On Feb. 26, current UFV writer-in-residence, Adèle Barclay, held the Altars & Avenues Creative Writing Workshop. It was the first of two events that she will be holding during the winter semester.
Barclay has been running this particular workshop for four years and stated that she likes hosting it because each time it’s held, it’s different than previous events.
Barclay led participants in several creative writing exercises. The workshop began with Barclay asking the group to contribute a beloved item to the “community altar.” After, she read a selection of poems, both her own and those of others, and invited the group to share pieces of writing, prose or poetry, that they found inspiring. The group was ready and willing to participate, and shared a collection of writing from a wide range of sources including the Bible, Rupi Kaur’s Milk and Honey, and part of a blog post by fantasy writer Scott Lynch, best known for his Gentlemen Bastard series, on the passing of Terry Pratchett.
Much of the writing that took place was prompt-based; however, to get the group writing there was a 10-minute free-write period in which participants were encouraged to just write whatever came to mind. After, she instructed the group to envision a friend or close acquaintance and write them a letter. The final prompt came in the form of writing a list of instructions.
After a short break, Barclay led the group through an exercise she referred to as a “poetry quilt.” In this exercise, participants were to look back on what they had written, highlight any lines, sentences, or phrases that caught their interest and “stitch” them together into one piece. At the end of the exercise, members of the group were encouraged to share what they had written with a partner in order to gain both feedback and break the illusion that you can only show people polished pieces.
Many members did read what they had written aloud. The range of types of writing were vast, with many people beginning drafts of poems, short snippets of prose, or even journaling about the experience.
The workshop concluded with a short question-and-answer period with Barclay on how she writes, how long she takes to draft a poem, and the time she takes before going back to edit it. In both cases, Barclay said, it varies.
Overall, the workshop was a fun and informative experience and allowed everyone involved to practice their writing craft with no judgment.
If you missed Altars & Avenues, Barclay will also be involved in a reading and panel discussion. It will be held on Tuesday, March 31 from 3:15 – 5:15 p.m. at the Abbotsford campus in B121. The panel will also feature B.C. writers Dina Del Bucchia and Kyla Jamieson.
