4 sessions, every other Sunday, October 1 to November 12, 3-5pm EST

(Sundays October 1, October 15, October 29, November 12)

12 Students Max

$200

Enroll in this class.

The lovechild of a book club and craft seminar, during the four sessions of this class we’ll collectively explore the essays in The Best American Essays 2022 with a writer’s eye, discussing the content of the pieces but, more importantly, analyzing the author’s decisions and the effects they had on us, the reader. We’ll do close readings of particular excerpts, and also cast our eyes wide to see what this collection, edited and curated with care and deliberation by Alexander Chee, can tell us about the landscape of contemporary short form nonfiction. While there will be no workshopping or feedback component, the instructor will provide writing suggestions and prompts along the way, so if you’re looking to recharge your creativity and expose yourself to new possibilities in form, voice, approach, and ideation, this class is for you.

This intimate class will require active participation, and we’ll make space to share about our journeys and identities as writers, and how that informs our reading experiences. Students will be required to have a copy of The Best American Essays 2022, edited by Alexander Chee. Classes meet every two weeks, on Sunday afternoons. The book will be divided into four sections, which we’ll discuss in chunks. In addition to reading, assignments will consist of finding excerpts to share with the class for close reading, and jotting down questions and observations to spark and guide class discussion. Students will leave with over 100 prompts inspired by, and often responding directly, to the essays they've read.

Enroll in this class.

About the Instructor

Brian Gresko (he/they) is a writer based in Brooklyn, where they co-run Pete’s Reading Series, the borough's longest running literary venue. Their work has appeared in Poets & Writers Magazine, Slate, The Atlantic, Longreads, The Rumpus, and many other publications. Also a stay-at-home parent, they edited the anthology When I First Held You: 22 Critically Acclaimed Writers Talk about the Triumphs, Challenges, and Transformative Experience of Fatherhood. They received their MFA in fiction from The New School, and was the first in their family to attend college, at Oberlin.

Student Testimonials

Brian is a caring, kind, and intuitive teacher. In addition to being genuinely excited about writing and teaching it as a craft, he's responsive to questions and generous with his time. I learned a lot in the nonfiction class I took with Brian, and left with a deeper understanding of how to create emotional connections with a reader, follow the arc of a narrative, and choose details that move the story forward. – Luna Adler

I came in wanting to produce at least two chapters from my next haiku book, but instead I got the tools I needed to write an entire next book—one that is going to be challenging, but that I'm going to be really proud of. In Brian's class, I felt like I “leveled up,” learning creative strategies to organize and make my work more readable and interesting. I gained an excitement and enthusiasm for writing that I didn't have before - an energy that I plan to keep flowing now that the class is done! – Kristen Lem, author of Haiku to Fall in Love To

I took Brian's workshop in non-fiction and worked on two pieces with the class, while also reading and giving feedback on students' work. That experience reignited my writing process in a serious way. I continued to work on the second piece from the class with Brian one-on-one, and he encouraged me to submit it for publication. He helped me understand the submission process, and tracked down contacts at the publications on my short list. That piece kinda blew up on the Internet and the next thing I know I have a literary agent and am working on a full-length book project. Will you get an agent by taking Brian's class? Unclear. But you will gain an honest understanding of both your strengths and tics as a writer, and hopefully a kick in the motivation pants while you're at it. – Christina Wallace