Wolsey Writers is a creative writing group based at New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich, meeting on the first Saturday morning of the month. Our community includes novelists, scriptwriters, poets, storytellers, authors of children’s literature, comedy, and non-fiction. We welcome writing in any genre. We welcome writers from diverse backgrounds. We welcome all levels of experience and aspirations of every size – from haiku to blockbuster trilogy. A typical meetup size is about 20 people, although up to 35 people can (and do) attend. We occupy the beautiful upstairs bar of the New Wolsey Theatre with our notebooks, coffees and snacks – sometimes in noisy discussion, sometimes in mutual silence while we work.
I founded Wolsey Writers in 2015, in a small room, backstage. My vision was simple: to start the creative writing group that I wish had existed before I was published.
What I imagined was a supportive community of like minded people, going through the same joys and frustrations as I was. Yes please to meeting other writers of contemporary fiction and historical fiction like me! But I also wanted to mix with people who loved other genres, including and especially the ones I was less familiar with: sci-fi, crime, horror, children’s books and YA etc. I wanted to experiment with creative forms: plays, audio, poetry, nonfiction, gaming, comedy, diaries . . . I felt that I could learn from all these different styles of storytelling and it might be fun too.
I knew there were gaps in my writing. So I wanted clear, specific tools and literary devices to apply to my own work in progress, because I wanted to get better at my craft. And I needed for ‘success’ not to be rigidly defined. There is enormous artistic value in being allowed to try something new, and failing without consequences. Successful writing can look quite different for each of us, anyway: it might be a vivid description in a single paragraph; it might be a funny line that gets a laugh in the room; it might be a nugget of feedback on a current draft chapter that elevates the next draft.
A creative practice is practise. If you want to get good at playing the guitar, or be fluent in Spanish, or bake hyperrealistic cakes, then repetition is your friend. Creative writing is no different, and disciplined habits help you to improve faster; equally, ‘discipline’ can mean having the strength to return to your project after time away. Sometimes just the opportunity to spend a couple of hours, once per month, thinking of yourself as a writer is an achievement.
I’m constantly surprised, challenged and delighted by the Wolsey Writers cohort, by the regulars who keep coming back (including after the pandemic break) and by the newbies who rock up, injecting fresh energy. The advice to ‘be the change you wish to see in the world’ is easier to say than it is to follow. What I followed was a compass towards a sustainable writing community, in a welcoming Ipswich town centre venue, with good transport links and decent cappuccino.
Katie Ward
Wolsey Writers meets on the first Saturday of the month, 10:30am-12pm, at New Wolsey Theatre, IP1 2AS. Led by Katie Ward, an award-winning author, every session includes tips to improve your creative practice, focused writing time, peer support and inspiration.
Suitable for writers aged 18+. Pay what you feel tickets from the Box Office, £0-£20.
Phone: 01473 295900. Email: tickets@wolseytheatre.co.uk
@wolseywriters on Instagram & Twitter/X. @katiewardwriter on Facebook.
コメント