Come take a walk on the wild side in this new poetry workshop with Jen Feroze. We’ll be examining creaturely poems from a range of contemporary writers, with lots of prompts to get you drafting your own poetic animal encounters.

Gentle and generative, all levels are welcome; if this is your first poetry workshop, wonderful, if this is your 3rd poetry workshop this month you will be inspired to write more poems!

Numbers limited to 16

Fee: £30

Places are limited and go fast so early booking is recommended to avoid disappointment.

Jen Feroze has just won first prize in the Charles Causley International Poetry Competion ✨ With her moving poem “You are strapping your toddler into the car seat”.

She lives by the sea in Essex.

Her poetry has appeared in publications including Poetry Wales, Magma, Under the Radar, Butcher's Dog, Black Iris, The Interpreter's House, And Other Poems and The Alchemy Spoon. She has published two pamphlets - Tiny Bright Thorns and A Dress With Deep Pockets, the latter of which won the 2024 Poetry Business International Book & Pamphlet Competition.

She won the 2025 Black Cat Poetry Press Competition, was highly commended in the 2025 Ware Poets Prize, commended in the 2025 Winchester Poetry Prize and shortlisted in the 2025 Live Canon International Poetry Prize.

Jen writes personal poems on the spot on her vintage typewriter at weddings, festivals and events, and she is the resident poet at London's Poetry Pharmacy. 

Cancellation policy: non-refundable

The Write Place is an online, supportive co-writing space, where writers of every level can come together for support, community and accountability, while carving out 2 hours of protected writing time.

Just read our testimonials.

It’s a perfect space to get your writing done, break through the block, find your flow and meet like-minded people. (Imposter syndrome isn’t allowed a look in.) THe best way to experience it is to try it - it’s free. And if it doesn’t suit you there is no obligation to return!

The sessions are hosted by writer, poet and ex-publisher and ghost-writer, Kate Oldfield, who brings her experience and expertise to help each writer set their own goals, get 'out of their own way' and get their writing done!

The first 20 mins of each morning is used as a check in followed by a short mindfulness exercise or some embodied writing. We then set our creative intention for the session and write for 2 hours, before coming back together to discuss, briefly, how we got on.

(Since we started in 2021, 4 people have completed their first books, 1 person has sold their novel in an exciting 4-way auction to a major international publisher, many poems have been written, one person has been accepted to a prestigious Scottish University for a Masters in creative writing - and many many journals have been filled.)

Pop a free session in the shopping cart here and tell us which morning (Monday or Thursday) and which date and we will be in touch with the Zoom link. Please use the contact form if you wish to know more before you try.

Why not book a no-obligation chat with Kate on zoom to discuss your queries, goals and requirements?

What people have said:

‘Kate is an inspiring leader, the group so welcoming, giving me permission to write and believe in myself as an author.’ – Tanya

‘I joined in this wonderfully supportive and inclusive group, struggling to find the time and momentum to write. Now, I AM a writer, thanks to Kate and her help and prompts.’ – Geoff

The Writing Well has teamed up with The Lamb and Flag, Oxford, to provide a welcome and cozy writing space in which to come and write in community, in the shadows of many great writers who have sat and had a pint and a chat there through the centuries.

The Lamb and Flag is a pub with a wealth of literary connections, not least the informal group of writers known as the “Inklings” (CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien and their circle), and Thomas Hardy (who wrote Jude the Obscure there), to mention but a few literary greats who have passed through their doors.

Every Sunday, writers (of any genre - not just novel writers) are invited to come at 10:30am for a warm welcome a coffee, a check in and a chat, before we respond to a brief (optional) prompt at 10:45 to get us in flow, then we start writing together for two hours at 11am. Sharing is totally optional!

Sessions are run on a ‘pay-what-you-can’ to Kate, who runs the sessions, to keep them viable.

There is free tea and coffee between 10.30- 10.45 at check-in.

We have lots of seats but turn up before 10.45 to secure a place.

