A profile is a portrait painted in words, with the writer bringing the subject to life on the page. A close friend or relative has an especially subjective lens, with a unique experience of the person in question. (For instance, a young man’s mother and fraternity brother would depict him differently, and rightly so.) Some profiles, while focused outward, are considered memoirs as well, with the narrator also coming across vividly through her particular relationship with and memories of the subject, her distinct view and voice.

The main objective of this course is to write first-person profiles/memoirs that we’ll share and workshop together — mining our memories, researching and interviewing, and exploring the concept of multiple truths. We’ll also read and discuss excerpts from Lillian Ross’s Portrait of Hemingway; Johanna Adorjan’s An Exclusive Love, about her grandparents’ suicide pact; and Fourth and Mom, by Jean Masthay — a long-time and beloved ISWF student, who wrote a memoir about being the mother of a pro football player whose team won the Super Bowl. 

No writing to submit in advance, but please come with a certain person in mind as the subject of your memoiristic profile — Whose character is compelling to you? Whose story is, in a way, also your story? Who resonates with you, such that in revealing them you also reveal yourself? Inquisitive wordsmiths at all levels of writing experience are welcome. 

In this workshop, we will generate new writing through guided exercises and prompts; offer feedback/first impressions on writing you produce in our week.