Words … couldn't change half way through a sentence like people, so it was easier to spot a lie.
Jeanette Winterson, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit
A one-day creative
writing course
This one-day creative writing course is an invitation to pause, reflect, and explore the shifting boundaries between truth and trickery, opening space to question what we believe and how stories shape us. We will use guided writing, reflective discussion, and optional sharing to consider the subject at both a micro level (personal life) and a macro level (social media, history, and social-political institutions).
No previous creative writing experience is needed. Just bring curiosity, a pen, and a willingness to explore.
In short, trickster is a boundary crosser. We constantly distinguish – right and wrong, sacred and profane, clean and dirty, male and female, young and old, living and dead – and in every case trickster will cross the line and confuse the distinction.
Lewis Hyde, Trickster Makes This World
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When truth is unstable, writing is a way of understanding
People use trickery on a daily basis. Families have secrets, couples deceive one another, and those with power lie for political gain. Why do we lie, and are there multiple versions of truth? Who suffers from the telling of untruths, and when does it matter? Are there conditions of power that determine what is truth, and how has social media added a new dimension to what might be termed “post-truth”?
Texts and writing prompts will be provided to support exploration of these themes within a single, contained day.
What this Course Explores
This course works with truth and trickery as creative forces rather than problems to be solved. Through writing and shared reading, we explore how stories are shaped, withheld, embellished, and believed by individuals, institutions, and cultures.
Truth in Creative Work
Exploring what it means to write from lived experience rather than from expectation.
Narrative Construction
Noticing how stories are shaped, arranged, and given meaning through choice.
Voice and Authenticity
Recognising the difference between a lived voice and a constructed one.
Self Editing and Performance
Examining habits that interfere with presence in the work.
Illusion and Coherence
Understanding how smoothness or clarity can mask what is unresolved.
Language as Meaning
Attending to how words do not only describe experience, but actively shape it.
Rather than offering conclusions, the course holds open questions about truth in creative work: how stories are edited, how illusion operates, and how language itself shapes what can be said, believed, or resisted.
This course is for you if:
You are interested in truth, deception, and narrative as creative and intellectual concerns
You want to explore how stories are shaped in personal, social, political, or professional contexts
You are curious about language, performance, and illusion rather than self-expression alone
You are open to writing as a way of thinking, questioning, and examining complexity
This course is not for you if:
You are looking for therapy, emotional processing, or personal support
You want motivational or self-help outcomes
You are seeking technical writing instruction or literary critique
You prefer clear answers or fixed conclusions rather than open inquiry
You are unable to engage with material that touches on power, ethics, or ambiguity
Commitment and Participation
Participants are expected to engage actively by being present for the full session, taking part in writing invitations, and contributing to discussion as they feel able, as the course is designed as a live, shared exploration rather than a passive experience.
Engagement does not require personal disclosure, but does ask for attentiveness, respect for the group, and a willingness to question assumptions about language, truth, narrative, and one’s own habits of thinking and writing.
Practical Details
Date: Saturday 30 May 2026
One-day live online course
Format: Live online group session
Writing, discussion, and guided exploration held within a single day
Fee: £60 standard rate
£40 early booking rate (limited availability)
Access & refunds:
As this is a live, small-group course, places are non-refundable once booked. If the course is cancelled by the hosts, a full refund will be provided.
My Role as Host
My role is to hold the space in which the work can unfold without pressure or direction.
I set the frame, maintain continuity, and attend to the emotional and creative climate of the group. Writing is met with presence rather than evaluation.
Feedback focuses on noticing what is visible on the page and in the process, supporting participants in developing trust in their own judgement and voice.