Contact Kate for more info. Or just turn up at 10:30 with a pen, paper/laptop and an open mind.

“Kate is an inspiring leader, the group so welcoming, giving me permission to write and believe in myself as an author.” – KB

Fee - Free with a tip-what-you-can element to keep the sessions viable

• Open to all writers who want to get some writing done

• We have quite a lot of seating but come at 10:30 to secure a place

• The sessions are pay-what-you want to keep them viable

• Free tea and coffee and a very cozy atmosphere

• 10:30 informal check in, 10:45 fun (optional) prompt to get you in flow

• 11am–1pm find a space and let’s get writing

• Sessions are hosted and mentored by writer, poet, ex-publisher, Kate Oldfield

• Sunday 2nd Nov 10.30–1pm

• Sunday 9th Nov 10.30–1pm

• Sunday 16th Nov 10.30–1pm

• Sunday 23rd Nov 10.30–1pm

• Sunday 30th Nov 10.30–1pm

• Sunday 7th Dec 10.30-1pm

• Sunday 14th Dec 10.30-1pm

Praise for Kate as host and mentor:

“The commitment that this group brings is really important. And [I have found] the confidence to feel ‘I can do this’ and that there are other people out there just like me. I'm really grateful because I think I might have started a novel (as that is what I was thinking of doing), but I don't think I'd have continued with it. The Write Place has made the difference. And I have stuck with my novel – and am now nearly finished!”

— ME

“I joined this wonderfully supportive and inclusive group a few weeks ago, struggling to find the time and momentum to write. Now, I AM a writer, thanks to Kate and her help and prompts. I now make the time to write most days and from somewhere I am over 13.000 words into a story that was an effort, every time I re-read parts I find corrections and additions and am almost tripping over ideas to move the story onwards. Thank you Kate, I hold you wholly responsible!”

— GC

“I have been a long-term member of Kate’s writers’ accountability group as I write my novel. In addition to helping us with our own writing style and structure, she has been able to advise us on the benefits of working with an agent, and how to look for one, how to prepare a synopsis for Commissioning Editors, and how to tackle the writing process and writer’s block. I throroughly recommend it to writers of all levels at any stage in their project.”

— KB

“Kate is an inspiring leader, the group so welcoming, giving me permission to write and believe in myself as an author.”

— KB

Calling all Oxford writers (or writers coming to Oxford!)

NO NEED TO BOOK - JUST COME ALONG!

Introducing the inaugural monthly Writers’ Night at the Lamb & Flag. 6pm-8:30pm Sunday 31st May with readings of the month’s winning Short Fiction and Poetry Open mic.

• Flash Fiction perfomances (chosen by submission) 6pm start.

• Interval and mingle with other writers 7pm.

• Poetry Open Mic 7:30pm.

Submissions now open for 100-500 words of engaging prose for first half of evening. This month’s THEME: “Beasts & Birds”.

How you tackle that is up to you. Thrill and enthrall us! What we are looking for are 100-500 words with an immediate hook/opening; vivid/memorable descriptions and/or dialogue; and strong last lines. Get writing and send those words in!

Prose reader places are limited so will be chosen for variety and quality by submission. Length 100-500words max by Friday 18th September to Kate (hello@kateoldfieldwrites.com)

Successful readers will be notified by Friday 25th.

There will also be 1-2 wildcard spaces available on the night.

Poets no need to submit - just turn up on the night.

Everyone welcome: come along to support the brave performers!

Jack and Kate

In this inspiring workshop, we’ll be looking at ways to map milestones through our poems, and seeing what happens when we step off the map and into the uncharted. As always, there will be a range of contemporary poems to look at, and lots of generative writing exercises to help you get started on new work.

Whether you’re brand new to writing workshops, or have already attended several this week, we’d love to have you join us. 

Numbers limited to 16

Fee: £30

Places are limited and go fast so early booking is recommended to avoid disappointment.

