Postcards Home:
A six-part self-paced study in life writing with Award-Winning Author Huma Qureshi
Postcards Home
A six-part self-paced study in life writing
Pay attention to yourself — to the objects, memories and small details that make up your everyday life — because it’s often these quiet moments that help us tell our stories.
Postcards Home is a gentle, six-part self-paced study for anyone who wants to write personal stories and memories in a way that feels natural, playful and unforced.
This is not a course about writing a full memoir from start to finish. Instead, it’s a place to begin — a way of gathering material, noticing what stays with you, and learning how to write from your own life without pressure or overwhelm.
Through a series of thoughtfully written essays and light writing invitations, you’ll be guided towards writing small pieces — fragments, vignettes, snapshots — that can later grow into blog posts, personal essays, songs, or something larger if you wish.
You can move through this study quietly and independently, returning to it whenever you need. There are no deadlines, no sharing, and no expectation of output.
This study is for you if:
you’ve always wanted to write about your life, but haven’t known where to begin
you want to capture moments from your past or present before they slip away
you love reading memoir and personal essays
you see writing as a creative practice rather than a performance
you enjoy working gently, at your own pace
you’re looking for something thoughtful, inspiring and non-prescriptive
No previous writing experience is required.
What you’ll explore
Across six parts, you’ll be invited to:
pay closer attention to memory and detail
notice the texture of everyday life
write in small, manageable forms
gather material without pressure
develop confidence in your own voice
build a personal catalogue of moments you can return to again and again
By the end, you won’t have “completed” anything in a traditional sense — but you will have begun. And beginning is often the most important part.
The six parts
On postcards; or staying in touch
On looking backwards in order to look forwards.Mini-memories, in note form
On the writer’s art of noticing and keeping notes.The little things
On learning to observe detail and bring writing alive.A life lived in pictures
On focus, perspective, and what sits just outside the frame.The beauty of the ordinary
On giving yourself permission to write about everyday life.Onwards
From fragments and vignettes towards essays, blogs, books — if you choose.
How it works
This is a self-paced study
After purchase, you’ll receive immediate access to a downloadable PDF
You can read it on any device and return to it whenever you like
The study is designed to sit alongside your life, not compete with it.
A note from me
I created Postcards Home as something to return to — like a small, personal retreat. A way of reminding yourself why writing matters, and how much pleasure there can be in paying attention to your own life.
It’s meant to feel like a treat. Something you open quietly, without pressure, and let work on you in its own time.
What readers have said
“Postcards Home felt gentle, entirely manageable, yet profound. A real pleasure to read.”
— Annabel
“I’ve fallen back in love with writing again.”
— Faye
“It gave me permission to explore feeling in my work. Quite a revelation.”
— Anne
Price
Postcards Home is available as a self-paced study for £149.
One-time payment. Instant access.
What you’ll take from this study
As you move through Postcards Home, you’ll be invited to slow down and pay closer attention to your own life — past and present — and to explore it on the page with curiosity rather than pressure.
You may find that you:
develop a clearer sense of what life writing can be, and what it can hold
begin to trust that your own experiences are worth writing about
feel more connected to your memories and the parts of your life that stay with you
rediscover moments from your past and notice your present more closely
approach writing with greater ease, curiosity and imagination
feel more confident about where and how to begin
gather a set of gentle, playful ways into writing that help you move past hesitation
become more attentive to detail and texture in everyday life
build a personal collection of fragments, vignettes and memories you can return to and expand later — as essays, blog posts, or something larger if you choose
There’s no requirement to turn this material into a finished piece. What matters is that you begin to notice, record, and trust what emerges.
‘Postcards Home felt gentle, entirely manageable, yet profound. It was a real pleasure to read the essays each week, which were themselves so beautifully crafted, and also so full of nuggets of inspiration and wisdom.’
—Annabel
Why Take This Course with Me
“Qureshi’s writing is so frank and clear-eyed that I felt like I was sitting opposite her, being told her story.”
— Laura Pearson, author of I Wanted You To Know
I began my life-writing journey as a journalist, writing first-person pieces for publications including The Guardian, The Observer, The Times, Psychologies, Red and Harper’s Bazaar. I now write books and teach writing, with a particular interest in helping people approach their own stories with confidence and care.
