Creativity and Wellbeing Week

New WordWell Workshops are planned for London Creativity and Wellbeing Week which takes place from 5 - 12th June 2015.

The first, Words for Life, is on Friday 5th June with colleague Charmaine Pollard, at the Poetry Cafe near Covent Garden in London. This workshop will look at fun ways we can increase our resilience and confidence using writing.

The Writing in Nature workshop is on Wednesday, 10th June between 10.30 and 12.30pm, in the Fulham Palace Walled Garden.  This is a natural space tucked away between the Thames and the Fulham Palace Road. "Are we in the country?" a child from a school in the centre of London asked when he visited recently for a story writing workshop. It's true. The garden feels a million miles away from inner city stress, even though it's in the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham.

This workshop is an opportunity to be in nature and to use the sights, sounds, smells and feeling of the garden as inspiration for writing. We'll have use of a room in the Education Centre (the old stable block) so even if it's raining we can still write!

writing and nature have health and wellbeing benefits

Latest news from Lapidus: The Writing for Wellbeing Organisation

It was Lapidus: The Writing for Wellbeing Organisation's 2014 AGM on 29th November and the room was alive with energy and positivity from Lapidus members passionate about writing and words for wellbeing.

It's been a challenging year for Lapidus and as Chair I'm pleased to report the organisation is now solvent and stabilised. 

Member numbers continue to grow but as all funds derive from membership we need to look for other sources of funding too. This is one of the challenges for the coming year. Another is to ensure a place for Lapidus and writing & words for wellbeing on the National Wellbeing Agenda. Over the next few months the Lapidus Board will be looking at ways to promote Lapidus as the 'go to' organisation for writing and words for wellbeing.

Earlier in November I attended the National Association of Writers in Education (NAWE) Conference in Bristol. This was an inspiring  event with workshops and seminars from 9am to 9pm. 

Roger McGough and Deborah Moggach were both interesting and hilarious. I learned about notebook poems, lines as inspiration, celebrating mother tongues, poetry improvisation, wild writing and creative approaches to change and renewal. 

Lapidus is a partner organisation with NAWE and holds an annual joint Writing Retreat at Ty Newydd, North Wales. Next year it will take place from Monday, April 6th - Saturday April 11th, 2015. I'm happy to be co-hosting with NAWE's Liz Cashdan. There will also be a guest workshop from Jill Teague entitled, Treading Softly - Writing in Nature.  

Writing Workshops at the Mint House Book Shop

Autumn is a time of change and opportunity... 

We are excited to be holding FOUR WRITING WORKSHOPS 
at The Mint House Book Shop 
94 High Street, Hurstpierpoint, West Sussex, BN6 9PX

INSPIRATIONS and POSSIBILITIES 

writing from the season, senses and the self

Thursdays 16th, 23rd, 30th Oct and 6 Nov 
7 - 8.30pm 
£60 
with poet Charles Antony

To book a place email Christine at: writewordwell@gmail.com or contact Charles on: 01293 519688 

Here are my new Write 2Be Me postcard flyers. They highlight the different ways Write 2Be Me can be used in school and the results. Just look at those happy sunflower faces! There's also a quote from a student and teacher there too.

The artwork is by Jim Browne of Doodling Jim. He's an excellent illustrator and very versatile as you'll see by the range of work on his website at Doodlingjim.com.

Thanks to Colourfast Brighton for a good deal on printing!

Come On In, The Water's Lovely

The other week I dipped my toes into Brighton radio - on the Paul Stones InBrighton on Mondays show for Radio Reverb, Brighton's local station. I felt a bit nervous as I approached the basement entrance of Reverb HQ, off the New Steine, that chilly March Monday. 

Paul opened the door and led the way along a dark corridor to the studio.
Sue Bartlett from Rottingdean Writers group was already there in front of a large microphone. Paul put his headphones on and I sat down next to Sue. We exchanged greetings and chatted politely. I looked through the notes on my lap. I'd made a list of things I wanted to mention - my workshops, the benefits of writing, the link between writing, health and wellbeing, Lapidus - the writing for wellbeing organisation. Just then the door opened and Pete Sanders, from Coastway Hospital Radio arrived and the seductively inviting, intro music was playing. It was 5 O' clock and we were on air! 

Like many things, it wasn't half as gruelling as I thought it would be. Thanks to Paul and Pete for their gentle interviewing technique. And to Sue with her excellent cache of stories. I've just got round to listening to it and after my initial embarrassment realised I'd mentioned most of the things on my list. I didn't realise how many times I'd said Ummm - that was a surprise!

Despite this, the lovely Pete invited us to Coastway the following Sunday. This was a wonderful experience with Pete and Ruth, who host a regular Sunday morning programme for people in hospital, complete with quizzes! 

I even got to read a poem. It's National Poetry Writing Month  and I was inspired by a friend who told me there is a planet made of water. Apparently he'd heard about it on the radio.

Here's the Reverb show and the poem too:  

Thought Bubbles

They've found a planet
made of water,
like a great big bubble
suspended in sky.
I wonder what it would be like 
to land on?
Or bump into - 

like a bouncy castle
or those balls you squish for stress?
Perhaps you'd bounce right off it 
into space,
or fall into it
and it would fold around you,
like a lovely big hug.   

Christine Hollywood, April 2014