Jen Feroze has just won first prize in the Charles Causley International Poetry Competion ✨ With her moving poem “You are strapping your toddler into the car seat”.

She lives by the sea in Essex.

Her poetry has appeared in publications including Poetry Wales, Magma, Under the Radar, Butcher's Dog, Black Iris, The Interpreter's House, And Other Poems and The Alchemy Spoon. She has published two pamphlets - Tiny Bright Thorns and A Dress With Deep Pockets, the latter of which won the 2024 Poetry Business International Book & Pamphlet Competition.

She won the 2025 Black Cat Poetry Press Competition, was highly commended in the 2025 Ware Poets Prize, commended in the 2025 Winchester Poetry Prize and shortlisted in the 2025 Live Canon International Poetry Prize.

Jen writes personal poems on the spot on her vintage typewriter at weddings, festivals and events, and she is the resident poet at London's Poetry Pharmacy. 

Cancellation policy: non-refundable

We are gathering interest and numbers before we set an autumn Saturday date for this workshop.

To register your interest just pop the Free Registration ticket in the basket and go to checkout below.

We will then offer dates that suit the most people!

The day itself will be £35. Booking will open when we have a date.

***

Some landscapes ask to be walked — some ask to be written.

Join poet, artist, and archivist Nicola Allen for a guided writing pilgrimage along the ancient Ridgeway, culminating at the Neolithic monument of Wayland's Smithy — a place where stone, sky and story have met for five thousand years.

Through landscape, legend and creative practice, this is a day to slow down, pay attention, and find the words that only walking can bring.

This workshop will be led by Nicola and Kate Oldfield.

✦ WHAT TO EXPECT

v  Three-hour guided writing walk - Sat in autumn, date TBC - along the Ridgeway to Wayland's Smithy

v  Writing prompts woven into the landscape — responding to place, history and your own inner journey

v  Optional buy your own lunch in the village of Uffington afterwards with the group.

✦ THE WALK

The route follows the Ridgeway from the car park to Wayland's Smithy and back — approximately 1.5 miles each way (3 miles in total) on well-drained chalk downland paths. Mostly flat and easy underfoot, though we recommend sturdy footwear. We will be walking at a gentle, unhurried pace.

✦ MEETING POINT

National Trust Car Park, White Horse Hill, Uffington — SN7 7QJ

Please note: there is a small charge for parking (£2 up to 2 hours / £4 all day). Free for National Trust members.

✦ WHAT TO WEAR & BRING

The Ridgeway is high, open and exposed — even on fine days the ridge can be breezy and temperatures cooler than in the valley below. Please dress in layers and bring a waterproof, whatever the forecast. Sturdy walking shoes or boots are recommended, as paths can be uneven and muddy in wet weather.

Don't forget your writing materials — notebook, pen, and anything else that helps you capture the moment.

✦ PRACTICAL NOTES

This is a remote countryside location. There are no public toilets at the car park or on site. Please plan ahead and use facilities before you travel, or stop en route in Wantage (approx. 6 miles away) or Faringdon (approx. 5 miles away), both of which have public toilets.

✦ THE DAY

Programme begins: 10.00am

Walking duration: approx. 3 hours (includes writing stops)

Price: £35 per person (1 concession place - please enquire to hello@kateoldfieldwrites.com)

Places limited to 12 book early to avoid disappointment.

This pilgrimage is for writers of all levels who feel called to the page and to the path. Come ready to walk, to wonder, and to write.

All enquiries about the walk to Nicola

Nicola Allen

07561396017

Nicolaallenartstudio@hotmail.com

Give the gift of inspiration.

A Writing Well Gift Voucher is the perfect present for anyone who loves to write, reflect, or explore their creativity. Vouchers can be used to purchase any of our On-Demand video courses or workshops, allowing the recipient to choose what best suits their writing journey.

Whether they’re looking to spark new ideas, develop their craft, or reconnect with their creative voice, this flexible voucher offers the freedom to learn at their own pace and in their own way.

