WRITE YOUR-SELF! with Kate Ireland (Thursday morning)

2 hour evening sessions 10am-12pm UK TIME

Fee pays for full 6 week course. 

9th July- Aug 13th 2025

This course invites you to explore questions of self through play and experimentation. We’ll look at how to write about who we are, how the personal is always political, and how to shape a lens that feels distinctly our own. Through writing exercises and shared inquiry, we’ll explore the inner child, voice, pleasure, and place, childhood, self-definition and language, paying attention to our habits, desires, and contradictions. Using humour, wry insight, and joy, we’ll deepen our writing and allow it to speak to the subconscious.

A 6 week online writing course with writer + performer Kate Ireland. Designed to explore writing as a tool for release, wellbeing, joy and self-discovery. Leaning into sensitivity and the subconscious, less about formal concerns and more about how we can see ourselves on the page through play and imagination. A space to chat, experiment and write freely in a judgement free space. From the comfort of your own home!

Whether you're a seasoned writer or just starting to put pen to paper, this course offers a unique opportunity to tap into your inner-world through words. Over the five weeks, you'll engage in activities, prompts and discussions that encourage self-expression and help you find your authentic voice.

Kate Ireland brings her experience and passion for storytelling to guide you through sessions that focus on the emotional and self-effacing aspects of writing. 

All levels of experience encouraged and welcome! This is a course for curious creatives as well as established writers. !

Kate Ireland is a poet, performer, and facilitator whose work explores connection, behavioural patterns and neurodivergence (amongst other things!). Drawing on years of experience in spoken word, theatre, and community arts, she creates welcoming, dynamic workshops that help writers of all levels develop confidence in their voice and craft. Her workshops combine creative play, practical writing techniques, and thoughtful discussion, offering participants space to experiment, reflect, and generate new work. Whether working with emerging writers, community groups, or experienced artists, Kate's approach is rooted in curiosity, collaboration, and the belief that everyone has a story worth telling.

Based in Manchester and originally from Glasgow, Kate performs and teaches across the UK. Her poetry has been featured at festivals, theatres, and arts venues nationwide. Her one woman show Golden Time (and other behavioural management strategies) debuted at the Edinburgh Fringe 2025 and has since toured the UK. Her debut poetry collection Adaptive Strategies for a Sensitive System came out with Burning Eye Books this year, and she has released various music projects in collaboration with DJS and producers. 

FAQs

I've not got much experience can I still join the course?
Absolutely. The prompts are designed for all levels, so you can begin from wherever you are. The course does encourage you to challenge yourself and to develop your creative voice through generating new material. A willingness to experiment -and to embrace trial, error, and discovery-is important.

I can’t make certain sessions. Is that okay?
Yes. While attending as many sessions as possible is helpful for building a supportive group dynamic, recordings will be provided to anyone who misses a class. However, the course isn’t designed for passive participation, so engaging with the work between sessions is encouraged.

Is the course mainly poetry?
I consider myself primarily a storyteller and have worked across theatre, film, performance art, and poetry. That said, the course does lean toward poetic writing for inspiration, structure, and voice. Many people join to develop their writing across all forms- essays, memoir, narrative, lyrics -but the focus is often on looking inward and cultivating self-reflection rather than writing a fictional novel.

Will I be required to share my work?
No. Sharing is encouraged but never mandatory. Many participants who are hesitant at first often choose to share later on, as previous groups have been consistently kind, supportive, and generous, helping create a safe and brave space.

Is the course structured like lectures on writing craft?
Not quite. Rather than technical lectures, the course offers relaxed, playful prompts that help open your imagination and subconscious. You’ll receive guidance, examples, and useful editing tips, but the emphasis is on facilitating your own writing process rather than teaching formal principles of English literature or poetic technique.

Feedback from previous course participants:

‘A perfect place to write with others and connect, through listening, writing and sharing as much as you want to. There was never any pressure to share and everyone who did was supported and encouraged all the way by Kate and the group.’

‘The prompts were perfectly curated and Kate guided us through ways to find new ways of looking at ourselves and the everyday. I came away from the workshop with multiple ideas and techniques I want to return to and expand and I am convinced any writer would find their notebooks bulging with ideas from the course. Finally, the final feedback session was so inspiring, hearing others work and how everyone listened and responded to each other was a magic end to the course’

‘Kate's manner and warmth in the sessions made everyone feel comfortable. There was a real mix of experiences within the world of writing, but everyone was able to learn from each other, as well as from Kate's own experience. A brilliant course, would definitely recommend.’

‘This course was the highlight to my week. Kate structured the course so beautifully allowing us to build up our experiences in trying out different ways of writing. There was never any pressure to share, but sharing and hearing other's work was incredibly enriching. Kate established such a safe atmosphere and her feedback was always really useful. Before this course, I'd hardly ever shared any of my writing and now I feel much more confident and intend to start going to open mic nights to perform’