BLOOD/INK/BONE
a holistic writing course designed for hobbyists to bring fearless joy and confidence back to their craft.
BLOOD/INK/BONE is a unique eight-month course that meets monthly for live virtual lectures followed by interactive question and answer sessions between student and teacher. There is NO workshopping, NO in-class writing exercise component, and NO reading aloud. The material you learn in B/I/B is for you to apply to your own writing at your own pace. You can purchase the whole eight-month course as a unit OR buy individual classes that suit your interests. If you cannot attend live lectures, every class will be recorded and made available for replay to enrolled students.
The live, ongoing version of BLOOD/INK/BONE has an optional social aspect in an effort to foster a writing community. If students choose, they will be added to a small group chat of writing peers so that they can trade works and offer critiques to one another. For those who are interested in the course material of BLOOD/INK/BONE but not the social aspect or the interactive Q&A sessions, you can also purchase the class recordings from last year (2024) at a discounted price.
In addition to BLOOD/INK/BONE, this year Phoenix will be offering monthly standalone classes on a variety of subjects and genres beginning in January of 2025! Though BLOOD/INK/BONE’S material will be a helpful foundation for attending, it is not necessary to be enrolled in or have completed BLOOD/INK/BONE to purchase these standalone classes. See the shop for a complete list.
BLOOD/INK/ BONE SYLLABUS
March
WELCOME
- BLOOD/INK/BONE: writing as a holistic practice
- radical self-responsibility vs. safe spaces
- syllabus overview
- goal setting
April
FROM IDEAS TO STORIES
- world building
- outlines and plot
- keeping momentum
- writing hygiene
- characterization, dialogue, pacing
and more
May
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE ft. Dr. Kaylie Allen
- what makes a good simile/metaphor?
- showing vs. telling
- sensory writing/reader immersion
- Repetition is Holy
and more
June
DEVELOPING A DISTINCT VOICE
- writing with style
- purple vs. poetic
- unreliable narrators: how to separate the character from the author
and more
July
EROTICA
- writing as an embodiment practice
- how to convey intimacy
- disgust as sensuality
- broad strokes vs. honed-in proximity
- building tension
- avoiding play-by-play choreography
and more
August
COMBATING WRITER'S BLOCK
- how to cope with feeling stuck
- sketches vs. finished works
- short writing exercises
- fresh starts and old haunts: when it's time to start something new or dust something off
and more
September
EDITING, REVISION, AND FINISHING WORKS ft. Jennifer Stout, professional editor
- ditching perfectionism
- summing up cohesive themes
- longer pieces vs. shorter pieces
- moving from piece to piece
- maintaining writing as a practice, not a means to an end
and more
October
SELF PUBLISHING ft. Sierra J. Meril AND TRAD PUBLISHING ft. Lanchi Le
- indie publishing
- self publishing
- editing to publish
- adapting fanfic to original works: why filing the serial numbers off doesn't work
- fanfic process vs. original process
and more
LECTURERS
Phoenix Mendoza developed BLOOD/INK/BONE after witnessing many of her peers fall victim to creative blocks induced by respectability politics, cultural surveillance, and unrelenting self-criticism. She hopes every writer learns to kill the cop in their heads and embrace being the most unpalatable and unapologetic version of themselves. She enjoys weird gross art about weird gross women.
Dr. Kaylie Allen invented fanfiction at church camp when she was 13 years old. No, really. Since then, she’s realized she’s not the only person who wants to see her favorite band members kiss—or who finds tremendous value in the transformative queerness and community provided by fanworks. She exclusively writes unmarketable, unsellable stories and has been a daily hobbyist writer since before she actually knew the alphabet. Her writing is feverish, romantic, drippingly purple, and moderately popular in very specific corners of the internet. By day, she is a doctor of psychology, therapist, and academic and community educator. She has three cats, and they’re all named after Star Trek characters.
Lanchi Le is a non-binary butch lesbian and first generation Vietnamese American. They are a 2022 Lambda Literary Fellow and a Writers House Intern Autumn 23’. They started writing as early as elementary school and one of their earliest fanfiction moments was hand-writing a Danny Phantom fanfic in the fifth grade and passing it around to their classmates (because they're also a confident Sagittarius and cringe doesn't exist in their vocab.)They are currently revising a gay adult fantasy novel inspired by Vietnamese culture and Buddhist folklore and work part-time as a bookseller. In their free time, they enjoy drawing, watching anime, playing video games, and annoying their cats.
