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

Welcome to Script Club!

This autumn we are offering a taught and mentored course with an element of peer critique. These workshops are for script writers, and aspiring script writers, offering the perfect opportunity to learn and develop the skills required to tell your story for film, television, theatre or radio…..

The course takes place over five consecutive Thursdays. Including an introduction to script writing for beginners (and a recap for others) the workshops will each cover one of the 4 core elements of scriptwriting:

• Story

• Structure

• Characters

• Dialogue

Each session starts with a brief warm-up writing exercise (to help develop your understanding of these core elements), followed by a discussion, using a broad range of examples from across several genres and mediums, including work by BAFTA and Oscar Winners as well as writers for stage and radio, to help both illustrate and analyse.

The second part of each workshop facilitated by Tessa includes a peer discussion of students’ work – to help hone your material, solve problems, answer questions or just provide general feedback on ideas that are underway. For beginners, it won’t be necessary for this work to be in script form until later in the course, but by the end of the five weeks, all attendees will be able to confidently table work in their chosen script form, and will – with the support of the group – be able to go on to develop that work with a stronger grasp of the fundamentals. In other words your story telling in this form will be elevated!

Whilst this is a course directed at script writers, it will also be of interest to prose writers and story tellers of any form who would benefit from learning more about the precision that the most effective and efficient writing for performance requires.

Each week there will be a list of resources which have supported the session, including books to read, articles to consider and different films, documentaries, television programmes and plays to watch or read.

Price:
Standard: £200
Concession: £150 (please read our eligibility criteria before purchasing*)

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

Please note: To get the most from this course, you should be (or prepared to be) actively working on a script idea.

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

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

* 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

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

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.

• Short Prose Perfomances (chosen by submission) 6pm start.

• Interval and mingle with other writers 6:45pm.

• Poetry Open Mic 7:30pm.

Submissions now open for 100-500 words of engaging prose for first half of evening. This month’s THEME: “A new community” and/or “Safety in Numbers”.

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 19th June to Kate (hello@kateoldfieldwrites.com)

Successful readers will be notified by Friday 26th.

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 fun and inspiring workshop, Jen Feroze will be encouraging you to look at non-romantic love, in poems of friendship for those special people who have helped make you who you are. From childhood friends and school days, to those kindred spirits we meet later in life, this workshop is a celebration of friendship in all its forms. We'll study a selection of contemporary poems, and use these as jumping off points into new work of your own.

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 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

Are you writing fiction set in a particular time in the past, with a need to research your period and characters? That is an essential part of the work of course, but there comes a time when you just need to write it. 

Sure, you need to understand the nuts and the bolts of your genre, the methods, the readership’s requirements.

And of course you need to know that you have done the right research, the right kind of research, the right amount of research.

And then there is the planning, the plotting, the paving the route of your writing strategy….

Er… This is getting ridiculous, look I need to tidy my desk, the sitting room, the neighbour’s garden.

Oh, and I should really see the hygienist before I settle down to write…

Stop! Planning is becoming procrastination!

The book is safest on paper. You can’t edit an empty page. Just set your research aside and start to tell your story.

Emma Darwin is here to help. She is an inspiring and deeply experienced teacher and mentor of creative writing who believes that all anyone needs to write well is the desire to work at it, plenty of paper and pens, and access to a good, big library. And that at some point, you just have to get on with it!

In this 2-hour workshop packed to the brim with essential information, guidance and pointers - and lots of writing tasks - Emma will give you all you need to know – and the permission (if that’s what the Imposter Syndrome is telling you you need!) – to just get down to it and write.

And you will write in the session. So you will have started!

And there will be an illuminating Q&A to pick up anything that hasn’t been covered.

Whether you are battling to finish your first draft, proudly completing your development edit, struggling to put pen to paper or just wondering if Historical Fiction is something you want to write at all, this workshop is for you.

Come and join us. Jump-start the process of becoming that better Historical Fiction writer, now!

All levels welcome

Fee: £30

Emma Darwin’s The Bruegel Boy has just been published to critical acclaim and was The Times Historical Fiction book of the month. Her other bestselling novels have been nominated for several awards including the Commonwealth Writers and RNA Novel of the Year. She is the author of Get Started in Writing Historical Fiction and This is Not a Book about Charles Darwin. Her brilliant Substack ‘This Itch of Writing’ is a must-subscribe space, full of essential advice to all writers of all levels and genres. Emma has taught at Goldsmiths and Oxford University, and is a creative writing tutor, editor and mentor.

Cancellation policy: non-refundable

Join poets Carl Tomlinson and Kate Oldfield for a short walk through a long history as we explore Oxford’s canalside. We’ll look at places that have changed and think about places that have changed us. Away from the dreaming spires, we’ll be considering the trade and transport which shaped this area. 

After our walk, there’ll be time to reflect and write. Expect good conversation and generative prompts.

All are welcome, whatever level you believe yourself to be. Just come with pen, paper and your imagination.

The workshop involves a one-hour walk*. 

On Saturday 28th February, participants will meet at a location by the train station/canal. From there we shall walk over to and up the canal in Jericho, and then on to the Lamb and Flag pub in St Giles where we will be greeted with a warm welcome, tea, coffee and cake!

The writing part of the workshop will begin in earnest with inspiring prompts. There will be time to share - but that’s not compulsory.

Places are limited and booking is essential.

Fee: £35. 

There will be tea/coffee and a pastry on arrival at the Lamb & Flag. Please bring a packed lunch or buy your lunch before we get to the venue. Please wear comfortable shoes for walking a mostly flat path. Please also be prepared for British weather.

The workshop will end at 1pm but everyone is welcome to stay on and chat in the pub!

*If you would like to participate and have limited mobility, get in touch and we’ll discuss alternative arrangements.

Any queries to hello@kateoldfieldwrites.com. 

Carl Tomlinson lives on a smallholding in rural Oxfordshire. His poems have appeared in Orbis, South, The Alchemy Spoon, The Hope Valley Journal, Spelt, and several anthologies. His poem ‘Market Forces’ won the Shout out for the Oxford Covered Market competition, and now forms part of the market’s audio guide. 

Carl’s debut pamphlet, Changing Places was published in 2021 by Fair Acre Press. Helen Mort says of it that it ‘challenge[s] us to move beyond a naïve appreciation of the ‘natural’ and recognise the ways that our landscapes have been profoundly altered by human presence’.

Kate Oldfield is a writer and poet who also runs writing workshops, retreats and events in Oxford and beyond. She worked in publishing for over twenty years, latterly as a writing mentor, ‘book fixer’ and ghost-writer. She is qualified in therapeutic and reflective writing practices and specialises in helping people find their creative potential and writers their voice. She is halfway through the first draft of her first novel and has her published in magazines such as Alchemy Spoon and Spelt Magazine.

Join Jen Feroze for a cosy, generative poetry workshop, in which we’ll examine the concept of home and look at the extraordinary that can be found in the seemingly ordinary.

We’ll be looking at poems that celebrate the domestic; that centre around our routines, the little rituals and traditions we create without even realising it. 

You’ll receive a series of prompts and exercises that will help you to pin down what it is that turns a house into a home, and find ways to define what home means to you. 

Come find the magic!

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 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.