A 1-Day Multigenre Writing Workshop
Thursday, June 4, 6-9 PM
“Change, personal and political, does not come about in a day, nor a year. But it is our day-to-day decisions, the way in which we testify with our lives to those things in which we say we believe, that empower us. Your power is relative, but it is real. And if you do not learn to use it, it will be used, against you, and me, and our children. Change did not begin with you, and it will not end with you, but what you do with your life is an absolutely vital piece of that chain.”
– Audre Lorde, from a 1989 speech at Oberlin College
What can we do in our day-to-day to hone and wield our voices, to roll out the changes we believe our communities need? Writing can be applied to many things – protest signs, letters to senators and representatives, op-eds, poems, resistance song lyrics, flyers and t-shirts, podcasts and speeches, and testimonials at town and city halls. Join a legacy of resistance taking cues from the brilliant voices ahead of us: Bayard Rustin, Marina Tsvetaeva, Pablo Neruda, Angela Davis, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Paul Robeson, MLK Jr., Liu Xiaobo, James Baldwin, Audre Lorde, and more.
Each week, an accomplished writing instructor will bring their own expertise, resources, generative prompts, and guidance. This class in our series features author and professor Mira Ptacin.
This is a generative workshop built around one urgent question: What makes an individual story resonate as collective truth? In this class with award-winning memoirist and narrative journalist Mira Ptacin, we’ll explore how the personal is political — not as a slogan but as a writing practice. Through guided prompts, in-session drafting, and shared reflection, we’ll excavate the moments that seem private but carry the weight of public experience: the small scenes that reveal larger structures, the intimate memories that illuminate social rhythms, the “I” that opens onto “we.” Together, we’ll examine how narrative voice, specificity, and honesty can turn the particular into something that speaks for a community, a moment, or a movement — and we’ll do it by writing in real time, responding to each other’s work, and finding the power in words as they unfold. No preparation is needed; bring your curiosity and your willingness to go deep. By the end, you’ll have generated new work grounded in the belief that individual stories are not confessions but connectors, and that telling them well is a political act.
$60 Members/$85 Nonmembers
Mira Ptacin an American author, literary journalist, and educator. Her memoir Poor Your Soul (2016) explores pregnancy loss and was named a Kirkus best book of the year, while The In-Betweens (2019) examines Spiritualism in Maine’s Camp Etna, praised by The New York Times as the best book to read during a pandemic. Her work appears in The New York Times, The Atavist, Harper’s, Tin House, Lit Hub, Tin House, Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and more. Ptacin is the 2026 Maine Arts Commission Fellow in Literary Arts, and the 2025-2026 Artist in Residence at Mechanics’ Hall. www.miraMptacin.com
ADVANCE REGISTRATION REQUIRED
All MWPA workshops require advanced registration. We accept registration by phone, mail, and online via our website. We cannot guarantee registration in the final 24-hours before a workshop, and can rarely accommodate day-of registration.
PAYMENT & CANCELLATION POLICIES
If you need to withdraw from a class after registering for any reason, please email or call the MWPA immediately. You may be eligible for a partial refund or credit, depending on how far in advance you cancel. → MORE INFORMATION
QUESTIONS
For any questions regarding this workshop, please contact programs@mainewriters.org.
REGISTER BY PHONE
Call 207-200-7180 and register with your VISA or MasterCard.
REGISTER BY MAIL
If you prefer to pay by mail, please print this registration form (downloadable PDF) and mail it to the MWPA with a check or credit card information.
SCHOLARSHIP
The MWPA is proud to offer one partial scholarship to this workshop for members-only. Scholarships are awarded on a combination of need and merit. Application Due two weeks prior to the workshop start date, at 9:00 a.m.
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MWPA WORKSHOP POLICIES
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