Writing groups can take place in any welcoming community setting that can provide a quiet room with table and chairs. Usually when a writing group is initiated, participants and the hosting organization arrange for the group to meet weekly for around eight to twelve weeks in order for participants to engage in a process of…
Writing workshops can be taught by anyone who has had experience participating in a writing workshop and is committed to popular education. The key to being an effective writing workshop teacher is a deep respect for the dignity and experience of those participating in the workshop, the desire to learn from the writers as much…
At each session the group members have conversations about topics that are important to their lives, and in the course of discussion ideas for writing topics emerge. When it comes time to write, the teacher suggests one or two writing prompts based on particularly compelling issues the group has discussed, and also solicits writing prompt…
At the end of each session, the teacher takes the writings home—as long as the writers are willing to give them to the teacher—in order to provide written feedback to each writer. The teacher’s comments take the form of supportive affirmations of what was written, questions that come to mind, suggestions for further exploration, identification of compelling turns of…
Producing and circulating participants’ writing in an artfully produced magazine or booklet is a crucial facet of the CWP. We consider the writing as part of a larger flow of popular art from the communities where the writers live and work. In addition, the publication affords the opportunity for the writers’ stories to become part of the…
The focus of the writing workshops is on the writing and sharing of stories, creation of a strong community of writers, and publication of writings in a magazine. However, sometimes a writing group will decide they want to do something about an issue they have written about and discussed. The group may continue to meet to develop a…
Community Writing Project 