We know it’s good to talk. We also know that regular expressive writing does wonders for wellbeing. So we are continuing Write Club in 2024-25 Academic Year with weekly sessions every Monday 11am – 12.30pm between 13 Jan – 14 July 2025 (excluding Easter Monday (21 April) and both the May bank holiday Mondays), Room 4.303 Jean McFarlane Building. You can join either one session only or attend all sessions, whatever works for you. This space is for you to enjoy.

To join any of the sessions (or all of them) please book your place using the links below. Places are limited so book early to avoid disappointment.

February

3rd Feb 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223355221399?aff=oddtdtcreator

10th Feb 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223355492209?aff=oddtdtcreator

17th Feb 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223357297609?aff=oddtdtcreator

25th Feb 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223359133099?aff=oddtdtcreator

March

3rd March 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223375100859?aff=oddtdtcreator

10th March 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223405592059?aff=oddtdtcreator

17th March 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223406986229?aff=oddtdtcreator

24th March 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223412021289?aff=oddtdtcreator

31st March 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223413896899?aff=oddtdtcreator

April

7th April 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223416324159?aff=oddtdtcreator

14th April 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223417507699?aff=oddtdtcreator

Easter Monday – no Write Club

28th April 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223423244859?aff=oddtdtcreator

May

Bank Holiday Monday – no Write Club

12th May https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223425481549?aff=oddtdtcreator

19th May 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223430225739?aff=oddtdtcreator

Bank Holiday Monday – no Write Club

June

2nd June 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223434317979?aff=oddtdtcreator

9th June 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223435140439?aff=oddtdtcreator

16th June 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223437236709?aff=oddtdtcreator

23rd June 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223443916689?aff=oddtdtcreator

30th June 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223446063109?aff=oddtdtcreator

July

7th July 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223446674939?aff=oddtdtcreator

14th July 2025 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1223448741119?aff=oddtdtcreator

If you have any questions please email Tara directly tara_guha@hotmail.com

The Write Club Experience

Write Club, launched by the School of Health Sciences at the University of Manchester and led by writer and mental health practitioner Tara Guha, offers a unique blend of creative expression and peer support for staff and PhD students. Over eleven fortnightly sessions held from January to June 2024, Write Club became a safe space for participants to explore writing as a tool for wellbeing.

Write Club sessions were cantered around a simple but powerful concept: free writing. The idea was to encourage participants to write without inhibition, fostering a sense of freedom from the pressures of producing a polished end product. Each session explored different themes, such as the weather or food, and creative forms, including haikus and acrostic poems. The goal was to make writing accessible and enjoyable while providing a safe space for self-expression.

Facilitator Tara Guha carefully structured each session, ensuring that participants felt comfortable and supported. Ground rules were established to maintain confidentiality and clarify that, while the space was therapeutic, it was not a substitute for therapy. This created a trusted environment where attendees felt secure enough to share personal stories, such as those related to bereavement, illness, and divorce. The blend of peer support and creative writing led to a community where participants not only found solace but also deepened their self-awareness and resilience.

The Impact of Write Club

From the earliest sessions, it became clear that Write Club was much more than just a writing workshop. Participants often remarked that the sessions were a highlight of their fortnight, with some even attending despite having no other university commitments that day. The atmosphere was welcoming and collaborative, and people frequently stayed beyond the official end time, reluctant to leave the space they had come to cherish.

The impact on participants’ wellbeing was profound. Many reported feeling lighter, more uplifted, and emotionally attuned after each session. The creative outlet provided an opportunity to take a mental break from the demands of academic life, offering a much-needed escape from the constant pressure of deadlines and productivity. The practice of writing freely, without judgment, allowed individuals to tap into their emotions, explore their thoughts, and find clarity, ultimately boosting their mood and enhancing their overall wellbeing.

By joining Write Club, you’ll gain a creative outlet, a chance to connect with others, and an opportunity to prioritize your wellbeing in a supportive, non-judgmental space.

Don’t miss the chance to be part of a community where you can step away from the pressures of work, explore your creativity, and leave each session feeling refreshed and inspired. 

