It is raining hard. We are getting a preview of the seasonal curve down into the dark autumn and winter here in Ireland. The low cloud demands that I have on the electric light even though I am writing this at 10am. Some folk have problems with the dark part of the year, when daylight hours are in short supply. In a damp island climate, there can be weeks when the only motivation to stir outside is to be at service to the dogs’ commands. Yet, these dark months are also creativity’s gestation.

As much as creativity demands solitude, it also thrives with periods of collegiality. We can spark off each other. We can encourage one another to keep going when self-doubt creeps in. Also, it good for the heart and soul to have a laugh with a group of people who are makers.

I make with words and have facilitated face-to-face workshops for the past six years as Word Alchemy. I usually magic up poems, but I have also worked in creative non-fiction, mostly with Sagewoman magazine over ten years, and written short fiction. Covid-19 has spurred me to take my workshops of small groups of no more than eight participants online. To allow for how wonky people’s work and life patterns are in this pandemic, I am offering a weekday evening course (which allows for some North Americans to join us in Ireland) and a Saturday midday option, so that you need not miss a session because life or work has intervened. We all need to be a bit flexible these days. Except about keeping a social distance and wearing masks when indoors and cannot keep our distance.

In September I am hosting an Introductory workshop I call Pick n Mix, where each week we have a taste of a new genre. During October we will spend dive into short fiction writing. After the clocks go back, November’s dark days will offer four weeks when we can gestate many poems.

If you are interested in participating in these workshops, please register your interest in the form. Pick n Mix is basically full, but one more could fit. There is already one person registered for Short Fiction in October. So please bag your space now.

I am sure that you may have questions. Let’s have a conversation.