Services & Events
Workshops & Editing
Lise’s writing workshops can last anywhere from 40 minutes to a full semester. She teaches at universities, writing conferences, and in the yoga studio across the street from her house. Her willingness to combine teaching and travel has landed her in Tokyo, Paris, Portland, and Pittsburgh, among other popular global destinations. Often, participants will report that as a result of Lise’s workshop, their heads have exploded. Schedule-permitting, Lise gladly offers one-on-one editorial consults. Pricing varies wildly. To explore these bespoke editing services, send an email describing your project to info@lisefunderburg.com.
2023 Classes, Workshops, and Webinars
REVISING *IS* WRITING: Unlocking the Potential of Self-Editing in Creative Nonfiction.
A Cleaver Workshops Master Class in Craft for writers of all levels.
Sunday, November 20, 2021, on Zoom. 12:00 pm-2:00 pm ET $50 More information and registration here.
CRAFTING A GREAT PERSONAL ESSAY
Four synchronous sessions on Zoom (with asynchronous writing assignments in-between). Writers of all levels welcome, but class is limited to 12. Brought to you by Cleaver Workshops.
October 10, 17, 24, 31 (2021). Sundays 12:00 pm-3:00 pm ET $200 More information and registration here.
THE SHARPEST TOOLS IN THE DRAWER:
Honing Critical Distance in First-Person Narratives: A Masterclass by Cleaver Nonfiction Editor Lise Funderburg.
Four Saturdays on Zoom: April 3, 10, 17, 24 (2021). 12:00pm – 3:00 pm. $200
Class limit: 10
Register here.
(Re)Boot Camp Writing Weekend, With Lise Funderburg
Has the pandemic slowed or stopped your writing? Fear not! This two-part writing workshop offers a generative mix of guidance, accountability, and community designed to jump-start or reinvigorate your practice. We’ll meet on Zoom and mix it up with craft talks, guided writing exercises, and peer review that promises to be focused, friendly, fruitful, and frank.
January 16 & 17, 2021
12:00 PM – 2:30 PM (Eastern)
Limit 9 students [SOLD OUT] $60
For questions or to register: info@lisefunderburg.com.
PAST WORKSHOPS AND CLASSES:
Beyond the ME in Memoir
August 26th, 2020 2 pm EDT
How to Write, Revise, and Publish Your Personal Essays and Memoirs.
Webinar hosted by the Creative Nonfiction Foundation.
If you want to write personal essays and memoir pieces that will engage readers and increase your likelihood of getting published, you’ll need more than a great story to tell.
(UNPAID) (BARELY COERCED) TESTIMONIALS:
“Lise’s Write Your Life workshop provided participants with the right amount of structure, guidance and freedom so that we were able to experiment with seemingly simple prompts and create fun, yet meaningful short pieces of writing. The mood and energy in the room was a nice combination of playfulness, love, kindness and care which made the afternoon a treat and delight.” —Teresa D.
“Lise changed me as a writer, nothing less — such a gifted, insightful teacher/mentor. She engages students of all levels in the literary potential of life experience, the deeper story within us. And her ability to dive right into the interiors of the work — the struggle to express the truth, the humor and the discovery, without guise — is profound. I went to school to study fiction and, in my PAA workshop with Lise, embraced CNF. I’m forever grateful.”—Stacey R.
“Lise is an amazing teacher – patient, constructive and kind. She always had honest and helpful feedback to help me strengthen my voice. In a workshop of diverse backgrounds and personalities, she genuinely cared about each of our stories and gave us the courage to be brave in our writing. I cannot recommend a better workshop than Lise’s! ” —Yeong W.
“I wish I had taken Professor Funderburg’s UPenn class sooner, because it had such a positive impact on the quality of my writing! Through weeks of analysis of well-chosen readings, as well as extensive in-class workshopping and free-writing, my peers and I successfully made our writing stronger, clearer, and more interesting to read. I found her timed free-writing exercises to be particularly useful because they helped shake the feelings of “writer’s block” and gave me some much-needed confidence in my writing abilities (it’s incredible what you can come up with in just ten minutes!). Professor Funderburg is warm, funny, and an incredibly gifted writer herself, making it easy to receive her critiques and use them to improve my work. I only wish I could have taken her class more than once!”—Gen B.
“Lise’s workshop opened the door for me to connect with myself in a new way. Her skill of recognizing and supporting the unique facets of each person’s contributions made for a safe workshop, no matter what level of experience we came in with. The supplemental essays she provided guided me after the workshop to keep my spark of curiosity going about who my own character was and how I might begin putting that down on the page. Thank you for this, Lise!” —Anne J.
“Lise helped me find my voice when I dove into writing to process some difficult and painful life experiences. She patiently walked me through early drafts that read more like diary entries than memoir, and through her wise counsel, I found a road map to give voice to my experience and rediscover the joy of writing. She remains a friend, a mentor, and just about the funniest person I know.”—Powell B.
“Lise knows what it takes to be a successful writer. Her deep knowledge of the industry makes her an invaluable resource. In the 3 months since I began my post-college journalism career, I’ve already relied heavily on the skills I honed in her workshops. I’m thankful for the leg up her lessons have given me in regards to producing my best work and getting published regularly. I strongly recommend studying under Lise to anyone preparing to become a professional writer.” —Corey S-W.
“I finally took Lise’s Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop this past Spring. I have been waiting for an opportunity to take a class with Lise after reading Pig Candy and Black, White, Other . Lise kept the her workshop light, fun and witty and allowed me to explore difficult topics with an openness that I have never felt when writing. She is a such a talented writer and teacher, and above all a phenomenal person. I am glad Lise Funderburg is able offer her talents and experience to aspiring writers like me through her workshops.” —Ebo N.
“Professor Funderburg’s nonfiction writing workshop was one of the best courses I took while at Penn. The class environment was warm and welcoming, which made it easy to write about my life in an honest and candid way. Extremely thorough in-class discussions and meticulous written comments always helped me edit and improve my essays, even when I was out of ideas. With every draft, I made noticeable improvements not only to my assignments but also to my writing craft as a whole. By providing tangible publishing resources and advice, Professor Funderburg also made sure that we would be supported and encouraged in our writing careers even once the class itself was over. I can’t recommend her workshops highly enough! “—Samantha F.
“What sets Lise apart from so many great creative writing teachers is the level of care she puts into editing her student’s work. She’s thorough and constructive, but never takes away from the author’s voice.”—Carolina B.
“I took Prof Funderburg’s Creative Nonfiction class at UPenn through the Quaker Consortium. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Professor Funderburg managed the workshop conversation with ease and humor. She provided detailed and insightful feedback that I still think about today. I wish I could have taken her class more than once.”—Hema S.
“I had never thought myself capable of CNF until I worked with Lise. She teaches her students how to find the stories in their own experiences, and how to tell those stories with a narrative distance and perspective that I had only ever considered when writing fiction. Her insightful feedback and nuggets of wisdom opened up the way I approach writing in all genres, and her above-and-beyond generosity as a mentor has been invaluable to who I’ve become as a writer.”—Amanda B-S.