What if your most honest story could only be told through ghosts, dragons, or alternate realities?

Join writer and professor Alexandra Dos Santos for a four-part exploration of speculative memoir—a genre that takes emotional truths and infuses the power of our imagination to take our storytelling to new heights. Here, possession becomes a lens for addiction. Dragons guard childhood trauma. Time loops reveal the cyclical nature of grief. Gone are the constraints of literal truth; you’ll tell your story exactly how you felt it.

We'll meet at the Olio Lighthouse on Tuesday evenings at 7:30pm.
March 3rd, 10th, 17th, and 24th

In this 4-week Olio workshop, you'll discover how horror tropes, fantasy creatures, and fairytale worlds can unlock new levels of expression in your personal writing. Through reading, discussion, generative exercises, peer feedback, and in-depth workshops, you'll create and polish your own speculative memoir piece—one that transforms lived experience into something stranger, truer, and entirely your own.

What to Expect:

Each 2-hour session includes:

Generative exercises that excavate memory and reimagine it through a speculative lens
Craft exploration through curated readings that reveal what makes speculative memoir work
Peer feedback on fresh work created in class
Full workshop of submitted pieces (2-3 pages), with thoughtful critique from the group and instructor
Deep dives into how speculative memoir helps us heal, reclaim power, and reveal hidden truths

Week-by-Week Overview:
Tuesday evenings at 7:30pm
March 3rd, 10th, 17th, and 24th

Week 1: Finding Your Portal

Introduction to the genre through readings and discussion. Discover your "subject of choice"—the theme, moment, or memory you keep returning to. Collaborative brainstorming to explore which speculative elements unlock your unique story.

Week 2: Building Your World

Deeper exploration of how to weave speculative elements throughout a piece. Longer writing exercises to develop your voice and vision. First round of workshops begins.

Week 3: Refining the Magic

Advanced craft discussions on balancing the real and the fantastical. Continue generating new work while workshopping submitted pieces. Partner feedback sessions to strengthen your drafts.

Week 4: Sharing your World

Final workshops and a special reading of everyone's polished pieces. Discussion on next steps: revision strategies, submission opportunities, and publishing routes. Celebrate what you've created together!

You'll walk away with polished pages, new techniques, permission to reimagine your reality, and a community of writers who understand that sometimes the most truthful stories are the ones that never actually happened.

Inspiration:
For a taste of the genre, read Alexandra's essay on Electric Lit, "Possess Me, Demon, Please," which uses the horror trope of possession to explore addiction and teaching.

About Your Instructor:

Alexandra Dos Santos is a writer and College Writing instructor based in Astoria, New York, with an MFA from The Writers Foundry at St. Joseph's University. Her work spans horror, the esoteric, and the speculative, appearing in Electric Literature, Lithub, Flash Fiction Magazine, and Vol. 1 Brooklyn, among others. She's led creative writing workshops throughout Brooklyn and received fellowships from Wildacres Writers Retreat and the Disquiet International Literary Program.

*Writers of all levels are welcome here!

Gods of Our Own Worlds: Using Speculative Memoir to Redefine Reality

Gods of Our Own Worlds: Using Speculative Memoir to Redefine Reality