Milwaukee Irish Fest Summer School Classes
C02: Roots Into Words: Writing Your Irish Memoir
Instructor: James Silas Rogers - Read full bio
Price: $100.00
Location: CelticMKE Center (Check-in at CelticMKE Center)
Start Date: Tue, August 13, 2019 Start Time: 12:30 PMEnd Date: Thu, August 15, 2019 End Time: 02:00 PMDescription: It’s been said that we live in “the age of memoir,” when ordinary and sometimes long-silenced voices are finally beginning to find their way into personal recollection. This course-- taught by a leading authority on Irish-American memoir-- starts from two premises: first, that everyone (including you) has a story tell, and second, that telling your story under the aspect of Irishness will add texture and meaning. Bring a pen and paper, as all sessions will include some in-class writing and sharing.
CLASS A -- Why write an Irish memoir?
The nature of memoir
The three keys of memoir: scene, synopsis, and reflection
Irish traditions in autobiography
Motivations for writing
Identifying your audience
Research
Writing prompts
CLASS B— Spurring Memory through Places and Legacy Objects
How to make description vivid
Moving beyond the travel journal
Revisiting your home places
Trusting in the particulars
Objects as windows on history
Unpacking levels of meaning
The nature of heritage
CLASS C -- Writing about People and Genealogy
“Why would anyone care about your family?”
Showing, not telling
Privacy concerns --should you ask the living to read it?
Family secrets
The ethics of writing about the dead
Finding the larger contexts
The end product
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