Available in a range of values, The Writing Well Gift Voucher makes a thoughtful gift for birthdays, special occasions, or simply as a gesture of encouragement for the writer in your life.

Buy all 4 pre-recorded Pippa Dunn novel-craft videos and save £10.

To celebrate national novel writing month - November - anyone purchasing the bundle will get free access to any/all of the Friday morning online writing groups. Every Friday in November 2025, on Zoom. 9.30–12pm UK, hosted by writing mentor Kate Oldfield. Expect a warm and friendly checking, a supportive atmosphere, a prompt or two to get you in flow, then 2-hours protected writing time in silence. (See our many testimonials for our Monday and Thursday Write Place sessions which have been running productively for 5 years.)

An initial free 10-minute assessment chat is always possible, with no obligation to commit if you find it’s not for you.

Use the CONTACT form to book your free chat to discuss your needs, hopes and questions (no obligation).

• Are you wondering where to start?

• Are you wondering how to finish?

• Would you like to have some 1:1 writing time for accountability and support?

• Perhaps you need some advice about editing?

• Or how to perform your work in a public space?

• Are you struggling with creative block or imposter syndrom?

• Would you like to spend some time responding to some bespoke prompts for self-reflection or a creativity boost?

• Individual sessions offer help with all of this and more.

• Get in touch!

WRITERS’ SUPPORT & MENTORING WITH KATE

Kate has worked as a writing mentor since her career in publishing, working with non-fiction and fiction writers, and poets to help them kick-start their creativity, commit to their practice, get over imposter syndrome, reflect on their process, negotiate writers’ block, edit their project and just get their writing done.

Clients include professional writers and hobby writers. Whether you want to have a one-off session or have a monthly or weekly accountability session, get in touch to see how Kate could help you.

Regular or one-off reflective and therapeutic writing practice sessions for personal growth and reflection are also available.

It’s the perfect space to concentrate on your own goals and desires, and negotiate the hurdles you might be facing.

Sessions are on Zoom (UK time), or in-person in Oxford. Further afield in-person sessions by prior agreement.

Why not book a no-obligation chat with Kate on zoom to discuss your queries, goals and requirements?

TESTIMONIALS.

‘Kate is … inspiring, giving me permission to write and believe in myself as an author.’ - TS

“Now, I AM a writer, thanks to Kate and her help and prompts. I now make the time to write most days and I am over 13.000 words into a story that was an effort, [now I am] almost tripping over ideas to move the story onwards. Thank you Kate, I hold you wholly responsible!” GC

FEES

First exploratory chat: Free (no obligation)

Initial Session: 1 hour: £75 (£100 if to include pre-read of up to 1,500 word sample)
Concessions are available for Initial Sessions for low-income writers - get in touch with Kate to discuss.

Follow-up sessions:

• £35 for 30 minutes,

• £60 for 1 hour.

MAKE IT YOUR SESSION

Sessions can (and mostly do) include writing time in response to bespoke prompts.

Written feedback to be agreed separately, depending on availability.

Are you a beginner writer or poet? Are you reluctant or nervous to try your creative skills? Are you suffering from imposter syndrome before you have even started? 

Step away from your daily chores for an hour and a bit to lose yourself in the creative process. Creative Connection Cafés are friendly and fun online workshop that have been running since 2020. Expect a small group, curated conversation, shared story-telling and gentle writing prompts to give your creativity a boost and foster a sense of connection in a small and supportive community. Warning: poem-making and short-form creative writing may happen without any effort or previous understanding!

All are welcome whether you are an accomplished or a reluctant writer – there is a place for everyone. Just come with a beginner’s mind.

These online sessions are hosted and curated by Kate Oldfield.

Fees: £15

What people have said: ‘It’s wonderful to be in a group of supportive people from all different walks of life and experiences, and the time flies by. It is more than just connecting and being creative; Kate manages to bring out the magic in life and helps us see the world through refreshed eyes. - Isobel

Cancellation policy: non-refundable

Do you have a story to tell but you’re not sure how to tell it? Don’t know if it’s for the big screen, the small screen, the stage or for radio?

