The Caring Journey ~ Writing for Carers offered via Oyster River Pages.
Dates: Every Tuesday morning from 15th October – 10th December 2024 (there will be a mid-course break for week beginning 11th November) ) for 90 minutes each week 10-11.30am Pacific Time / 6-7.30pm GMT
“Never believe that a few caring people can’t change the world. For, indeed, that’s all who ever have.”
Margaret Mead
Over the course of eight weeks we will weave our way in and out of the path of the carer, the unexpected journey that so many of us are called upon to make. We will do this as we explore various themes around caring via the writing of, amongst others, Charles Dickens, Mary Oliver, Phillip Gross, Sarah Hesketh, Kristin Neff, Brene Brown, Christina Rossetti and Wendell Berry. Each week, there will be writing exercises designed especially for this series, and the opportunity to write in various genres including poetry, fiction, memoir, fantasy, short story. There will be plenty of time for discussion and to share work and get feedback, all within a supportive and friendly environment.
“From caring comes courage.”
Lao Tzu
Aims
- To allow people with caring responsibilities to take some time out for themselves to be creative and expressive.
- To enjoy the process of writing in a supportive, friendly and understanding environment.
- To gain experience and understand the benefits of using writing as a reflective process as part of their own individual caring journey.
- To connect with other people in similar situations, and for them to feel able to share their experiences of writing and caring and have some fun.
Outcomes
- Creative writing drafts in different forms; possible finished pieces, via writing exercises
- Building confidence in creative writing and expression
- Reflection and understanding of what it means to be a carer individually and as a community
- Discussion and conversation each week will foster a sense of community
- Growing confidence in trying out different forms of writing
- Confidence in and ability to share work if desired and to give constructive feedback
Suitable for anyone with caring responsibilities who is interested in writing
Max no. of places = 12
Cost $200 (go to Oyster River Pages to sign up)
Further Info Contact:
Lucy Furlong Tel: 0785 999 761
Or Alaa at ORP: [email protected]
[email protected]
Week 1 (15th October)
Introductions and the Journey – what are we writing for and why does it matter, setting intentions, pathways
Week 2 (22nd October)
Reflecting Autumn / Fall – noticing the season, poetry and letting go
Week 3 (29th October)
Memories – writing memoir/ telling your story, the art of the journal, finding time
Week 4 (5th November)
Remember Remember – making sense of fragments using poetry, making meaning or not
(Mid – course break week beginning Monday 11th November)
Week 5 (19th November)
Take Your Writing For A Walk – the journey in writing, mythical structure, the labyrinth
Week 6 (26th November)
Keep Going – writing as a form of resilience, the comfort of darkness, composting
Week 7 (3rd December)
Great Expectations and A Christmas Carol – writing fictional characters, Dickens, families, writing with nuance and compassion
Week 8 (10th December)
Mid-Winter – getting ready to welcome the return of the light, a celebration of everyone’s writing
“Thanks for a wonderful fortnight of magical wanderings Lucy Furlong! The best way to spend a Thursday evening and so many ideas for creative detours and writing this Autumn. It’s been a pleasure!” – Sue, Art of Psychogeography workshops, 2022
“Thanks so much for the workshop — I really liked it, loved the combination of learning and doing. To my mind, there’s not enough learning in a lot of creative writing workshops, I mean learning about movements/skills/practices, and reflecting on these and I really enjoyed the range you brought in and your reflections on them. I also really like the homework aspect, which I haven’t really had before — very good motivation ! 🙂 ” – Laura, Art of Psychogeography workshops, 2022
“That was a great session this evening, Lucy! You inspired some really creative offerings and lively discussion. Thank you so much. I really think you have lit a spark which could fruitfully be fanned further.” – Patricia, Art of Psychogeography workshops, 2022
“Absolutely breath-taking journey into a world of places and people that I’d never heard of before.” – Maggie
“I loved the source materials and how they all linked in, they really resonated with me. So much there to consider.” – Danielle
“After doing your course I want to focus more on poetry, as you have really encouraged me to take my poetry further. Thank you.” – Louise
“I enjoyed meeting other writers and hearing the work they read out as well as their comments and thoughts.” – Janet
Previous workshops
I hope you will join me for two ‘Wintering’ workshops on Sundays 10th and 17th December.
