What Others Are Saying

Easy to Follow

Noma Dek

"I'm impressed with your lessons and how you structured them. You made it super easy to follow by giving me bite size content. It's not overwhelming. It's like wanting to bake a cake and then knowing exactly what ingredients to put in the cake and having a recipe. That's what this feels like."

Great for Beginners

Kahli Bree Adams

"Being new to the genre of non-fiction and personal essays, Kelly's experience and input have been invaluable. She's made me look at aspects and examine details I might not have otherwise thought of, and she was happy to provide extra information beyond the course material. Thank you, Kelly!"

A Course with a Personal Touch

Ash Jurberg

"I have looked at many online courses and too many of them seem impersonal and lacking value. From the moment you join, Kelly takes pride in making you the best writer you can be. Her care and personal touch are what sets this course apart from the many others you may have seen. So stop reading this testimonial and sign up!

For Any Level

Teresa Douglas

"This is an invaluable course whether you’re an experienced writer new to the form or a brand new writer looking for foundational skills. Kelly explains what a personal essay is clearly, leading you through lectures and exercises, leaving you with a solid foundation in the form. I learned a lot and really enjoyed the class."

Personal essays that inspire and move readers?

Learn how to go from diary entry to read-worthy story

Feel like your life is too boring? No way! A well-told story can be about doing the dishes. You don't need drama to write a great personal essay. Your life is interesting enough and I know you've got stories to tell. There are editors and readers wanting to read the stories only you can tell. What are you waiting for?

Ready to Write

  • Access Your Memories

    The two-part workbook will help you unlock memories and get your ideas flowing.

  • Empowered to write

    At the end, you won't just have passively absorbed information, you will have written your own Personal Essay, and finish with the tools and confidence to write more.

  • Fits Into Your Busy Life

    Instead of sitting through hours of recorded information like other courses, the Personal Essay Workshop is delivered in teachable bites which you immediately apply to your own writing.

  • One-on-one

    As a writer's coach, I am by your side as you write your own essay and provide detailed feedback at the end. I'm only an email away.

Affordable Price

Because creativity should be accessible

Reviews

5 star rating

Fantastic Personal Essay Course!

Katrina Paulson

Wow. I'm so impressed with Kelly Eden's personal essay writing course. She provides you with what you need to get started on writing personal essays. From le...

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Wow. I'm so impressed with Kelly Eden's personal essay writing course. She provides you with what you need to get started on writing personal essays. From learning about structure, breaking down examples, and an incredibly useful workbook I'll return to again and again. I especially enjoy the mixture between reading and videos which kept me engaged and the information feeling fresh. Personal Essays are a powerful way for us to learn from each other and grow as individuals. After taking this course I'm excited to explore the immense possibilities I can create as a writer. I can't recommend it enough.

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5 star rating

A must-take for all aspiring writers!

Joe Donan

Kelly Eden's introduction to writing personal essays is a straight-to-the-point and certainly easy to understand course for all those considering a career in...

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Kelly Eden's introduction to writing personal essays is a straight-to-the-point and certainly easy to understand course for all those considering a career in writing. With a comprehensive combination of audio-visual material and a detailed explanation by Kelly, this course is guaranteed to point emerging authors in the right direction!

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5 star rating

Just What I Need In a Writing Course--Innovative, Practic...

Aimee Gramblin

As a writer, I know and appreciate that my skill always has room to grow. Although I have a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in English, I continue to love lea...

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As a writer, I know and appreciate that my skill always has room to grow. Although I have a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in English, I continue to love learning. For this reason, I’ve been delighted to find Kelly Eden who has come to be a mentor of mine. She has been working as a professional writer for over 12 years and has designed the Inspired Nonfiction Academy for people interested in writing personal essays. The course is jam-packed with content, from essays Kelly has pulled from The New Yorker, “Modern Love” in the New York Times, Medium, and other literary journals. Reading helps inspire us to craft our own stories and Kelly knows this. Her course videos are warm and inviting. She is a wealth of knowledge and shares that with us. For example, she breaks down the formula structure many “Modern Love” stories. This is something I’d not noticed and will now implement into my revisions of some personal essays. Kelly also focuses on idea mining with many prompts to help students create a log of ideas to later turn into potential essays. The prompts and questions she gives have helped me bring up memories that had long been forgotten. The workbook she provides is wonderful. I also appreciate the list of Universal Themes Kelly provides. I’ll be revisiting this often. In summary, Kelly Eden’s Inspired Nonfiction Academy is inspired and I highly recommend it.

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5 star rating

This is my second time doing this course and am thankful ...

Noma Dek

I appreciate the layout, the quizzes that help confirm that I understood the principles, the examples of personal essays range from a variety of experiences ...

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I appreciate the layout, the quizzes that help confirm that I understood the principles, the examples of personal essays range from a variety of experiences and I enjoyed the example of the 4 step narrative from an actual essay. This is a great investment. I look forward to the new additions.

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5 star rating

Excellent Introductory Personal Essay Course

Jodi Urgitus

This is a great course to begin your journal into writing personal essays. This class breaks down the logistical side of writing and also gives the student p...

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This is a great course to begin your journal into writing personal essays. This class breaks down the logistical side of writing and also gives the student plenty of opportunity to apply these concepts. Kelly is an experienced and valuable resource and can help any level of writer become better. Her feedback is specific, logical and encouraging. I highly recommend this course to anyone who likes to write!!

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5 star rating

Learning how to dig deep with Kelly Eden

Scot Butwell

Writing a personal essay is more complicated than it looks. How do you go from the personal experience and zoom out to the universal? Kelly walks you through...

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Writing a personal essay is more complicated than it looks. How do you go from the personal experience and zoom out to the universal? Kelly walks you through these situations and helps you understand these issues with her teaching and wonderful examples of personal essays.

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Meet Your Instructor

Writing Coach

Kelly Eden

Hi! I've been fortunate enough to make writing my career for more than 14 years now. I've worked with clients, writers, and editors from all around the world and have been featured in Insider, Yahoo!Life, Apple News Spotlight, Mamamia Australia, Scary Mommy, Thought Catalog, Zoosk, Highly Sensitive Refuge, and many more. My personal essays have won awards and brought me consistent commissioned work. With a background in teaching and a love of writing, it's my mission to inspire others to find their unique writing voice. I'm looking forward to working together!

Kelly's personal essays are published in:

Insider
Memoir Monday
Mamamia
Scary Mommy
Thought Catalog
Highly Sensitive Refuge
Yahoo!Life
Your Tango

FAQ

  • Can I only access this course for a limited time?

    How does unlimited access to the videos and content for the self-paced online course sound? You can go back and re-watch whenever you need a reminder. The feedback portion of the course is only delivered on ONE essay. But you can re-watch the lessons as many times as you like.

  • What if I am not satisfied with the course?

    I'd never want that to happen. It's my mission to empower you with the knowledge you need to be an inspired writer. However, you can contact me in the first 30 days for your money back.

  • How does feedback work?

    You can choose to have feedback whenever you wish. Just send your story (up to 2000 words) in an email to me when you're ready and I will send you back encouraging notes and tips for improvements. There's no time limit, even if it takes you a few months to finish!

Course curriculum

  • 1

    Part One: Introducing the Personal Essay

    • Start Here: Welcome to the Personal Essay Course

    • Introducing the Personal Essay

    • Quiz: What is a Personal Essay?

    • Learn by example: Course Reading Materials

  • 2

    Part Two: Structuring Your Essay

    • Get Writing: A Modern Love Case Study on Structure

    • Why is structure important?

    • Modern Love Story Analysis

    • Final Note: Getting Feedback

    • End of Course Survey