Jen Stout is a professional editor who loves to read and edit fan fiction on the side for fun. Having read all kinds of work in all kinds of genres, she has an eye and an ear for the dots that writers might miss--and a love for cheering from the sidelines (god bless the comments field of the average google doc).
Sierra J. Meril has won multiple honorable mentions from L.Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future for her stories: Roses and Thorns, The Day the Dragon Left, and The Curse of the Wanderer Inn. A lover of myths and folklore, their writing often includes fated mates, collaring kinks and dragons. When not writing or reading, they can be found journaling to metal music, eating ice cream or plotting what new tattoo to get. They are attempting to live the life of a hobbit in SoCal with her husband and their corgi named after a Lord of the Rings character.
TESTIMONIALS
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Before I began taking Phoenix's BLOOD/INK/BONE classes, I was inspired by the mastery of her writing. Her works showed me the power and passion that stories could carry, and the beauty that could be revealed through carefully crafted prose. I'm happy to say that her classes were just as motivating and powerful as her storytelling. First and foremost, Phoenix's approach to her students is attentive, compassionate, and entirely individual– she went out of her way to speak to us one on one, and even to give feedback on our projects. During the course, I had a brainstorming session with her over Zoom, and our discussion was electric. She understood my themes, my characters, and my goals for my stories with startling intuition, and helped me discover the best path forward for the stories I wanted to tell. Secondly, her classes were welcoming, well-structured, and easy to engage with. She made sure everyone in class had the freedom to express themselves without judgment, and she always explained the material clearly and with delightful enthusiasm. She sent helpful exercises, resources, and the recorded videos through email in accordance with each lesson. Finally, the material itself was invigorating, fostering creativity and determination– during Phoenix's class I wrote more than I had in years, and her invaluable advice and guiding personal experience helped me to develop a writing process that embraced my neurodivergent way of thinking, instead of stifling it. I would recommend this class to anyone that wants to revitalize their love of storytelling. Phoenix will embolden you to write what you want to write, with your own extraordinary voice, so that writing will never be a drudgery, but always an act of self-love.
Ari
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would highly recommend this class to anyone who is interested in exploring their own potential as a writer! Even though I've been unable to attend the classes live, I get so much out of each lecture. It's a great option for anyone interested in asynchronous learning. I find that I can take the classes at my own pace and on my schedule while still feeling like I have a community I can lean on. Each class is filled with so much actionable advice that I had to pace myself to absorb all the tips, tricks and advice. I also find myself going back and listening to lectures over again so I can reconnect with those important learnings. I am taking this class at a slowed down pace, but it's been transformative. I truly feel myself growing as a writer and that's just the most wonderful feeling.
Hemal
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I was so appreciative for the opportunity and space to dive into my writing, and to think more about the holisitc experience of creating. The course content was exactly what I wanted and the experiential exercises were exactly what I needed. It was motivating, rewarding, and fulfilling, and I still find myself remembering and reflecting on parts of it regularly. When I was able to attend live, it was a fun and welcoming environment, and even when I wasn't, I kept up through the quickly available recordings. Phoenix is amazing and this course is a gift. If you're on the fence, I invite and encourage you to do it! It is one of the best things, in quality, value, and general awesomeness, that I've done!
Ashley
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BloodInkBone is the best gift I could have given myself and the first writing course that has actually helped and encouraged my creative drive. Phoenix is an amazingly articulate teacher and she manages to create a relaxed and comfortable environment where you feel welcome and safe to express yourself if you want to; and never ever judged or pressured. Every lecture feels like a meeting with a friend who is not only knowledgeable, but really passionate about writing. Also, the writing advice in BloodInkBone is insanely helpful (and realistic!) and all the exercises are well thought out. Phoenix is a teacher who understands that every writer is different and that creating, while not being easy, should be a joyful process. Amazing experience overall.
Ria
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I recently completed the BloodInkBone writing course and can’t say enough about Phoenix's personable, raw, and down-to-earth approach. The meticulously crafted eight-month program proved to be invaluable. Each lesson, thoughtfully designed to delve into the essence of impactful prose, incorporated not only writing exercises but also innovative somatic techniques. The course's depth has left me eager to enroll in the next one, and I wholeheartedly recommend it to any aspiring writer.
Nat
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An aspect I love about BLOOD/INK/BONE has been making my work distinct from generic writing. I've always known how to write, to put words on paper. What I didn't know was how to put myself on paper. Phoenix does an amazing job at teaching me how to make my stories sound like me!
Merc