Cost: £10 per workshop
Online via Zoom
Sundays 10th and 17th December – 8pm to 9:15pm
The Oxford English Dictionary defines Wintering from c. 1384:
But since that long long time ago it has taken on other meanings. This piece of writing from Kinsfolk struck home for me:
“Wintering takes its cue not from the social world, but from nature. There, life withdraws during the cold months, conserving energy and preparing for regeneration. It is also a very quiet season. In a snowy field, the sound of a crow landing in an elm may be the loudest thing heard for hours. We all need such a place, from time to time: a place in which there is nothing to hear but ourselves.”
The sun is setting on this year, and we are at its darkest point. In these two workshops we will read some ‘wintering’ writing and have a chance to look back at the year and see what it has given us to take into the next, and what we can leave behind.
We will have time for some writing, reflection and discussion. This will be a space for some winter warmth and to plant some seeds of intention for the new year.
Join me!
Lucy xx
Email me to book or for further information:
Contact [email protected] or
[email protected]
THE ART OF PSYCHOGEOGRAPHY CREATIVE WRITING WORKSHOP.
Thursday, 22 September 2022, 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
with Lucy Furlong
Online via Zoom
£35.00 – Purchase tickets here
Please note that this workshop is being held in two sessions: Thursday 22 September and Thursday 29 September, from 7:00-9:00pm BST. Ticket sales for this workshop close on 22 September.
This creative writing workshop will use Lucy Furlong’s poetry map, Amniotic City, a psychogeographic poetry map of part of the City of London around Fleet Street and Ludgate Hill, as well as various writing exercises and discussion as a springboard for looking at ways to engage with places to elucidate meaning, create new connections, and transform (or transmute!) experience creatively. Participants will be encouraged to visualise places that appeal to them, to think about what it means to encounter a place and how this experience can be used to create meaning. This workshop will not be recorded.
Winter Warmer Workshops 2021.
These workshops, which I ran for the first time in 2020, were the best thing I did last year. I got to know and work with some lovely people, who joined in with the writing exercises, discussion of the readings and artists we looked at each week. We got to know each other over the eight weeks, and it was great fun, so I’m doing it again, once more via Zoom.
Designed to see us through the dark nights of November and December, each week there will be a different theme. We’ll explore different genres of writing, writing exercises, discussion, opportunities for reading and feedback of each other’s work and more.
Even though we are a year on, and society has opened up, many of us will still be staying inside, socially distancing and looking for community, as we move through the last quarter of another challenging year. I know I will be, which is partly why I thought this might appeal to people who would normally get together around a table in a cafe or pub, to share ideas about writing and try things out.
I can’t run workshops like this at the moment, which is how I normally do it – and how I would prefer to meet everyone. The joy of offering workshops online is that we can still meet up and do the writing and have the fun, and we can do it from wherever we are in the world – which is amazing.
The idea behind the ‘Winter Warmer’ aspect is to take us through these dark, damp nights, with reading, writing and discussion to keep us going. Creative prompts and thinking to inspire us to write. All of which will take place around our own virtual fire, where we can share stories and have a laugh together.
Each week is a 90 minute workshop, with a presentation, writing exercises, time for feedback and discussion. All in a friendly virtual space on Zoom.
Designed for keen writers working at all levels, we will try out all kinds of writing in a constructive and supportive atmosphere. You will also have a chance to send me a piece of your work, generated from the workshop each week, for written feedback, if you would like to do so.
Waking Up – A Writing Workshop for Brigid’s Day – Online Via Zoom.
Come and celebrate the First Stirrings of Spring with a workshop about Brigid’s Day, also known as St Brigid’s Day, Imbolc and Candlemas.
We will explore the ancient Celtic festival that takes place traditionally on the 1st of February, and meet Brigid, the Celtic goddess of inspiration, poetry and much else, as well as St Brigid of Kildare, an early Christian saint and one of the patron saints of Ireland.
This is the time of year when we start to see snowdrops, maybe a primrose or two, and possibly buds on trees – new life is coming, the land is waking up.
We’ll think about Brigid, Imbolc, the seasons and rhythms of the year in relation to writing, and there will be several writing exercises to try. These will allow you to explore various forms and processes for invigorating your work, whether you are interested in poetry, flash fiction, short stories or novel writing.
The aim of the writing exercises is to inspire and energise but also to give you a chance to think about the direction your work might take this year.
I’ve always found this time of year to be perfect for getting projects going, germinating those thought seeds stored from the dark winter months.