Or do you have a story you are telling for any of the above, but could do with a bit of encouragement and guidance in the telling of it?

Or, as a prose writer, would you be interested to learn more about 'writing for performance', and how that can help enliven the ‘writing for reading’ you are already grappling with? 

Would you like to learn more about the who, what, where, when, why – and why on earth nots – of script writing?

Well you are in luck! We invite you to join us in a relaxed but inspiring workshop that will guide you gently but surely through all you need to start - or progress.

Using prompts and exercises to help develop the project you are hoping to start, you are half way through, or you’d like to revisit; covering story, structure, character, dialogue and audience – as well as some discussion about the work that is already out there and what we think works best and why.

Facilitated by Tessa Gibbs, who, after working in feature film distribution, production and postproduction, moved into script development, working as a script consultant and, finally, as a script writer. 

Fee: £30

Places are limited so early booking is recommended to avoid disappointment.

Tessa Gibbs has received commissions to write historical feature films (No Place for a Lady: the story of Mary Seacole, Almost America: the story of Henry Knox and a foul-mouthed comedy called Hammered about the fall of iconic British film makers Hammer House of Horror), and has had original comedy and drama scripts for television optioned by BBC Northern Ireland, Fifty Fathoms, Clerkenwell Films, World Productions and, most recently, Film Nation. 

She has had 8 radio plays produced, including Killing Kate, Making Peace, Meltdown and the two parter, Leaving, for BBC Radio 4. She is represented by Frances Arnold at Rochelle Stevens & Co for film, television and radio.

For those of you who weren’t lucky enough to catch it the first time round, or in last November’s repeat, her Radio 4 play, Leaving, (a darkly funny family drama about love, loss and legacy - and why doing the right thing can seem like the wrong thing to do) is still available on BBC iPlayer.

Cancellation policy: non-refundable

In this cosy and inspiring workshop, we’ll be exploring food in poetry as a conduit for memory, unlocking emotional responses by looking at the way we cook and eat. With a range of contemporary poems on food to whet your appetite, there will be a selection of prompts and writing exercises to help you gather ideas and get started on several new poems. Suitable for writers of all levels - snacks encouraged! 

Gentle and generative, all levels are welcome; if this is your first poetry workshop, wonderful, if this is your 3rd poetry workshop this month you will be inspired to write more poems!

Numbers limited to 16

Fee: £30

Places are limited and go fast so early booking is recommended to avoid disappointment.

Jen Feroze has just won first prize in the Charles Causley International Poetry Competion ✨ With her moving poem “You are strapping your toddler into the car seat”.

She lives by the sea in Essex.

Her poetry has appeared in publications including Poetry Wales, Magma, Under the Radar, Butcher's Dog, Black Iris, The Interpreter's House, And Other Poems and The Alchemy Spoon. She has published two pamphlets - Tiny Bright Thorns and A Dress With Deep Pockets, the latter of which won the 2024 Poetry Business International Book & Pamphlet Competition.

She won the 2025 Black Cat Poetry Press Competition, was highly commended in the 2025 Ware Poets Prize, commended in the 2025 Winchester Poetry Prize and shortlisted in the 2025 Live Canon International Poetry Prize.

Jen writes personal poems on the spot on her vintage typewriter at weddings, festivals and events, and she is the resident poet at London's Poetry Pharmacy. 

Cancellation policy: non-refundable

Join Pippa Dunn for this pre-recorded novel-craft workshop to jumpstart your fiction writing.

Explore and develop your Characters in this inspirational and inclusive session full of practical exercises to help you tighten up your techniques, develop your story and build your confidence. Expect generative writing prompts and to leave the session feeling a better sense of connection with one or more of your characters, and ways of engaging with the others.

Who are these sessions for?

The sessions are for all levels, they are also suitable for beginner writers who would like to step beyond their comfort zone and commit, every day, to the page. The course is dynamic but can be taken at your own pace.

