Lapidus Events

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.

Watch the recording

https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/share/rvvtLTjQBi2vOGUIcTD5DgxMRITOBW-137JE7kJJoSN2TfHijOiWEj5AJiy4qjLY.MH9Ql9JQhYQ1lx82

Passcode: 7.aTc=ws

View the slides here.

This session will be recorded and available on catch-up for a limited time.

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.

Join me for four online sessions of therapeutic writing every Tuesday evening in January 2026.

Therapeutic writing is about expressing the self (whoever the self is at that moment) through creative writing in an encouraging and supportive environment.

We may share our writing. And, there is no obligation to share. Everything is confidential.

I will offer creative writing prompts and a poem to facilitate:

– Grounding in the moment
– Writing freely
– Poetry
– Dialogue
– Reflections.

Join me online for four evenings of therapeutic writing every Tuesday in January:
6th January, 13th January, 20th January and 27th January 2026 from 19:30 pm to 21:00 GMT.

Small group, maximum six so book early if you can.

This is by donation only. Contact me for details on how to book and donate: https://elisabethwinkler.com/contact/

Let’s write together. Looking forward!

Take time to pause, explore, and create – reconnecting with neglected and under-represented parts of yourself, and cultivating a fuller, more self-directed and connected way of being. These sessions place writing and voice at the heart of the process, supported by sound, image, and other creative tools for wellbeing.

Together, we’ll focus on what matters most to you, nurturing your strengths, giving voice to overlooked parts of yourself, and discovering fresh ways to navigate life with clarity and confidence. Sessions are gentle, collaborative, and shaped entirely around your needs and interests.

Online: £80 per session.
Concession rate: £60 for students and key workers.

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

Six Wednesday evenings, 7th January- 11th February, 7.30-9.30 in zoom – £105 full course.
Everybody’s life is amazing, and writing about your own life makes you even more conscious of just how amazing it is.
In this course, we’ll be exploring the kind of awareness, skills and techniques you need in order to find your stories, seeking out the forgotten things for a more rich and textured remembering, and a more exciting writing experience.

Starting peer supervision group for practitioners. Looking for 2-3 people. Monthly meetings, structured format.
• 1:1 therapeutic writing practitioner
• Coaches doing somatic/creative work
• Expressive arts practitioners
• Writing coaches working with trauma
• Anyone doing boundaried 1:1 therapeutic work.

Take a mindful pause in your week and join us for Write Here, Right Now — a calm, supportive online space for Lapidus members to come together and write.

Hosted once a month on a Wednesday lunchtime, this hour-long session offers a simple structure: a warm welcome from a Lapidus facilitator, a chance to briefly connect with fellow members, and then uninterrupted self-directed writing time. Whether you’re journalling, reflecting, or working on a creative project, writing in the quiet company of others can bring focus, motivation, and a sense of shared purpose.

We meet on Zoom. No pressure, no prompts — just you, your words, and a community that understands the power of writing for wellbeing.

Event details

This edition of Write Here, Right Now takes place on Wednesday 14th January 2026, from 1pm –2pm GMT (UK time).

The facilitator will be Gina Beach.

Please send any questions ahead of the event to membership@lapidus.org.uk (responses on Tuesdays & Fridays).

Joining the event

There is no need to reserve your space — simply turn up on the day using the Zoom link below:

Lapidus International is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87487194343 

Meeting ID: 874 8719 4343

This long-established and ground-breaking course for personal and professional development will provide you with an understanding of therapeutic and reflective writing techniques for working personally or with groups.

The course explores the main approaches in therapeutic and reflective writing by encouraging you to explore your own life through writing. Weekly readings offer a theoretical background for those intending to apply their learning to others.

Delivered online over eight weeks, the course has been designed by Lapidus members Victoria Field and Anne Taylor and is tutored by Kate McBarron — three highly experienced facilitators and teachers in the field.

In his poem, ‘How to Regain Your Soul’, William Stafford writes, ‘The white butterflies dance/
by the thousands in the still sunshine’. This is an apt image for the multi-faceted ways our psyches appear to ourselves and others. Where does the idea of a soul fit into our sense of self?

Many individuals experience both a distancing from established religious practices and terminology, and simultaneously, a yearning for a metaphysical framework to make sense of their lives. In my research on pilgrimage and on a year-long writers residency at Truro Cathedral, I noted how poetry and expressive writing can give us non-dogmatic and permissive ways of exploring the bigger questions of how we live and want to live.

