The Creative Writing Programme

Join us on Thursday 28th November at 7pm at Kemptown Bookshop, Brighton to hear work from our students and alumni and to socialise with other writers on the courses.  This event costs £5 and includes refreshments (beer, wine and soft drinks). 

Our five readings a year – two online and three in-person in Kemptown Bookshop – are a chance for our students and alumni to read some of their work and for fellow students to hear from their peers.

The evening will be hosted by Hannah Vincent, a novelist, short story writer and playwright who has taught on the programme for many years. 

These events are exclusively for writers and alumni of the Creative Writing Programme and their friends and family. 

Buy your ticket here. 

Our next student and alumni readings are: Thursday 6th February in-person at Kemptown Bookshop;  Thursday 20th March online;  Thursday 5th June in-person at Kemptown Bookshop; and Thursday 26th June online. If you're a student or alumni of the programme and would like to read your work at a future event, then please get in touch with Cathy Hayward - cathy@creativewritingprogramme.org.uk 

Following the success of our inaugural Tarot for Creativity workshop this week, we're running two further workshops this autumn. On Wednesday 18th September, we'll be hosting another Tarot for Creativity session and on Wednesday 13th November we'll be holding the first Tarot for Writing Craft workshop. Both workshops run from 5.30-9pm and will be held in Kemptown Bookshop, Brighton. 

In the Tarot for Creativity workshop, we’ll be using a mixture of divination and active imagination to resolve writing blocks and find new inspiration. We’ll be reading for ourselves and others, discovering our own unique creative superpowers and using the cards as story prompts in a flash fiction challenge. We’ll be finishing with a guided journey to meet our very own creative muse. 

In the Tarot for Craft workshop, we’ll be reading for ourselves and each other, using the cards to make and shape character and plot. We’ll also be hosting a divination story surgery to fix any writing issues – so come ready with a story question or problem you’d like Tarot to answer! We’ll be finishing with some active imagination - a guided journey into the heart of a story you are currently writing. 

There’s no need to be a Tarot pro to join either session, we will be working with the cards intuitively so there will be no wrong answers. Expect to come away with your creativity flowing and the confidence to use Tarot as a resource and a guide in your own writing practice.

Both sessions are led by Kate Coffey. Kate is an alumni of the Creative Writing Programme. She’s been published in Mslexia and was shortlisted twice for the Bath Short Story Award (2020 and 2022). She completed a novel in 2023, which was longlisted for the Grindstone Literary International Novel Prize. Kate has a professional background in psychotherapy, and in alternative therapies. She now works as a creativity mentor, helping clients overcome blocks, restore flow, and hone their craft through Tarot, Reiki and sound journeys.

The ticket price of £45 includes VAT. They're non-refundable. For further details and to book, go to our Eventbrite page. 

Any questions get in touch with Cathy Hayward cathy@creativewritingprogramme.org.uk