Session facilitator:

Pippa Dunn is an author, teacher & creative facilitator based in East London. As well as writing fiction she also dabbles in stage and screenplays, supports story development for a documentary film company, and leads creative workshops for both adults and children. Her debut novel secured major deals in multiple international territories, and she is currently working on her second book – a gothic fantasy set amid the private cemeteries and public theatres of late Victorian London.

When she's not scribbling in one of her local coffee shops, she can usually be found exploring East London's wild green spaces, or wild spaces further afield in Devon, Derbyshire or Scotland.

Join Pippa Dunn for this pre-recorded novel-craft workshop to jumpstart your fiction writing.

Explore ways to pin the perfect Voice of your stories and learn which Tense and POV strengthens your project in this inspirational and inclusive session full of practical exercises to help you tighten up your techniques, develop your story and build your confidence. Expect generative writing prompts.

Who are these sessions for?

The sessions are for all levels, they are also suitable for beginner writers who would like to step beyond their comfort zone and commit, every day, to the page. The course is dynamic but can be taken at your own pace.

Session facilitator:

Pippa Dunn is an author, teacher & creative facilitator based in East London. As well as writing fiction she also dabbles in stage and screenplays, supports story development for a documentary film company, and leads creative workshops for both adults and children. Her debut novel secured major deals in multiple international territories, and she is currently working on her second book – a gothic fantasy set amid the private cemeteries and public theatres of late Victorian London.

When she's not scribbling in one of her local coffee shops, she can usually be found exploring East London's wild green spaces, or wild spaces further afield in Devon, Derbyshire or Scotland.

Join Pippa Dunn for this pre-recorded novel-craft workshop to jumpstart your fiction writing.

Learn deep immersion techniques for Place and Time in your fiction in this inspirational and inclusive session full of practical exercises to help you tighten up your techniques, develop your story and build your confidence. Expect generative writing prompts.

Who are these sessions for?

The sessions are for all levels, they are also suitable for beginner writers who would like to step beyond their comfort zone and commit, every day, to the page. The course is dynamic but can be taken at your own pace.

Session facilitator:

Pippa Dunn is an author, teacher & creative facilitator based in East London. As well as writing fiction she also dabbles in stage and screenplays, supports story development for a documentary film company, and leads creative workshops for both adults and children. Her debut novel secured major deals in multiple international territories, and she is currently working on her second book – a gothic fantasy set amid the private cemeteries and public theatres of late Victorian London.

When she's not scribbling in one of her local coffee shops, she can usually be found exploring East London's wild green spaces, or wild spaces further afield in Devon, Derbyshire or Scotland.

Join Pippa Dunn for this pre-recorded novel-craft workshop to jumpstart your fiction writing.

Understand Action & Reaction and explore ways of using Conflict to strengthen your project in this inspirational and inclusive session full of practical exercises to help you tighten up your techniques, develop your story and build your confidence. Expect generative writing prompts.

Who are these sessions for?

The sessions are for all levels, they are also suitable for beginner writers who would like to step beyond their comfort zone and commit, every day, to the page. The course is dynamic but can be taken at your own pace.

Session facilitator:

Pippa Dunn is an author, teacher & creative facilitator based in East London. As well as writing fiction she also dabbles in stage and screenplays, supports story development for a documentary film company, and leads creative workshops for both adults and children. Her debut novel secured major deals in multiple international territories, and she is currently working on her second book – a gothic fantasy set amid the private cemeteries and public theatres of late Victorian London.

When she's not scribbling in one of her local coffee shops, she can usually be found exploring East London's wild green spaces, or wild spaces further afield in Devon, Derbyshire or Scotland.

An invitation to women who would like to step out of the busy noise of modern life for 5 weekly sessions and take a hint from winter in the northern hemisphere and to root down into stillness and rest.

Participant numbers will be limited to 12.

Join us as we set out on a creative and reflective ‘journey’ to the self and to new stories, through reflective writing and shared reading of carefully chosen poems.

