Women Weaving Words

Another successful writing circle this morning (on St Andews Day). The theme was 'objects' which took us in a variety of directions. One attendee bought a poem to share, which we used for some inspirational writing at the end of the morning. The poem can be viewed on the link below: Miracle on St David's Day - Gillian Clarke

On Saturday 18 November I spent the day at Canterbury Yoga with a group of 19 wonderful women. The workshop had been arranged back in February, following on the heels of a successful workshop in Stamford in January, so it had felt like a long wait until the day finally arrived! The day was planned to give all present, irrespective of experience in yoga, meditation or writing, an opportunity to dive deeper and also to leave feeling deeply nourished and relaxed. I am delighted to say that the feedback has been overwhelming, and all who joined me reported many benefits (which can be seen in some of the feedback below). If you would like me to bring a Women's Stories workshop to your area, please do get in touch .

I am currently enjoying Jackee Holder's Paper Therapy course and have to say, it is jam-packed with so much, not only on the benefits of writing (which we all know is fantastic right?) but so many writing prompts and directions in which to take your journal writing. In addition, Jackee is regularly feeding back on all that is contributed online. If you often find your enthusiasm fades with online courses, or you feel that you have to contribute something, have no fears. There's absolutely no pressure to contribute online, you can work privately at your own pace and the lessons on the platform are available for 6 months following the end of the course. To find out more on Jackee's offerings, please visit her website here She has an absolute wealth of knowledge that she so generously shares.

At the recent writing group (Monday 09 October) our theme was Autumn. Though this encompassed a variety of prompts. Autumn carries many flavours for women. Typically it is the change of season, but less considered are the many rites, archetypes and aspects of myth that this time of year holds. We recently moved through the autumn equinox and within women's cycles, autumn usually relates to the pre-menstrual phase. Even women who are no longer cycling, these phases still hold potency for us. It is a time when we may lack mental clarity and also have a sense of needing to slow down, perhaps even wanting to move into hibernation. The full moon this month was known as either the Harvest Moon or Blood Moon. In myth, spells were often considered during this month for protection as well as undoing spells associate with bad luck. We visited as a writing prompt through The Matriarch, being a strong women's archetype. See, there's far more to autumn than leaves falling f...

October's writing theme is Autumn. At first glance it would probably conjure up typical images of burnt oranges, deep reds and falling leaves. Don't be fooled though. Autumn gives us a wide spectrum from which to draw writing inspiration - some very unexpected. To find out more why not come and join us? We are meeting on Monday 09 October from 09.30 to 12.30 at Watford Quakers Meeting House, Church Road, Watford WD17 4QB. It's a very relaxed setting and welcomes new and experienced writers alike. Refreshments are provided and there's a fee of £5.00 payable on arrival (cash please - thank you). We look to meet on the second Monday of each month (diary permitting). Hope to see you soon.

Today was the monthly women's writing group and the theme was Reflection. As in previous sessions, the interpretation of the theme from writing prompts was very varied and the writing that was produced was wonderful. To add a little variety, I introduced a video towards the end of the session to invite a different response and to also show that we can take inspiration from just about everything around us. Whilst I'd love to share what was produced, I can't due to confidentiality of the group, but suffice it to say the work shared will have a resonance for a while to come. In keeping with the theme of reflection, the group were invited to pause at the end of each writing exercise and take a few mindful breaths. Then, after reading through what had been written, they then wrote a reflection sentence based on one of the following prompts: "Reading this I notice _____ " "Reading this I am surprised by ____ " Interestingly, further jump off po...

On my recent family holiday to Devon, I had the pleasure of revisiting Plym Wood, which captured my heart a couple of years ago. It is a magical woodland (to me anyway) and offers cycle pathways, many, many walks, as well as areas to simply sit to meditate and of course write! Here I am really writing wild - in fact the writing created at the time this photo was taken has proven to be very helpful for a personal writing project I'm currently engaged in. Of course, we don't need to go great distances to enjoy the elements of nature to nourish and inspire us. We can of course make a pilgrimage to our local park area - go at different times of the day to avoid the 'busy' periods, unless of course you need support with characterisation, in which case, you will want the busy-ness it offers! Writing prompts are all around us and we can take our cue from just about anything our world has to offer.