Writer’s Workshop: Memoir – Fact or Fiction?

Memoir – Fact or Fiction

Facilitated by Ellie O’Leary

Writing from memory can be tricky. What belongs on the page? What happens when details feel fuzzy—or you’re not entirely sure your memory is accurate?

In Memoir – Fact or Fiction, you’ll explore the creative and ethical questions that arise when writing true stories from lived experience. Through discussion, real-world examples of memoir dilemmas, and guided in-class writing, this workshop will help you bring clarity, focus, and confidence to your personal stories—without losing their emotional truth.

Whether you’re beginning a memoir, working on personal essays, or simply curious about how memory works on the page, this session offers practical tools and a supportive space to write.

In this workshop, you will:

• Explore the gray areas between fact, memory, and storytelling
• Learn how memoirists handle uncertainty and imperfect recall
• Examine common memoir dilemmas and creative approaches to them
• Practice shaping anecdotes through in-class writing exercises
• Gain confidence in writing with honesty, intention, and clarity

All experience levels are welcome. Come with curiosity—and a willingness to explore your story.

About the Facilitator

Ellie O’Leary is an accomplished writer, teacher, and poet with a long history of supporting writers at every stage of their journey. Her experience includes teaching at Belfast (Maine) Senior College, hosting Writer’s Forum on WERU-FM, teaching at the Pyramid Life Center in the Adirondacks, and earning an MFA from Maine’s Stonecoast program.

Ellie is Poet Laureate Emerita of Amesbury, Massachusetts, and the former Education Director of the Gloucester Writers Center. She is the author of Breathe Here (poetry, 2020) and Up Home Again (memoir, 2023), both published by North Country Press.