring tickets must be paid for in full
Refunds and Cancellations:
Ticket refunds can be made up to 14 days before the start of the course. After this, no refunds or cancellations can be made. If you have questions or concerns about this, please contact krmoorhead.lit@gmail.com before booking.
We reserve the right to cancel the course if we do not meet a minimum number of registrants. In this instance, all tickets will be fully refunded.
Upcoming Intakes
FAQs
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Who is this course for?
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Anyone writing or interested in writing from their own lived experience. This might include memoir, autobiography, personal essay, autofiction, fiction or hybrid forms.
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Do I need to be an experienced writer to join?
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Absolutely not. I like to think this course is useful for both experienced, published writers, and those new to writing.
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How big is the group?
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In order to maintain group cohesion and quality of contact time, all intakes are capped at 16 attendees. Smaller groups will be formed for regular check-ins and optional feedback.
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Will I be expected to do 'homework'?
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Although reading materials and writing invitations between sessions will be shared, these are merely there for you to engage with if and when you want to. No reading or writing is required and no one will ever be 'called on' or shamed for not engaging in reading or writing invitations.
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What is included in the ticket price?
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Access to eight live, structured sessions via Zoom, which will consist of discussions, presentations, & guided writing
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Access to all session recordings, exercises, & slideshows, as well as relevant further reading materials, throughout the course and in perpetuity.
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Access to a Google Classroom space where all materials will be hosted and group members are able to interact with each other and me, throughout the course and in perpetuity.
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Free and continuous access to all Writing Sprint sessions (Mondays 5-6pm & Thursdays 10-11am GMT) from the start of the course.
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1:1 discussion with me about your practice, process or projects, is not included in the ticket price, but can be booked as an add-on.
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