Victoria Field has published poetry, a memoir, translations, and edited books on therapeutic writing. Her co-translation with Natalia Bukia-Peters of Georgian poet Lia Sturua’s On The Contrary won the 2024 Sarah Maguire Prize for Poetry in Translation. She is a Sessional Academic at Canterbury Christ Church University and an Associate in the Academy of Sustainable Futures. Her PhD explored narratives of transformation in pilgrimage. She collaborates with Eduard Heyning on music and poetry performances often inspired by sacred spaces. She mentors for the International Federation for Biblio/Poetry Therapy on the use of poetry and expressive writing in the community.

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).

If you’re curious about friendship, interested in reflective writing, or are simply looking for a gentle, structured space to think alongside others, you are very welcome to join us for this workshop.

Join us for 90 minutes of creative exploration through writing prompts and collaborative practice. The session will include short writing prompts, quiet time to write, and moments of sharing and reflection. No writing experience is needed, and there’s no pressure to perform or get things “right.”

Facilitators Alison Cable and Kate Poll will be reflecting in depth on friendship and the workshop in the forthcoming issue of Lapidus Magazine. Those attending the online session will have the opportunity to contribute a short poem or reflection to the piece if they wish.

Numbers are intentionally kept small to allow for genuine connection – book your place early. 

Find out more about the topic of friendship in reflective writing in this recent blog post.

Writing for Wellbeing Workshop

Theme: Reciprocity – Giving and Receiving.

11 am–12:30 pm, Friday 23rd January 2026.

In person event at The Conservatory, Scampston Walled Garden, Malton, YO17 8NG, hosted by The Bothies – a registered charity.

No prior knowledge required. Please bring a notebook and pen/pencil.

Booking essential. For more information and to book, please contact sandie@essenceofwriting.com

Workshop cost: £15 to the volunteer-led charity The Bothies, including tea or coffee. BACS payment in advance is preferred, or cash can be accepted on the day by arrangement. We will share details with you on booking.

We tend to think of writing for wellbeing as journalling and poetry, but this fun, fast creative workshop explores the feel-good possibilities of all the genres – fiction, memoir, non-fiction and poetry. No experience needed, just a pen and paper and a spirit of adventure.

Often professional and personal identities can become entwined, which isn’t always to our benefit. In this workshop, you will start exploring what identity and authenticity means to you. workshops are designed specifically for those who care and support others in their professional work, including healthcare professionals, social workers, care workers, therapists, counsellors, coaches,educators and students in any of these fields.

These themed workshops aim to provide a safe,confidential space within a small group (maximum 8), to explore your personal and professional experiences where you will be invited to explore how you can care for yourself as well as those you care for, through tailored writing exercises and reflective discussion as a community.

No specialist experience of writing is needed, just a spirit of curiosity, a notebook and pen/something to write with.

Do you ever long to connect to your natural sense of wonder, the energy of wholeness and the spirit of playfulness? Or to tap into your inner wisdom and find your compass and direction? Or perhaps you want to strengthen your personal relationship with nature and explore what it means to be part of a larger cycle of life?

Then this creative and inspiring course is for you. Together we will explore how to access our own innate sense of being in the world through the universal symbols and how we can write deeper into this. This is the first of three workshops where we will look at the resources of the Magical Child. The other two workshops will look at the Inner Sage and Mother Earth.

They run 10am till 1pm, the last Sunday of the month in January, February and March. £65 for one, or £170 for all three.

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.

A series of monthly workshops that can help you explore feelings, and build your resilience as you connect with others in these challenging times.
The title theme for the workshops was inspired by a poem written by Deborah Cooper.

We will use carefully selected poems as a springboard for writing, reflection and conversations.

The workshops are for anyone who wants additional resources, in these unsettling times. It is for those who enjoy creativity, journalling, writing for personal or professional development.

No prior knowledge of poetry or expressive writing is required; you simply need to be willing to share, reflect and experiment with words in a supportive environment.

Take a mindful pause in your week and join us for Write Here, Right Now — a calm, supportive online space for Lapidus members to come together and write.

Hosted once a month on a Wednesday lunchtime, this hour-long session offers a simple structure: a warm welcome from a Lapidus facilitator, a chance to briefly connect with fellow members, and then uninterrupted self-directed writing time. Whether you’re journalling, reflecting, or working on a creative project, writing in the quiet company of others can bring focus, motivation, and a sense of shared purpose.

