Lapses, Flashes, and Fragments: How to Write Through Challenging Memories

with Laura Cathcart Robbins

• January 29, 2025
  6 weeks

  $445.00 Original price was: $445.00.$380.00Current price is: $380.00.

  Early Bird! Enroll now & save 15%

  Open to AllText and Live Video

  Biweekly Zoom sessions Thursdays from 8-10 PM Eastern

Are you ready to develop your difficult life experiences into a compelling memoir that resonates with readers?

This course is for writers who want to explore life’s trying chapters, and learn to shape these transformative moments into story. Whether you’re just starting to write or have pages waiting to be refined, this course will guide you in finding how best to tell your story with power and authenticity.

Over the course of our time together, you’ll delve into challenging moments from your life experience—without re-traumatizing yourself!—and I’ll guide you through uncovering and highlighting the key moments for your story. Through weekly in-depth craft lessons, you’ll gain tangible writing techniques to elevate your prose. We’ll cover everything from building emotional resonance to structuring scenes that captivate, helping you navigate sensitive or traumatic content thoughtfully and effectively.

Throughout the course, we’ll also discuss sustainable habits and strategies to build and maintain a steady writing practice, which is crucial for tackling emotionally charged material. For inspiration and motivation, we’ll read excerpts from a range of memoirs, exploring how celebrated authors have transformed personal challenges into powerful literature.

By the end of the course, you’ll have an outline and a draft of one to two chapters, a deeper understanding of memoir writing, and the confidence to keep developing your story. Whether your goal is to write for personal growth, or to publish a memoir that touches others, you’ll gain the skills and support you need to bring your vision to life.

I’ll give you and your peers weekly feedback on your work, and you will also have optional biweekly one-to-one Zoom “coffee chats” with me.

Who This Course is For

This course is for anyone with a powerful story to tell, but who may feel unsure about where to begin or how to continue. If you’re struggling to identify the most compelling parts of your memoir, or if fear and fragmented memories are holding you back from writing, you’ll find the guidance and support you need in this course.

Writers of all experience levels are welcome—from complete beginners to those ready to deepen their craft. No matter where you are on your memoir-writing journey, this course will help you gain clarity, confidence, and the tools to bring your story to life.

Learning and Writing Goals

Learning Goals

In this course, you’ll learn to:

• Write memoir  scenes and chapters that include friends and family with sensitivity. 
• Claim the stories that are yours to tell. 
• Live like a writer—creating schedules and setting boundaries.
• Write about trauma without re-traumatizing yourself.
• Find an agent that’s right for you.

Writing Goals

In this course, you will:

• Write and submit up to 1000 words per week for feedback and direction.
• Draft and refine a compelling opening paragraph and first chapters. 
• Create a memoir outline.

Zoom Schedule

The class will meet every other Thursday from 8-10 PM Eastern.  I will also be available for a 15-minute one-on-one “Coffee Chat” (by appointment) between classes from 8-11 PM Eastern on Thursdays.

Note: This is a 6 week course, but will span 7 weeks. We will not meet the week of February 24th. 

Student Feedback for Laura Cathcart Robbins:

Laura I just wanted to say thank you, thank you for everything. I learned so much and will continue my writing path, and your course lead the way. So grateful to you. 

It was so incredible taking your class and getting the chance to meet you. My time with you has been beyond inspiring, informative, and a lot of fun! I appreciate all the feedback and insight you shared and can’t wait to read your next book.

I am buzzing from your class, so motivated to push my writing project forward. I can’t thank you enough for sharing your time and wisdom with us. 

The line you shared that did it for me was: “Some people have a story to tell, and others are born to write.” That liberated me from thinking about my life as one big crazy chunk into a lot of smaller unified, digestible chunks that have specific unifying themes and containers. 

It would be a joy to get to take your class again. Thank you for your very even and fair teaching / leading approach – I know for me it really ignites creativity and not all the self-doubt that so often can come with it.

Laura, thank you for listening to our stories and finding unique ways to help us shape our narrative.  You gave us great structures for our writing.

Weekly Syllabus

Over the next 6 weeks, we will cover a lot of ground, but I’ll break up the course into easy-to-digest lessons that should take between 30-60 minutes each week to complete.

I don’t want you to feel overwhelmed, I want you to get what you came for and a little extra. Trust me, we’re going to take it slow and I’ll be guiding you the entire way. 

What you get out of this course depends entirely on how much work you put into it. There will be writing prompts, readings, writing assignments, course chats, and discussions. I highly recommend that you participate as often as you can.

Week One: Pulling Focus

In this first class, I’ll ask you to come prepared with three potential titles for your memoir and a piece of writing to share (no more than 1000 words).   We’ll discuss what memoir is (as opposed to autobiography) and zero in on what type of memoir you’re going to write. The workshopping portions of our class will require active reading and listening to provide helpful feedback.  We will discuss how to participate so that everyone gets thoughtful responses to their work.

Assignment: Submit up to 1,000 words of your memoir for feedback. Complete assigned reading. 

Week Two: Structures

During this class we’ll go over different writing structures and methods to help you organize your memoir. We’ll explore everything from the classic three acts to the tried and true Hero’s Journey and the Story Spine. We’ll also discuss containers for your memoir, such as periods, specific threads, and bookending with life events. We’ll also talk about the importance of voice and how yours can set your memoir apart from others in your genre. Finally, we’ll brainstorm ideas that could kick off your memoir. 