These courses (see also the Flourish programme) have helped many women rescue and revive a sense of self as they negotiate so many common experiences: hormonal change, changes in independence and dependence, loss, grief, isolation, empty nests, divorce, retirement, loss of income – to name but a few.

Nourish will help us to claim new stories of fulfilment and self-expression, in a supportive small community, through challenging times, to help us heal and move on, to nuture our own needs and desire, and to find a resotorative centre of calm.

In this 5-week programme of 2.5-hour workshops, we will look at our stories through the lenses of the seasons and of the cycles of life. We will share readings and discussions and have plenty of time to write in response to these.

Come and share and reclaim your own story in these safe and inspirational workshops.

These sessions are for reflective and therapeutic writing, and whilst experienced writers are welcome so too are beginners, who will be able to reap equal rewards.

We will use the poetry of writers such as Mary Oliver, Denise Levertov and Alice Walker as touchstones and signposts as we travel together. And we will consider the ideas of writers who have done so much work in this field, such as Sharon Blackie (If Women Rose Rooted) and Maureen Murdock (The Heroine’s Journey).

You can expect gentle yet inspirational and revealing writing prompts. You can also expect conversations about love and loss, determination and resilience, being and becoming, escape and transformation, creativity and community – and self-realization. 

There will be a chance to share a few lines of our own – although there is no obligation to do so.

Programme led by Pam Winter and Kate Oldfield.

If you would like to discuss any aspect of this course, please do get in touch. hello@kateoldfieldwrites.com

Fee: £200

(there is a limited number of £165** concession spaces - please read our eligibility criteria before applying to Kate at the email above)

** You qualify for a concession if any of the following apply to you:

– You claim Universal Credit, pension credit, Personal Independence Payment (PIP), income support or job seekers allowance
– You are in receipt of working tax credit
– You are low-waged (single household: annual income of less than £23,000 inc. tax / family household: combined annual income less than £34,500 inc. tax)

You may also qualify for a concession if the following apply, but we request that anyone in these categories whose income or circumstances are sufficient to pay the full rate foregoes a concessionary place, so that it can go to someone in greater need.

– You are a full-time student
– You are aged 18-25

Pam Winter (BACP Snr Accred Counsellor) is a certified poetry therapist and runs a variety of personal and professional development groups using poetry therapy, expressive and reflective writing. She has a background in teaching and extensive experience as a therapist and coach. She returned to a lifelong love of poetry, journalling and the power of word for healing and change following attending a writing course on therapeutic writing with the Professional Writing Academy. Pam lives in Marsden, a small village on the edge of moorland, where she enjoys time walking and writing. For more information see her website www.path-wise.co.uk

Kate Oldfield runs creative writing workshops at The Writing Well. She finds her own voice in poetry and is finishing the first draft of a novel set in Scotland in WW2, based on true events.

After chosing to study art history and English under leading feminist tutors at Leeds University such as Grizelda Pollock for her BA and at the Courtauld for her Masters, she moved into the publishing industry, in which worked for over twenty years. After her third child, she adjusted her consultancy work to become a writing mentor, ghost-writer and ‘book fixer’. She is now qualified in therapeutic and reflective writing practices (Professional Writing Academy, 2020). She has been running workshops – teaching creative writing skills, writing for wellbeing and collaborative poetry sessions – since 2019.