Testimonials from PhD students:

I’m really grateful to have found the Write Club as I’ve entered the final stage of my PhD. The sessions have left an indelible mark on me, providing an anchor in this crazy, increasingly fractious world. As someone who is potentially autistic, I can sometimes struggle with new or unfamiliar group situations, but Tara’s warmth and kindness made me feel welcome from the very first moment and put me at ease. Although I’ve probably only ever read one or two of my poems out loud, she created a safe and supportive space that was conducive to sharing our outputs from the session, along with the other attendees who were also lovely. Sharing your writing can feel quite personal, even vulnerable at times, but somehow, once you get over the initial (and natural) hesitance at least, it almost never feels too uncomfortable to do so. (If it does, there’s no pressure to share what you’ve written). 

 

I was pleasantly surprised at what I was able to produce in the short amount of time we had to work on different writing activities, given my usually slow processing and thinking! The regular structure of the sessions was great, starting with a wellbeing check-in and some free writing to loosen up the shackles of the mind. In the fast-paced lives we lead, it’s rare to take a collective moment to check in with one another and let other people know how we’re actually feeling. It also encouraged me to find the courage to be a bit more open with complete strangers, even if it did feel sort of strange to try to embrace my vulnerability! I really enjoyed reading and reflecting on different poems every week, each with their own style and theme. It was nice to be able to share different insights, and I think listening to other people’s writing and perspectives can be resilience-boosting as well.

 

Tara’s passion for helping us to use writing as a tool to reinforce our mental health, along with her attentiveness and words of encouragement, were a potent combination. She made clear that the sessions weren’t therapy but they certainly felt therapeutic! They quickly became a highlight of my week and a non-negotiable event in my calendar. I have come away with strategies that I can adopt and use in the future and have also been inspired to write more in my spare time outside the sessions. I had hit a mental block with my thesis corrections, feeling a heavy, triggering energy every time I attempted to tackle them. However, these sessions have disentangled my mind, diluted that dull energy and helped me to become unstuck with my PhD thesis writing. It’s like discovering a hidden portal, through which you can access another dimension of clarity. They have boosted my productivity and also had an immeasurable impact on my wellbeing, helping me navigate uncertainty by leveraging the use of creativity as an outlet. The Write Club is like lounging in your PJs by the fireplace, with a cat on your lap, a book in one hand and a mug of hot chocolate in the other while a blizzard is raging outside the window. Soup for the soul.

 

As a first year PhD Mental Health student, Write Club is incredibly useful for me. I went into Write Club with little expectations, as I had never done creative writing before but I wanted to give it a go and wanted a break from academic writing. I have been hooked from the first session. It has given me an opportunity to engage with my feelings and emotions, in ways I never have before. Write Club has become something that I look forward to every week and I leave the sessions feeling lighter mentally.

I have struggled to adjust to how lonely, isolating, and stressful PhD life can be, and the space provided by Tara and Write Club lets me check in with my feelings and create pieces of personal writing, in an environment where others are doing the same. I have learnt a lot about myself and discovered I can be creative – I didn’t think I could! This year, I have felt overwhelmed by academic writing, and it became a chore. Learning to do activities like journaling and free writing has helped me to free up my thoughts before academic writing. I have also used such activities to write about my topic, then refine and reshape, rather than trying to write perfectly from the start. I feel more in touch with my creative side, a side I didn’t know I had, and I believe my PhD writing is benefiting from this. I used to open Word and spend half an hour trying to writing a first polished sentence… now I use free-writing to write my thoughts down about the topic and everything I want to include, then I can perfect it afterwards.

Tara provides an open and supportive environment, with encouragement and feedback and I would recommend the sessions to any PhD student. She picks new activities and topics each session, keeping them interesting and engaging. There are no expectations in the group, which is a massive contrast to PhD life, which is really nice and refreshing. Plus, there are biscuits!

For me, the sessions are an hour and a half just for me, with no expectations! I know I will have a good day when Write Club is on. I have even purchased a journalling book for the days that the sessions are not on, and this is really improving my mental health, and I feel much more in tune with my feelings. If I find myself getting overwhelmed, I try and do something I’ve learnt from the sessions.

I’m grateful for the experiences so far and I am so happy that I tried it! I hope to have Write Club for my whole PhD experience. 

 

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *