An Introduction to Memoir (12-week course)
Learn to write your memoir with our online tutored course, perfect for beginners. Explore lessons in memory, reflection and vulnerability, and get personalised feedback on your writing. Led by Emmanuel Iduma.
Early bird discount will end on Monday 9 November at 10am GMT.
Ready to tell your story?
Life stories have the power to resonate with others, offering a meaningful gift when shared. In this online memoir writing course, you’ll gain a practical understanding of how to craft a compelling memoir while learning to embrace vulnerability with confidence.
Through a combination of inspirational lessons, engaging exercises, and practical assignments, you’ll explore a diverse range of memoir styles, from traditional first-person narratives to more experimental forms such as second-person, fragmented snapshots, montage, and even graphic memoirs. You’ll engage with texts by both professional and non-professional writers, ensuring that whether you have prior writing experience or not, you’ll find relatable and inspiring examples to guide your own storytelling journey.
Importantly, you’ll achieve real progress with one-to-one feedback from your tutor that is tailored to your writing. No generic responses — get specific, actionable advice from an expert.
This course will cover…
- Exploring different forms of memoir
- Understanding your motivations for writing your story
- Identifying key moments and memories to shape your memoir
- Embracing vulnerability and learning how to channel it in your writing
- Examining stories from various points of view
- Gaining the confidence to write your own memoir
This course is perfect for those with no prior formal training who want to master the foundations of memoir writing. Your tutor, Emmanuel Iduma, will review up to 5,000 words of your work, and at the end of the course, you’ll have a one-to-one tutorial to discuss your progress and explore the next steps in your memoir-writing journey.
Start date
Monday 22 February 2027
Location
Online
Length
12 weeks (please see course schedule below)
Price
£495 £445* early bird discount
*Payment plans available. Drop us a line at academy@nationalcentreforwriting.org.uk to find out more.
Course format
This course is delivered across six fortnightly modules (see course programme below). The majority of the content is presented in text form via Teachable, allowing you to progress through the material chapter by chapter at your own pace. You will have two weeks to complete each module, after which you will submit an assignment directly to your tutor for personalised feedback and guidance.
The course also includes up to two live Zoom sessions: a welcome session in the first module, followed by a one-to-one tutorial with your tutor later in the course.
Click to find out more about the course structure and the equipment you may need.
Course programme
Please note, the module order and/or content of the course may be subject to change.
Module one – Why write your story?
In this module you’ll explore why you might want to write your story. You’ll look at the sorts of things a memoir might contain, and you’ll start to identify moments and memories that you might want to form into your memoir. You’ll submit up to 900 words of writing for assessment from your tutor.
Module two – Reflection
Memoirs are reflections on your life and in this module you’ll explore the reflective voice. You’ll explore elements of your life that have changed your perspective in someway and you’ll read examples of the reflective voice being used in memoir writing.
Module three – Power of vulnerability
In this module you’ll tackle your own vulnerability and how to harness this in your memoir writing. You’ll explore the things that might stop you from writing your memoir and the ways to overcome these.
Module four – Point of view and hybrid memoirs
When we think of memoirs we think of first person accounts, however this isn’t the only way to write your story. In this module you’ll look at examples of memoirs that play with style and form, and you’ll explore stories from different points of view.
Module five – Place and time
This module will help you place your story within the bigger picture, as well as determining when you are ready to embark on writing your memoir. You’ll look at the merits and challenges of writing for catharsis and you’ll tackle tone in your writing.
Module six – Composition and form
In this final module you’ll return to the structural elements of memoir writing. You’ll look at the way you might want to compose your story and you’ll explore reading and writing memoirs using different forms. For this final module, you’ll pull together everything you’ve learnt to submit 1,000 words of your memoir.
Live sessions
There will be two live sessions for this course, which will take place over Zoom. Timings to be confirmed.
Hear from our former students
Meet the tutor
Your tutor will review up to 5,000 words of your assigned writing, as well as providing guidance and support. You will also have a one-to-one tutorial with Emmanuel towards the end of the course to discuss your potential next steps.
Emmanuel Iduma
Emmanuel Iduma is a writer who trained as a lawyer in Nigeria. He is the author of the travelogue A Stranger’s Pose (2018), which was longlisted for 2019 Ondaatje Prize, and I Am Still With You (2023), a memoir on the aftermath of the Nigerian civil war. He has written for Granta, n+1, the New York Review of Books, Aperture, Yale Review, and others. He was awarded a Windham-Campbell Prize for nonfiction in 2022. In 2020, Iduma was recognized in Apollo International Art Magazine’s ’40 under 40 Africa’ for the broad social impact of his work.
Iduma has an MFA in Art Writing from the School of Visual Arts, New York City, where he taught for several years. He lives in Lagos, Nigeria and Norwich, UK.
Read Emmanuel’s 10 signposts on the way to a successful writing life →
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Read more about memoir
Expert tips, tricks and advice from established memoir writers and NCW tutors
Memoirist Amy Key reflects on the stories that shape us
Memoirist and poet Amy Key reflects on the stories that shape us, drawing on both her own experience and her advice for fellow writers.
27 July 2026
Writing about real people in memoir
Emmanuel Iduma shares his insights on depicting real people in memoir in a way that is both balanced and ethically attentive.
15 December 2025
Writing the self in memoir: Camilla Balshaw on Named
In this episode of The Writing Life Podcast, writer Camilla Balshaw shares insights into exploring themes of identity and belonging in her memoir, ‘Named’.
4 May 2026
The craft of life writing with Fiona Mason
In this episode of The Writing Life podcast, author Fiona Mason discusses her memoir ’36 Hours’ and the craft of life writing.
23 October 2023
Wonder and Loss: Writing Grief and Memoir with Sam Meekings
In this episode of The Writing Life Podcast, novelist, poet and Associate Professor of Creative Writing Sam Meekings shares the process behind writing his latest book, Wonder and Loss: A Practical Memoir for Writing. about Grief
9 March 2026
NCW recommends… five memoirs everyone should read
Here are five brilliant memoirs everyone should read which demonstrate the huge variety in theme, voice, structure, and pace in this deeply personal genre.
26 July 2024
Got a question?
If you still have questions, get in touch with the NCW Academy team by email academy@nationalcentreforwriting.org.uk or phone (+44) 01603 877177 between our working hours of 9am – 5pm BST, Monday to Friday. We’re here to help!