• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content

essay writers usa cover letter lean manufacturing manager enter go to link go to link https://caberfaepeaks.com/school/custom-paper-writing-service-reviews/27/ case study template counselling creative writing major reddit https://blacklivesmatter.ca/chemist/cialis-da-10-mg-prezzo-farmacia/18/ if spammers wrote cialis commercials sample outline of research paper finpecia uk follow site https://sigma-instruments.com/viagra-losing-effect-10343/ https://www.mitforumcambridge.org/multiple/to-make-an-outline-for-an-essay/2/ https://psijax.edu/medicine/my-wife-took-a-levitra/50/ source url follow site go site essay on corruption 1000 words get link olx thesis writer nexium heart problems https://efm.sewanee.edu/faq/critical-essays-on-postcolonial-literature-bijay-kumar-das/22/ essay on me to we comparative essay outline format prednisone rosacea treatment purchase peptides cialis review https://georgehahn.com/playboy/is-cialis-available-as-generic/15/ click source site http://ww2.prescribewellness.com/onlinerx/prednisone-pack-instructions/30/ Writers of Kern

Everything Writers Need | Writers of Kern

  • Jump In
    • Attend a Workshop
    • Become a Member
    • Get the Guide: The Best Places to Write in Bakersfield
    • See Upcoming Events
    • Submit a Speaker Proposal
  • About
    • History
    • Membership
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Officers & Chairs
    • Overview
    • Programs
  • Blog
  • Members
    • Apply for Active Status
    • Books by Members
    • Join a Critique Group
    • Pay Dues
    • Pay Meeting Fee
    • Request a Sunshine Card
  • WOK Press
  • Contact
  • Show Search
Hide Search

17 October 2020 | Featured Speaker Alia Volz | “Memoir: The Art of Questioning Everything”

September 25, 2020 By Natalia Corres Leave a Comment

Author Alia Volz used to think personal writing had to begin with questions and end with answers—not unlike the essays we were taught to write in high school and college. Her breakthrough came with the realization that the most interesting moments in memoir happen when questions lead not to answers, but to more questions. Memories change and become unreliable. The book starts out investigating one thing, then shifts as the narrator’s worldview crumbles and new questions arise. Uncertainty becomes a plot device. This craft talk will explore relentless self-interrogation as the driving force behind contemporary personal essays and memoir. Volz will share discuss practical tools, tips, and techniques for getting the most out of questions that refuse to be answered.

We’ll learn how to structure personal essay and memoir like a classic whodunit, using the core mystery and shape of popular crime fiction to make personal writing more exciting.

She will deconstruct her award-winning essay “Snakebit” (The Best American Essays 2017) to show us how an evolving series of questions–and relentless interrogation–produces a winning plot. We will also discuss how to apply this technique to book-length memoir.

To register for this event click HERE to go to Eventbrite and register for the meeting – registration closes at 11:30 pm the night before the event. Reminders with the meeting link and agenda/handout links are sent to registrants 24 hours before the meeting; 12 hours before the meeting and one hour before the meeting.

About Alia Volz

Alia Volz photo credit Dennis Hearne

Alia Volz is the author of Home Baked: My Mom, Marijuana, and the Stoning of San Francisco (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2020). Her work has appeared in The Best American Essays, The New York Times, Bon Appetit, Salon, Guernica, The Threepenny Review, and many other publications. Her unusual family story has been featured on Snap Judgment, Criminal and NPR’s Fresh Air.

You can find her on her website at https://aliavolz.com/ and on social media at:

https://www.instagram.com/aliavolzzz/
https://twitter.com/aliavolz
https://www.facebook.com/alia.volz

Filed Under: Events, Guest Speakers

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Copyright © 2021 · Writers of Kern · Website by Hypist

  • Advertise
  • Submissions
  • Speakers
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms
  • Policies & Procedures
  • Contact