What people have said about Pam:

‘’Pam thanks again for yesterday. It felt very important and galvanising. I’m already amazed by how the process of reading and writing poetry as part of therapy enables me to go so much deeper and broader, faster (and in another way, not amazed, as this is what I had thought might happen…but hardly dared to hope!’)’’Janet

‘’ Pam's facilitation style is much more active than I've experienced previously, but this is conscious and feels appropriate. Pam selects a range of poems for stimulus, and ensures a good chunk of each session is made up of me actually writing in the moment, as well as between sessions. Working in this way has helped me to improve the breadth, depth and clarity of my thinking, understand myself better on an emotional level, and rediscover my voice. Perhaps most unexpectedly, it’s also helped me to overcome challenges and solve problems in my role and outside of work. It puts me in mind of a kind of creative physiotherapy – consciously exercising an underused muscle to increase flexibility and strength.’’    Dom

‘’You are a highly skilled facilitator of groups and in addition to making it look effortless there is a certain magic in what you do. I have always looked forward to your workshops because I know that I am going to be inspired and uplifted. You hold the group and the process well, gently encouraging people to share without pushing people to reveal beyond their own comfort levels…Great use of materials you really know your stuff, experience and knowledge of poetry as a therapeutic tool as well as a knowledge of poetry shown in the exquisite choice of poems to work with.’’    Kathryn

What people have said about Kate:

"Kate is a clever and kind facilitator who includes everyone and keeps the pace, and can evoke and stimulate people to be their best creative selves.  I love it. A doctor could prescribe it; it’s uplifting and thought-provoking."    Lucy

“The Creative Connections workshops sounded like an excellent opportunity to connect with others who share a desire to release the creative spirit. They are a safe, nurturing place in which to explore and create. I haven’t been disappointed. Under the caring and positive guidance of Kate, I have started to unblock my creativity. Each session offers something new, exciting and challenging.”    Linda

“There is an unfolding, a dawning of confidence, a growing enthusiasm, then a welling then a spilling of ideas and associations from the stew of all of us mixed together. Faint hearts are warmed, doubts and diffidence banished. You hold the group together, reflect us back and knit bits back into the mix. We do in fact indeed ‘blossom and flourish’ as the hymn has it. I think that’s remarkable.”    Sally

In order to balance the groups by writing experience we ask to see a sample of writing in order to put you in a peer group that will both support and gently challenge you to get your novel writing flowing in the write direction. Please get in touch by the Contact button on the website or send an email to hello@kateoldfieldwrites.com.

Give your novel (and your writing) the boost it needs in this friendly but focussed 6-week tutored course.

Weekly tutorials, practical writing exercises and supportive critique workshops will help you to develop your story, hone your craft and build your confidence.

Each 2-hour session will kick off with a writing exercise to help develop your writing practice and supercharge your draft, followed by a deep-dive discussion on an aspect of the craft of writing – from character development to plot structure and everything in between.

The remainder of each session will involve a facilitated group workshop, providing peer critique of students’ own work.

Students will also receive detailed written feedback on their shared work from the course facilitator, editor and novelist, Philippa Dunn.

To apply:

1) add the price ticket you require (payment will be required on an offer of a place on the course, further to seeing a sample of your mss), and checkout (you will not be charged at this stage), and

2) send a sample of your work in progress (1–1,500 words), to hello@kateoldfieldwrites.com (in a Word-compatible document or PDF format).

[In following this process, we will endeavour to ensure that the group is writing at a similar level before the course begins.*]

Price:
Standard: £200
Concession: £160 (please read our eligibility criteria before purchasing**)

Please note: To get the most from this course, you should be actively working on a novel – or at least have a novel that you are keen to get underway!

Students will be expected to share their writing with the group from the first few weeks of the course.

We are offering concession rates with no questions asked, please consider your price application carefully before submitting to keep the course viable for the facililation team and other participants.

*If we receive applications from writers at different levels, we will endeavour to create 2 separate groups to accommodate as many applicants as possible.

** You qualify for a concession if any of the following apply to you:

– You claim Universal Credit, pension credit, Personal Independence Payment (PIP), income support or job seekers allowance
– You are in receipt of working tax credit
– You are low-waged (single household: annual income of less than £23,000 inc. tax / family household: combined annual income less than £34,500 inc. tax)

You may also qualify for a concession if the following apply, but we request that anyone in these categories whose income or circumstances are sufficient to pay the full rate foregoes a concessionary place, so that it can go to someone in greater need.

– You are a full-time student
– You are aged 18-25