As you may know, I not only write newsletters, blog posts, and books. I am also a poet and an essayist with a masters degree in English Literature. I have been facilitating writing classes for the last 21 years, since my firstborn was 9 months old (yep, he’s 22 now!). And teaching writing has been the most rewarding experience of my vocational life. You will see why in a moment.
Libraries and bookstores are my churches, and I feel such a sense of satisfaction, of completion and peace when I see the raw, pulsing syllables of my thoughts splashed on the page. I love the freedom creative work can give me to just, well, be flawed, human, AND beautiful. My book was not a place for that. Nor is the social media medium. But my poetry, my creative non-fiction, well, that’s where it gets real.
A few months back, I ran into a student who was in the very first workshop I led for adults. She did a double-take as did I before it dawned on us how we knew each other. She told me how important the class was to her and how it changed how she saw herself. Many students have told me this over the years, but it is not me who has done this for them, but through the experience of the class they discovered their own buried insight, value, and wisdom. I only had to shine the light and hold it for them until they saw the details of their own experience. They then realized that their stories mattered, that they mattered. And you matter, too: your stories, your voice, the wisdom you have come to. Writing is an outlet, it helps us to make sense of things, it helps the writer move from strife to beauty, it connects us to others.
I had a bad mom day the other day (yes, those still happen when your children get older) and thought to myself, I must connect. I need to create something out of this. Parenting a child who has a big health challenge is a unique experience, and parents never come out unchanged. So, my brain got ticking, and I created a new creative writing program for parents who have had or are having experiences like mine: A Creative Writing Workshop For Parents of Children with Health Challenges (Online).
Using the concept of the hero’s journey as both the starting point and the anchor for the workshop, we will explore storytelling as connection with others, self-expression, and making sense of our experiences as parents who have been through a lot in our role as caregiver.
Objectives
The Mechanics
Poetry and creative non-fiction
Receive feedback from the group, Carla, and your assigned partners
The Experience
Weekly
Live workshop instruction (1 hour) each Sunday at 4:00pm Saskatchewan, Canada time (same time zone as Guatemala)
1 Introspective Assignment (daily practice) and 1 Expressive Assignment (writing) each week
The Possibilities
Find connection and support
Make sense of your experience
Move from burnout to empowerment
Turn pain into poetry and strife into wisdom
Become more grounded and present for yourself and families
Provide a creative outlet
Identify your many hero’s journeys
Course Details
Class Begins: September 20
Duration and Cost: $500CDN (approximately $375USD) for 10 weeks of live ONLINE weekly sessions (recordings of replays will be available), exploratory assignments, and a final project complete with Carla’s feedback.
Registration: Registration is on NOW. Since the class is live and crafted for each intimate group, there is a limit to the number of students accepted. Therefore, if you are interested, please don’t wait to register. No application process is required. All you need is the desire to write and the dedication to your own self discovery and healing process.
Once registered, you will be emailed the orientation information and login access to our course page.
What is your hero’s journey?