Assignment: Submit up to 1,000 words of your memoir for feedback, focused on the opening pages of your memoir. 

Week Three: Dealing with Family,  What to Leave In, What to Leave Out

Are you “one hundred percent” ready for the impact your published memoir might have on your relationship with your family and friends?  Yes, you own everything that happens to you. But sometimes to tell your story, you need to tell someone else’s too – kids, parents, friends,  bosses, co-workers, spouses, and even ex-spouses. During our third week together we’ll learn to evaluate everything this way, “Does it serve the story?” We’ll also discuss various strategies, such as using italics for inner voice and changing names, descriptions, and locations. 

Assignment: Submit up to 1,000 words of your memoir for feedback, possibly focused on a challenging time involving family or friends. 

Week Four: Writing About Trauma 

Trauma memory often comes in flashes and fragments. During this week I’ll share my experience with writing about my own trauma along with suggestions and tips from several of my (best-selling) author friends who all tackled writing about trauma in different ways. We’ll also talk about comfort vs self-care, and how to best take care of yourself during these vulnerable writing sessions. 

Assignment: Submit up to 1,000 words of your memoir for feedback, possibly focused on a hard or traumatic event. 

Week Five: Living Like a Writer

It is possible to write every day.  Keep a notebook in the car so you can journal while waiting for your take-out order or for a soccer game to end. When can you not scroll and commit to writing instead? It can be ten minutes or it can be two hours. All the best authors have writing strategies. This week I’ll help you find the ones that will work best for you.  We’ll cover everything from boundary setting to schedule non-negotiables.

Assignment: Submit up to 1,000 words of your memoir for feedback. 

Week Six:  Do You Really Need an Agent? (Answer: Yes, you do)

When editing the manuscript for querying, it’s good to have a tight ten (pages) to submit to the agent.  If they like what they read, they may request the full manuscript! Looking for an agent is like looking for a spouse. You want to make sure it’s a good fit. In our final class, we’ll discuss strategies for finding an agent that makes sense for you and your memoir. I’ll also lecture on the business of publishing, advance breakdowns, networking, and platform building.

NY Times Worthy Personal Essay

with Laura Cathcart Robbins

• Online

• Mar 25, Apr 1, Apr 8, Apr 15, Apr 22 (5 Tuesday Afternoons)

• 5:30pm – 8:30pm Pacific

• $425

• Limited Spots

Getting an essay in the New York Times is the crown jewel of personal essays in terms of bragging rights and future book deals. In this 5 week NY Times worthy personal essay class, Laura Cathcart Robbins (Real Simple & Elle Best Book, Modern Love) will share her insight into securing this prestigious but elusive prize. Through fun, in class exercises, an informative craft talk, and in-class feedback, you will learn Laura’s secret techniques for approaching this essay, including the unspoken expectations of the format, a compelling romantic hook and a crystal clear theme. By the end of the class you will have everything you need to craft your own New York Times Essay, and send it off to the Big Apple!

In this class you’ll write an essay worthy of the NY Times Modern Love or other essay columns. We’ll workshop one of your essays until it’s perfect. By the end of class, you’ll have a kick-ass essay that is ready to be submitted for publication and a plan of where to submit it. Your goal will be to sell your essay within a couple of weeks after the class ends! You’ll be well on your way to joining the ranks of the 860 Writing Pad Alums (51 of whom got into the NY Times) who have sold essays and articles with Writing Pad’s help!

You can read some of the essays here: New York Times Modern Love #1,New York Times Modern Love #2, New York Times Modern Love #3,New York Times Modern Love #4, New York Times Modern Love #5, New York Times Modern Love #6, NY Times Well # 1, NY Times Well # 2,  New York Times Well #3, New York Times Well #4, New York Times Well #5, New York Times Well #6, New York Times Well #7, New York Times Well #8, New York Times Well #9, New York Times Well #10, New York Times Well #11, New York Times Well #12, New York Times Well #13, NY Times Style, Los Angeles Magazine, New York Magazine, Bon Appetit, Boston Globe, Brain, Child, Daily Beast, Cosmopolitan, DAME, Elle #1, Elle #2, Elle #3, 5280,Huffington Post #1,Huffington Post #2, Huffington Post #3,LA Times #1, LA Times #2, LA Times #3, LA Times #4, LA Times #5, LA Times #6, LA Times #7, LA Times #8,The Lily #1 (Washington Post), The Lily #2 (Washington Post), Marie Claire #1, Marie Claire #2, Men’s Journal, Morning News #1, Morning News #2, Narratively, Nerve, Role Reboot, Salon #1, Salon #2, Salon #3, Salon #4, Salon #5, Salon #6, Salon #7, Salon #8, Salon #9, Salon #10, Salon #11, Salon #12, Salon #13, Salon #14, San Diego Union-Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, Self #1, Self #2, Teen Vogue,  The Beauty Bean, Shine, The Date Report, The Smart Set, Vice, Vogue #1, Vogue #2, Vogue #3, Washington Post #1, Washington Post #2, Washington Post #3, Washington Post #4, Washington Post #5, Washington Post #6, Washington Post #7, Whole Life, Wired.