2025 Sunday Writer's Salon Workshops

This two-part workshop explores the relationship between self-knowledge and vulnerability in the personal essay.

"In the first session, we will discuss James Baldwin's "Notes of a Native Son" and Joan Didion's "The White Album." Baldwin's essay, from his 1955 collection of the same name, reflects on his father's death while examining Black and white race relations. Didion's 1979 essay captures the political and social turmoil of the 1960s while navigating her mental health. Both essays explore anger, paranoia, and the sociopolitical realities of the United States through personal lenses.

We will analyze how perspective, tone, syntax, imagery, and other literary techniques shape these essays. How do these stylistic choices enhance or limit the writers' vulnerability?

Our second session will focus on JP Infante's "On Screens," an essay that grapples with his parents' overdose deaths, his mental health, and harm reduction. Participants will share drafts of works in progress and reflect on their writing processes. Together, we will explore…