My memoir, How We Met: A Memoir of Love and Other Misadventures, was published to critical acclaim in 2021, shortlisted for the Books Are My Bag Awards and chosen as one of Stylist’s best non-fiction picks of the year. I’ve taught life-writing workshops with Guardian Masterclasses, hosted a personal writing expert hour with the London Writers’ Salon, and worked with organisations including The Arvon Foundation and CBC Creative.
Before I was published, I took many writing courses myself. Often, I felt self-conscious and constrained by rigid exercises, formulaic prompts, and the pressure to share work before I was ready. When I began designing my own studies, I knew I wanted them to feel different — quieter, more spacious, and rooted in curiosity rather than instruction.
Postcards Home was created with that in mind. It’s designed to be something you return to for pleasure, not obligation. There’s no private social media group, no deadlines, and no expectation to share your work.
Instead, this study is an invitation to reconnect with writing for its own sake — to notice your life more closely, to write with attention and care, and to begin gently. My hope is that, as you move through Postcards Home, you feel yourself unfurl little by little, and experience the quiet excitement of realising you’re ready to write the story only you can tell.
What my students are saying
‘I just wanted to say thank you for Postcards Home. I write for a living but this course has inspired me to write with a different perspective and one that has inspired me so much, I’ve fallen back in love with writing again. Thank you. ’
— Faye
‘Postcards Home was the best decision of my life. Your course was lovely, light and a wonderful way to ease into writing. I’ve always been afraid to pursue writing and believe I can really do it. I’ve been plagued with self doubt and fear of vulnerability but your course gave me the courage to just do it, so thank you.’
— Laura
‘Postcards Home is an absolute delight! It is a course you can take your time with, and I really didn’t feel the pressure I sometimes feel with courses or the anxiety of not being able to keep up when life gets in the way. I have been enjoying collecting my little snippets of memories and observations and have been really surprised at how easy it is once you start to really notice the world around you.’
— Terri
‘Thank you so much for your writing course. I have enjoyed it so much that I am going to repeat it! As a former journalist I was trained to keep emotion out of my work and deal only with facts. You have given me permission to explore feeling in my work. Quite a revelation.’
— Anne
‘I have been taking your class Postcards Home and I really enjoyed it. I am a songwriter, and I hadn’t written a new song in six months. Since starting Postcards Home, I’ve written three new songs. Thank you.’
— Anne S
‘The essays are so thoughtfully written and beautiful. Very inspiring, and such a comfort.’
— Sophie
‘Postcards Home felt gentle, entirely manageable, yet profound. It was a real pleasure to read the essays each week, which were themselves so beautifully crafted, and also so full of nuggets of inspiration and wisdom. And I've loved the daily writing practice, which I'm going to continue, as it's very doable and also seems to open me up to different parts of my brain and memories. Since the course began, I've started a Substack: even though I already had a monthly newsletter, the way I'm writing has definitely shifted, which I no doubt owe to the course!’
— Annabel
‘I'm loving the course - while I write for a living, it's been so lovely looking at more personal writing and the attention to detail/creativity I've explored here has been such a nice thing to do outside of work.’
— Kat
‘I can’t tell you how much I’ve loved this course. It’s pure magic. It feels so special to capture memories I thought I’d long forgotten. Thank you so much!’
— Laionie
Price: £149
One-time payment. Access whenever you need it.
FAQs
How much does Postcards Home cost?
£149 as a one-time payment.
There are no payment plans for this study.
How do I access the study?
After purchase, you’ll receive immediate access to a downloadable PDF by email. You can read it on any device and return to it whenever you like.
Is this a live course?
No. Postcards Home is a self-paced study.
There are no live classes, no schedule, and no deadlines. You move through it in your own time.
How long do I have access?
You’ll have ongoing access to the PDF
I’ve written a memoir. Will you read it?
Though I do read work and mentor writers through creative writing schools, I am unable to do so on spec due to my own writing commitments. From time to time, I take on writing mentees. Subscribing to my newsletter, Dear Huma, is the best way to find out when these places are being released.
Terms and conditions: online courses are non-refundable
Price: £149
One-time payment. Access whenever you need it.