create-write-connect is Spread the Word’s campaign to offer free writing activity during these unprecedented, difficult times. As part of this, we are offering two free writing courses via email. We are thrilled that poet, therapist and facilitator Jasmine Cooray is leading one of these for us.
What is Connecting With Your Creativity?
6 weekly offerings of creative resources and stimuli to support gentle and deepening connection with your creative writing, including audio-recordings and a combination of open prompts and structured exercises. This sequence aims to support a relaxed relationship with creativity and will incorporate some mindfulness principles to aid this.
About Jasmine Cooray
Jasmine Cooray is a poet, integrative counsellor and facilitator from London.
What can you expect?
Each week you’ll receive an email with a set of different exercises to try out, with a slightly different focus each week. Some exercises will be more open, some structured, and you will also receive some supporting audio files, stimulus poems, images and links to music. The emails will be designed so that you can either go through each exercise in turn as if you were in a live workshop, or pick and choose at random according to your preference. Some of the stimulus will be more introspective, some more outward-focused. Feel free to participate in the way that suits you.
Dates
You’ll receive 6 emails, one a week, on / around the following dates:
14 May, 21 May, 28 May, 4 June, 11 June, 18 June
You can sign up after the course has started. In the intro to each week will be links to previous week’s activities, so you can take part in the whole course no matter when you sign up.
Who is this opportunity for?
Anyone, with any kind of writing experience – a little, or a lot. It is particularly suited to those who would appreciate some inspiration without pressure.
Find a writing buddy
If you can find a ‘writing buddy’ – a friend or loved one who you share a love of writing with, or would like to try writing with, encourage them to sign up too and participate in the ‘writing buddy’ exercises in this course. You don’t need to be physically with your writing buddy so perhaps you can choose this option as a way to spend some quality, creative time with someone that you miss during these lockdown days. If you don’t have a writing buddy to sign up with, that’s ok – exercises in this course are flexible and there are different options you can choose.
What considerations are given to access?
This course is designed with creativity and accessibility at its heart; it is free to take part in, optimised for screen reading, and include transcriptions and alternative descriptions of music.
Is this course really free?
Absolutely. In recognition of the financial difficulties many people are facing, and to try and offer some joy and inspiration into people’s lives, we are committed to offering these, and other activities, for free to all writers who are unable to pay. We are asking those who are able and willing to do so to make a donation of their choice to our create-write-connect campaign. 50 % of funds raised will go to Spread the Word and 50% will go to the Trussell Trust.