Lane Michael Stanley(he/they): is a transgender writer and filmmaker whose work explores queerness, class, restorative justice, grief, and healing. His writing has appeared/is forthcoming in Prairie Schooner, Electric Literature, The Rumpus, Foglifter, Brevity, and elsewhere. Lane’s films and plays have been presented by 35 film festivals and 21 theaters in 25 states and four countries, and shown in soup kitchens, meditation gardens, addiction treatment centers, and San Quentin State Prison. He holds an MFA from UT Austin. Lane is currently hard at work on a novel and a memoir, both of which explore the healing and liberatory powers of BDSM. www.lanemichaelstanley.com.
Memoir in Community: Navigating Relationships With The Real-Life People in Your Writing with Lane Michael Stanley
Begins January 20, 2026
Writers are often advised to write creative nonfiction and autofiction as though no one will ever read the result. This is a crucial part of the process: we need time and space to carve out our own truths without worry. But as we move toward publication, how might our thinking about the people who appear in our writing shift?
Memoir in Community seeks to fill a critical gap in our literary conversations and help writers of creative nonfiction and autofiction to develop their own value systems in how they approach the people they are writing about. The toolkit of reflective questions offered in this course stems from instructor Lane Michael Stanley’s experience navigating complex relational needs, trauma, and accountability from his work in restorative justice and his life as a polyamorous person.
Rather than forwarding any particular ethos, this class will help writers to determine what is important to them and provide them with questions and frameworks to decide if and when they approach their real-life characters on a case by case basis. This three-session class will include lecture, examples, reading, reflective prompts, and breakout groups, with the objective of writers leaving the class feeling more empowered to make decisions around how to communicate about their creative nonfiction or autofiction practice.
WHEN and HOW: This collaboration will run for three weeks on Zoom.
DATES:Three Tuesdays beginning January 20th at 7pm EST/4pm PST.
1/20, 1/27, 2/3
Class runs Tuesdays, 7pm-9pm EST/4pm-6pm PST
COST:$225-350 (sliding scale—please read below)
Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) Suggested Cost:
To create intentional space and support for BIPOC attendees, we ask that you pay in light of your financial privileges and with a JEDI spirit (!)
Here are a few guidelines:
$350 – you have reliable sources of food, shelter, and transportation; are employed or financially secure; have regular access to healthcare and savings; can spend recreationally at your discretion (e.g. enjoy a concert, new clothes, a great meal). Paying the full amount also means you are able to support a BIPOC writer with limited resources who would like to join this course.
$275 – you have debt that sometimes compromises stability with food, shelter, and/or transportation; are employed; have some access to healthcare and savings; can spend recreationally.
$250 – you are under- or unemployed and/or for other reasons (e.g. healthcare, shelter expenses), you have very limited resources.
Contact us anya@weareurbanhaiku.com if you cannot afford to pay full price but would like to discuss payment plans, work-exchange/trade opportunities, or other options.
