Category Archives: Sarah’s memoir
Getting Schooled in Africville
In August I went back to Halifax, Nova Scotia, for my second grad school residency. As the weekend between the two weeks of school approached. Joanne, from the next year’s student cohort, confided to me that she worried about being … Continue reading
Hello from Halifax, Classroom Edition
“We’ve got your book” the brochure for the U-King’s MFA program promises, and they mean that literally. Everyone studying here is writing one, everyone teaching here has written one (or more), and all we talk about from morning coffee to … Continue reading
Hello from Halifax
“True Stories Well Told” is taking a micro-break while I pursue my Big MFA Adventure at University of King’s College, on the Dalhousie Campus in Halifax, NS, CA. The relationship between the two institutions has been described as “uneasy siblings” and … Continue reading
A Pause for Ice Cream –or- “Midwestern Nice”
By Sarah White I’m preparing to teach “Flash Memoir” in a few weeks. As a result, memories in short flashes have been coming to me recently. Here’s one. Madison, Wisconsin, summer, 1980 or 1981. A storefront scoop shop opened on Williamson … Continue reading
My Magic Credit Card
By Sarah White I’m teaching “Write Your Way to a Better Relationship with Money” for personal historians right now, an online workshop I developed using the Guided Autobiography method developed by Dr. James Birren. We uncover old bad stories we’ve told ourselves … Continue reading
Spelunking
By Sarah White The plight of the Thai soccer club trapped in a cave got me thinking about a memory from 1972 or ’73, when I was very nearly trapped in a cave under similar conditions. I have only limited recall … Continue reading
Who Cooks for You!?
Chef-journalist Anthony Bourdain’s death last week brought to mind the chefs I’ve known, including the one I married. I first encountered this band of pirates (the only men in uniform I find sexy) when my roommate-boyfriend became the pantry chef … Continue reading
Life is Circular (Revisiting your past writing)
My last post (with Doug Elwell) concerned revising your writing. Like Doug, I find it fascinating to go back to pieces written in the past to discover not just how my editorial skills have sharpened in the interim, but also … Continue reading
Missing the Point
By Sarah White, October 2017 I think I just missed the point—again—of an assignment for a class. (This time, the assignment was for my Big MFA Adventure.) This makes the third time. Funny, the first two times were in art classes, … Continue reading
The Pinto
In this season of giving thanks, I offer this short essay I wrote nearly a decade ago about a gift that kept on giving. I often use this as a teaching story in my workshops, asking “with whom do you … Continue reading
True Stories Well Told 