We meet on Zoom. No pressure, no prompts — just you, your words, and a community that understands the power of writing for wellbeing.

Event details

This edition of Write Here, Right Now takes place on Wednesday 14th January 2026, from 1pm –2pm GMT (UK time).

The facilitator will be Alison Cable.

Please send any questions ahead of the event to membership@lapidus.org.uk (responses on Tuesdays & Fridays).

Joining the event

There is no need to reserve your space — simply turn up on the day using the Zoom link below:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81520281563

Meeting ID: 815 2028 1563

A structured 4-week course exploring self-compassion through creative writing and embodied practice. Develop a kinder inner voice, reframe patterns of self-criticism, and build sustainable practices for emotional resilience.

Drawing from Paul Gilbert’s Compassion Focused Therapy, Kristin Neff’s self-compassion research, and person-centred approaches, this course integrates psychological frameworks with creative exploration including two-pen dialogue, visual mapping, embodied awareness, and collaborative poetry.

The course is limited to 8 participants to help foster community and a sense of safety, and all participants receive a comprehensive 47-page companion guide. The guide contains exercises, weekly trackers, frameworks, and written and video resources for ongoing practice.

The course is designed with neurodivergent processing and varied energy levels in mind, with built-in safety supports and permission to adapt.

No previous writing experience required. Limited to 8 participants for intimate, supported exploration. Zoom link will be provided the day before the course starts.

Book direct: https://buy.stripe.com/cNiaEZ9fC6Un1N28KM9Zm08
Or via my website where the full course outline can be downloaded: https://www.katepoll.co.uk/#compassionjournalling

Limited concession rate places available: £149: https://buy.stripe.com/cNiaEZ9fC6Un1N28KM9Zm08

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.

An introduction to embodied writing. Let’s discover the rich benefits of attuning to what we think and feel, and afford ourselves the space to listen. Express our individual stories, draw from our challenging feelings, and write without shame. It’s your turn to have your voice heard.

We will begin by looking inward, considering our individual experience, and what about it we might hope to express or share. We will consider our experiences of health and care as platforms for storytelling, asking ourselves, ‘what is the story we might wish to write?’ and ‘how might we tell these stories?’ If there are obstacles holding us back, we’ll briefly consider ‘what are they and how might we write about them, or in spite of them?’

Reading samples will provide us with impetus for new writing. We’ll consider works rooted in somatic storytelling, writing from a felt sense of our bodies and what our bodies might be telling us. We will also step back to reflect – ‘why write about health and illness at all?’ Learn the proven benefits to our own health and wellbeing when we write in an expressive or therapeutic way.

Course Outline
Session one of a series of three live zoom workshops with tutor of expressive and therapeutic writing, and coach, Andrew Kauffmann. Including a combination of reading, discussion and writing exercises. Later workshops on writing using metaphor in bringing our health stories to the page, and writing ethically and thoughtfully from challenging life material, will be taking place on March 11th and April 1st, also on Zoom, between 2pm and 3.30pm GMT.

A series of monthly workshops that can help you explore feelings, and build your resilience as you connect with others in these challenging times.

The title theme for the workshops was inspired by a poem written by Deborah Cooper.
We will use carefully selected poems as a springboard for writing, reflection and conversations.

The workshops are for anyone who wants additional resources, in these unsettling times. It is for those who enjoy creativity, journalling, writing for personal or professional development.

No prior knowledge of poetry or expressive writing is required; you simply need to be willing to share, reflect and experiment with words in a supportive environment.

“There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self.” Aldous Huxley
I am excited to announce the return of Writing Coffee and Conversation—a welcoming event for anyone interested in self-reflective writing, journaling, and poetry.
Join us as we use carefully selected poems to inspire our reflections and discussions.
Our focus is on self-discovery and self-improvement.
We meet at selected bespoke cafés and places of interest across London, using these inspiring venues as a jumping-off point for our writing.
You don’t need to worry about spelling, grammar, style, or having any background in poetry or expressive writing. Just bring your curiosity and willingness to connect, reflect and experiment with words in a friendly and supportive environment.

About the Facilitator:
Charmaine Pollard is an experienced Certified Poetry Therapist, Counsellor and Life Coach with a passion for leading writing and poetry therapy workshops with a particular focus on self-awareness, confidence and resilience.
Her fusion of contemporary coaching with poetry therapy techniques have helped people from all walks of life, find self- compassion, contentment and success.

