CW 93 — Wild Precious Writing
Quarter: Summer
Instructor(s): Annmarie Kelly
Date(s): Jul 10—Aug 7
Class Recording Available: Yes
Class Meeting Day: Thursdays
Grade Restriction: NGR only; no credit/letter grade
Class Meeting Time: 7:00—8:30 pm (PT)
Tuition: $290
Refund Deadline: Jul 12
Unit(s): 0
Enrollment Limit: 55
Status: Open
Quarter: Summer
Day: Thursdays
Duration: 5 weeks
Time: 7:00—8:30 pm (PT)
Date(s): Jul 10—Aug 7
Unit(s): 0
Tuition: $290
Refund Deadline: Jul 12
Instructor(s): Annmarie Kelly
Grade Restriction: NGR only; no credit/letter grade
Enrollment Limit: 55
Recording Available: Yes
Status: Open
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?
—Mary Oliver
For many of us, the answer is, “I want to write,” to capture our truth in words and fulfill the promise of our imaginations. But while we may have essays or novels brewing in our minds and notes piling up on our phones, it’s hard to find time to do the work.
This course will move you forward toward that goal. For two hours a week, you will embrace your “one wild and precious life,” pursuing projects that compel you and making progress on your writing. Before each class, you’ll write for 20 minutes in response to an open-ended prompt—perhaps Ada Limón’s instructions on perseverance, Naomi Shihab Nye’s guidance on drafting the desired world into being, or Andrea Gibson’s encouragement to “write ourselves breathless.” In weekly 90-minute sessions, you’ll push beyond that initial prompt, engaging with mentor texts, exploring craft techniques, and sharing work to discover where it shines and sings.
From poetry to prose, micro to memoir, this course is designed for writers at any stage looking to jumpstart their practice and write with joy and freedom. You’ll leave with a dozen drafted pieces and a renewed sense of what draws you to the page, learning how to make writing easier, more fun, and manageable—even on the busiest days.
with your one wild and precious life?
—Mary Oliver
For many of us, the answer is, “I want to write,” to capture our truth in words and fulfill the promise of our imaginations. But while we may have essays or novels brewing in our minds and notes piling up on our phones, it’s hard to find time to do the work.
This course will move you forward toward that goal. For two hours a week, you will embrace your “one wild and precious life,” pursuing projects that compel you and making progress on your writing. Before each class, you’ll write for 20 minutes in response to an open-ended prompt—perhaps Ada Limón’s instructions on perseverance, Naomi Shihab Nye’s guidance on drafting the desired world into being, or Andrea Gibson’s encouragement to “write ourselves breathless.” In weekly 90-minute sessions, you’ll push beyond that initial prompt, engaging with mentor texts, exploring craft techniques, and sharing work to discover where it shines and sings.
From poetry to prose, micro to memoir, this course is designed for writers at any stage looking to jumpstart their practice and write with joy and freedom. You’ll leave with a dozen drafted pieces and a renewed sense of what draws you to the page, learning how to make writing easier, more fun, and manageable—even on the busiest days.
Because of the high enrollment capacity, students will not receive instructor feedback on daily writing posts.
ANNMARIE KELLY
Author
Annmarie Kelly is the author of the memoir Here Be Dragons. She hosts Wild Precious Life, a podcast about making the most of the time we have. She received an MA from Yale and an MFA from Ashland University, where she teaches writing and composition. Her essays have appeared on NPR’s All Things Considered, in the New York Observer, Black Fork Review, and Anodyne. In 2024, she served as an Erma Bombeck Humorist-in-Residence and Hemingway-Pfeiffer Writer-in-Residence. Textbooks for this course:
There are no required textbooks; however, some fee-based online readings may be assigned.