Memoir III: Envisioning an Ending

This course is not open to the public, but rather by admission only.

For more information on the Writing Certificate Program and its application process, please click here .

It is time to envision your memoir’s ending, which will provide a clear sense of destination and urgency to carry you through the rest of your project.

We will review examples of published memoir endings, explore strategies for concluding a memoir, and work toward crafting a resonant ending that delivers on the promise of the beginning.

We will also examine questions of truthfulness in memoir, including the use of representational scenes, time compression, and composite characters.

You will continue generating new material to deepen themes and heighten the stakes of your story.

While you may not yet be at the end of your manuscript, knowing where you want the story to land will help ensure coherence and imbue the pages you are still drafting with a sense of inevitability and resonance.