In this workshop, reclaim your voice. Begin testing out what you have to say, and experiment with new metaphors and motifs to do justice to the vastness of your health or care story.

Here our focus is on finding a language, style and voice for your writing about health and illness that best reflects your story. How might you capture living with an illness, being disabled, or providing care using words that adequately reflect the complexity of your experience?

We’ll consider the expressive potential of creative writing as a corrective to prejudice and ignorance. We will also explore texts that write beyond the simple binaries of being well and unwell, life and death, fighter or victim. Contemporary works which upend conventional norms around writing about health and illness will be a stimulus in the reading material we draw from.

Course Outline
– Session two of a series of live zoom workshops, beginning on February 18th, with tutor of expressive and therapeutic writing, and coach, Andrew Kauffmann. Including a combination of reading, discussion and writing exercises.

– Reading material provided outside of the Zoom session

– Resources on telling your story within safe boundaries and the benefits to expressive writing on health and care experiences

Content rooted in the social model of disability, open to all people with health and care needs, and those who provide care

Paced to be a comfortable writing experience, suited to writers of all levels. There will be a short comfort break. There is no expectation to be on camera, if you don’t feel comfortable appearing on camera. Neither will there be any expectations around sharing what you’ve written with other participants. There will be an added focus in this coming series on writing in a range of experimental forms, mixing genres and without constraints or concern for convention on how we might write our story.

“There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self.” Aldous Huxley
Writing Coffee and Conversation—a welcoming event for anyone interested in self-reflective writing, journaling, and poetry.
Join us as we use carefully selected poems to inspire our reflections and discussions.
Our focus is on self-discovery and self-improvement.
We meet at selected bespoke cafés and places of interest across London, using these inspiring venues as a jumping-off point for our writing.
You don’t need to worry about spelling, grammar, style, or having any background in poetry or expressive writing. Just bring your curiosity and willingness to connect, reflect and experiment with words in a friendly and supportive environment.

About the Facilitator:
Charmaine Pollard is an experienced Certified Poetry Therapist, Counsellor and Life Coach with a passion for leading writing and poetry therapy workshops with a particular focus on self-awareness, confidence and resilience.
Her fusion of contemporary coaching with poetry therapy techniques have helped people from all walks of life, find self- compassion, contentment and success.

A series of monthly workshops that can help you explore feelings, and build your resilience as you connect with others in these challenging times.

The title theme for the workshops was inspired by a poem written by Deborah Cooper.

We will use carefully selected poems as a springboard for writing, reflection and conversations.
The workshops are for anyone who wants additional resources, in these unsettling times. It is for those who enjoy creativity, journalling, writing for personal or professional development.

No prior knowledge of poetry or expressive writing is required; you simply need to be willing to share, reflect and experiment with words in a supportive environment.

This excursion-retreat weaves together the inspirational power of strikingly beautiful locations with literary pilgrimage, lively literary discussions, and expressive writing for wellbeing.

During this 12-day UK adventure, participants will be invited to respond to stirring poems and prose pieces of English, Welsh and Scottish authors within sites associated with their life and creative work. In this program, we will travel through varied landscapes, savor restful stays in delightfully scenic surroundings, and visit historically significant places within the Cotswolds, southeast Wales, Liverpool, the Lake District, and Edinburgh. As we savor the charms and literary vibe of these places, we will enjoy numerous opportunities to amplify our sensory perceptions, experience playful creativity, gather rejuvenating memories, and gain personal insight, as we respond to stimulating writing prompts.

Registration for this trip is now open, and the final date to pay your deposit and register is December 5, 2025, but you are encouraged to register as soon as possible to hold your place in the tour. Contact Geri Chavis at ggchavis@stkate.edu to receive a detailed brochure and for answers to any questions you have. Arrangements for this trip are made by Sovereign Tourism, based in London.

Program Leadership by Geri Chavis, Founder/Convener of MN Poetry Therapy Network, Professor Emerita, St. Catherine University.

Included in the cost of the programme:

• Teaching, facilitating and preparation of literary materials by Geri Chavis,
• Accompaniment by a London-based blue-badge guide throughout the tour,
• Accommodations  at Four Star Hotels,
• Private, deluxe motorcoach for transfer and touring, handling of luggage,
• Seventeen meals including full breakfast daily, and six dinners,
• Entrance fees and activities,
• All gratuities,
• Group travel insurance,
• Assistance along the way from Sovereign Tourism, based in London.