AustLit

'Autoethnographic memoirs as a genre form part of the experience economy, and as an art form are also spiritually anchored to storytelling’s role in forming community. In the contemporary university and elsewhere, however, accounting systems for productivity do not always nurture or are able to calculate the value of abstract forms of mentorship afforded by the simple act of sharing story. Shared reflexivity about practice – such as storytelling – is essential to Creative Writing pedagogy because it allows congenial opportunities for formative development of emerging writers. This essay argues for the simple importance of mentorship through shared, spoken stories – micro-memoirs – of ‘the writing life’ to the work of fostering systems of belief in emerging writers. Such sharing develops trust and conviction which in turn promotes a professional commitment to the Creative Industries. Autoethnographic revelations of the practitioner-teacher in the creative workshop – through acts of disclosure exploring the complex ways of ‘becoming a writer’ – thus constitute a significant form of knowledge transfer. '  (Publication abstract)