This post is for young people who are thinking of coming along to my Creative Storytelling workshops at Eastbourne Library. This series of events is invite-only, so if you’ve not been directed to this link by someone inviting you to attend I’m afraid they’re not for you. However, this blog post does give a good overview of what to expect from any type of creative writing workshop I run.

Firstly, let me introduce myself:

I’m Alan Ward, and I’ll be running the Creative Storytelling sessions at Eastbourne Library. I’m a writer, and you can read some of my poetry or short stories on this website.

One of the best things about these Creative Storytelling sessions is that they're taking place when the library is closed, so we’ll have the whole place to ourselves. This is what the space we'll be using looks like:

My colleague Rachel from the library service will be there, so if you end up wanting to take out a book or sign up for a library card at one of the sessions she’ll be able to make that happen. This is Rachel:

Rachel will also be the one on the door when you arrive – she knows everything there is to know about the library.

The three sessions we’ll have together will each have a similar structure.

We’ll start off the first session with a chat about the library, reading and writing – if you’re shy, don’t worry, no one is going force you to speak up or read aloud if you don’t want to.

In each session I’ll share some writing with you. That might be a poem, an extract from a longer story or a piece of flash fiction. Sometimes it will be work I’ve written, sometimes it will be work by other writers I want to introduce you to.

After that, we’ll do some writing together. I’ve got loads of exercises in mind to help you get started. The blank page can be scary, but we’ll soon get past that with some creative starting points. The focus of the writing will be on you and your identity. There’s no pressure, and no right or wrong answers when it comes to the writing. Some of the exercises will be brief, some will take a bit of time. Sometimes you’ll be really keen to read out what you’ve written, sometimes you’ll want to keep it to yourself – and all of that is fine.

In each session we’ll also have a break about halfway through (a break WITH SNACKS, I should add!), and there will be a chance to have a look around the library.

I really hope you want to join us, and what you’ve read here has helped you make your decision. If you have any questions you can contact me using the links below. I hope to see you for the first session on Monday 5th of March.