Welcome to Lapidus International
The Writing For Wellbeing Community
Lapidus International is a membership organisation open to everyone with an interest in writing for wellbeing.
We support and champion writing for wellbeing through development opportunities, exclusive member events, access to the latest research, and more.
We offer a supportive network to enhance both personal and professional writing practice.
What Is Writing For Wellbeing?
Writing for wellbeing is the use of words to explore thoughts, express emotions, and support personal growth. It’s not about perfect grammar or literary skill, it’s about connecting with yourself through journalling, poetry, storytelling, or reflective writing. Whether used in a group setting or privately, writing can be a powerful tool to process experiences, build resilience, and find clarity. At Lapidus, we celebrate writing in all its forms as a gentle, creative way to nurture emotional, mental, and social wellbeing.
Upcoming Events
- Lapidus Member Event Only
The 5 Fs: When the story alters… exploring responses to narrative disruption and creative antidotes
This interactive talk draws on discoveries from my doctoral research, which explored responses to grief in literature. I will introduce literary examples of fight, flight, freeze, fawn and flow to inspire our own reflective writing, on our varying responses to personal stories that have been interrupted by life events. There will be an opportunity to share in a non-judgemental environment and to consider how creatively/imaginatively meeting basic needs can support during, and reflecting on, challenging passages of life.
Trigger warning: Discussion of interruptive life events
About the Presenter
Dr Claire Williamson is the author of four poetry collections, the latest being Visiting the Minotaur (Seren). For ten years she was Director of Studies for the MSc in Creative Writing for Therapeutic Purposes (CWTP) at Metanoia Institute, and now works freelance as a CWTP facilitator, mentor, and supervisor. Her current work is informed by Pesso Boyden therapy.
Joining details
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86850202455
Meeting ID: 868 5020 2455
This session will be recorded and available on catch-up for a limited time. Please check back here a couple of days after the event for access to the recording.
About the Lapidus Living Research Community
The Lapidus Living Research Community (LLRC) meets on the first Saturday of every month via Zoom to discuss all things research, with a focus on qualitative arts-based research practices, theory and methods.
All Lapidus members are welcome, regardless of research experience. LLRC events are free. Use the Zoom link above to access the event.
- Lapidus Member Event Only
How can therapeutic creative writing uncover a more nuanced story of a past self?
Presenter: Elisabeth Winkler
With autoethnography as methodology, I investigated the inner and outer worlds of my depersonalised adolescence. Through examining journals, a photograph, and historic poems, I used creative writing to compassionately revisit the past, rewriting a story of failure and fragmentation into a holistic one of mental health recovery.
This workshop focuses on poetic autoethnography (Hanauer, 2010 – 2022) as a research tool, using poetry’s particular qualities to respond to historic poems. It also draws on narrative therapy to incorporate “the lost relationship” with the self and, in doing so, arrive at a new understanding (White, 1988).
The session will be about 65 minutes, and includes time for questions, comments and creative writing. Please bring a fragment of your creative writing or poetry or a photograph from the past (which could be yesterday!) for a short written exercise.
Joining details
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81765344967
Meeting ID: 817 6534 4967
This session will be recorded and available on catch-up for a limited time. The recording will be added to this page a couple of days after the event. Please check back here from Tuesday 6th January for access to the recording.
About Elisabeth Winkler
Elisabeth Winkler has earned her living with words as a freelance journalist (published in all the broadsheets) and charity communications. A recent MSc in Creative Writing for Therapeutic Purposes enabled an exploration into her lived experience of depersonalisation and recovery. She is now a peer facilitator for the UK charity for depersonalisation and derealisation, Unreal, and writing about mental health.
About the Lapidus Living Research Community
The Lapidus Living Research Community (LLRC) meets on the first Saturday of every month via Zoom to discuss all things research, with a focus on qualitative arts-based research practices, theory and methods.
All Lapidus members are welcome, regardless of research experience. LLRC events are free. Use the Zoom link above to access the event.
An invitation to writers of all levels (beginners are as welcome as the more experienced) — to loosen the ligaments, put perfection aside, and write for the quiet joy of discovery; to share a space where words unfold boldly, imperfectly, and in response to curiosity.
A block of three months offers a gentle rhythm of practice: a facilitated Anchor Session followed later in the month by a companion Open Writing Session, where you can return to your work, deepen the ideas sparked in the workshop, and write alongside others in quiet company.
How it works
Anchor Session (first Tuesday of each month, 5.00-7.00 pm, UK time):
A guided workshop exploring a theme, text, or prompt through discussion, short exercises and optional sharing. These sessions provide inspiration and direction for your writing practice.
Open Writing Session (third Tuesday of each month, 5:00–6:30 pm, UK time):
A lightly held, communal writing space in which you can develop your ideas, try new forms, or simply write in the company of others. Optional check-in and sharing at the end.
Block Pass: £105 for three months (includes three Anchor Sessions and three companion Open Writing Sessions). This block encourages continuity and engagement, with sessions scheduled monthly to help you build a routine.
Single Sessions: please enquire.
Block 1: January – March 2026
Anchor: 6 January | 3 February | 3 March
Open: 20 January | 17 February | 17 March
6 workshops on consecutive Wednesday evenings beginning on 18th February, whole course £105.
In writing for wellbeing we tend to focus entirely on content and not at all on form, but understanding the craft of storytelling can help us to relive our experiences more fully and write with more confidence.
This course begins with a look at how to use the basic building blocks of storytelling – plotting, characterisation, voice and settings – to shape your lived experience into truthful but engaging stories and goes on to explore some of the different forms and styles of creative non-fiction, from essays and themed memoirs to prose poems and lyric essays.
Writing deeper into self-compassion and finding our own inner wisdom: this is a ten week online course (21st Jan – 25th March, 7pm – 9.15pm GMT).
This a gentle and spacious course filled with various poetic and writing prompts, pair work, and a deeper way of listening.
This is an innovative and inspiring approach to bring more compassion and understanding into our lives, through exploring resonance and accessing body wisdom.
£195 but concessions are available if financial circumstances are difficult, so please inquire.
Led by poet, writing for wellbeing practitioner and BFA certified Focusing Practitioner, Bethany Rivers (MA).
The archetypes are universal elements of our psyche, and we can call on them for guidance and compassion. This is first of a series of three workshops will look at the Magical Child: source of wonder, awe, playfulness, and divine wisdom. Workshops can be attended individually. Discount for booking of all three. The other two workshops will look at Wise Sage and Mother Earth, each fall on the last Sunday of the month, 10am till 1pm.
Join Lapidus International...
…from as little as £3.50 per month.
As a Lapidus Member, you are part of a supportive, international writing for wellbeing community who believe in the power of using words to enhance and transform.
You’ll receive a monthly newsletter, get discounts on events and training, have access to our online library of Lapidus journals and more. All for as little as £3.50 per month!
Lapidus News
Our vision
In these times of global upheaval, where words can be debased, Lapidus International will not compromise.
We know that writing endures as a way to express suffering and joy, healing and belonging in the intersection of personal circumstances and social conditions.
Through practice, research, publishing, and partnerships, we recognise words and writing as an accessible force for wellbeing, activism and therapy.
Our membership reflects the voices of all communities, including those who have been discounted, prohibited, displaced and under-served.