Writing Workshops

I offer online writing workshops in creative nonfiction, poetry, and hybrid forms. As someone with extensive teaching and workshop experience (oh, the MFA days!), and as an interdisciplinary artist who writes and publishes across the genres, I am very excited to give back to the literary community through reasonably priced, online, writing-focused workshops. When I say “writing focused,” what I mean is that you’ll be generating new material within a supportive, energized community of writers. In my workshops, we save the in-depth, written feedback for our peers until the later weeks so that you can focus on generating your own material. This structure also allows participants time to flesh out their work before critique but still leave with a good amount of thoughtful editorial input. We will also be reading published work by some of the best writers out there and engaging in stimulating dialogue about what we can “borrow.” You can also expect a few artfully made handouts.

All workshop series include mini lessons on craft; weekly advice, tips, reading selections, and guided questions to deepen your engagement; unique prompts for generating and revising work; in-class writing warm-ups; in-class oral feedback from myself and other writers; personalized suggestions for further reading as well as suggestions for publishing opportunities. The goal of each workshop series is for you to leave with not only a solid draft of a longer piece, but multiple “seedling” pieces that can take root and grow long after the series has ended.

At this time, all workshops are held on Zoom. High-speed internet and experience with Zoom are required for participation. I do not use Google Docs, Slack, or other accompanying platforms. Please note that you must take the beginning workshop before you can take the advanced.

*Please note that, unless explicitly stated in a workshop description, I do not provide written feedback or line-edits on workshop submissions. If you are interested in manuscript consultations or one-on-one instruction, please see this page here.

*Refund policy: I understand that emergencies, illness, and change of plans occur. If you need to cancel your participation, I offer full refunds up to 24 hours before the start date. After that, I can only offer transfers, and in certain cases, credits. If, for some unforeseen reason, I must cancel a workshop series or individual session, you will be refunded immediately. If you feel you have a unique reason for a refund that falls outside of the above, let me know. My workshops are currently priced with kindness in mind (roughly $25 a week). I put in many unpaid hours outside of our meeting times. Please help me keep my workshops low-cost by doing your best not to cancel.

To register, email me at li.henley@hotmail.com or through my contact page.

Upcoming 2023-24 Workshops:

Introduction to the Personal Essay: An Online Generative Workshop/Course Part A

(workshop full)

Sundays, 1-3 pm pst, 7/9 to 8/13

Description: Show me the moment in your kitchen with your mother that Sunday in ’96. Show me the deer that leaped out of the way just in time on the night you were driving home from the hospital. Show me which of your belongings you chose when you evacuated the burning mountain. Show me the late shift at Denny’s in Barstow. Show me the transformative moments, the quieter moments, the ones that you didn’t remember until just now.

Poets, journal-keepers, new prose writers, experimenters, dabblers with goals—this six-week workshop is for you. Let’s talk about moments: the ones we should mine, the ones that connect to other moments to build a scene. Let’s connect scenes to build a draft. Let’s see what rises to the surface. This workshop will serve as both primer and refresher on the art of the personal essay, provide writing time and gentle, collaborative feedback you can actually use. Make connections with other writers and deepen your commitment to the craft.

Nitty gritty: Expect to spend 2-3 hours a week reading published CNF and at least 2-3 hours per week writing; weeks 5 & 6 will be more intensive and require you to read work by 3-4 other workshop mates and provide written feedback.

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Introduction to the Personal Essay: An Online Generative Workshop/Course Part B

(workshop full)

Saturdays, 1-3 pm pst, 7/8 to 8/12

CNF writers, this six-week workshop is for you. Let’s do the work of taking our conception of the personal essay to a deeper level. Let’s open doors and the doors behind the doors, understanding that the personal essay asks questions, reflects, leads to no clear answers, only glimmers of insight. The personal essay is rooted in place and time and voice and yet is also ephemeral in nature, calling upon the best of poetry, storytelling, and documenting. It starts with the self and expands outwards, making the personal universal. It rings the highest bell of literary tradition but constantly seeks to reinvent, subvert, and open the door to new ways of thinking and being. And above all, personal essays are friendly and candid and often funny.

Nitty gritty: This workshop is intended for those who already write CNF. Expect to spend 2-3 hours per week reading published CNF and at least 3-5 hours per week writing; weeks 5 & 6 will be more intensive and require you to read work by 2-3 of your peers and provide written feedback.

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Introduction to the Personal Essay: An Online Generative Workshop/Course Part A

Dates TBA

An 8-week generative workshop/course that includes 7 live Zoom sessions. See above for full description.

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Introduction to the Personal Essay: An Online Generative Workshop/Course Part B

An 8-week generative workshop/course that includes 7 live Zoom sessions. Completion of Part A or previous private sessions required. See above for full description.

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Upcoming Workshop Topics; check back for details!

Flash memoir

Hybridity

Persona poems, world building, and the novella in verse

Immersive CNF