Changing the chapter: What’s your story 2024?
Through our Writer in Residence programme for 2024 we developed creative programmes with Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust staff to support their writing skills and tell their own stories in their own words. Our first Writer in Residence, Laura Lindow was hosted in partnership with writing development agency for the North of England, New Writing North.
There were multiple opportunities for staff to get involved to:
- try out something new
- extend your creative writing skills
- build confidence
- carve out a bit of time just for you.
We held:
- drop-in Keep Writing for Wellbeing sessions
- courses for writing poetry, short stories, and fantasy
- 1:1 writing surgeries (surgeries now closed)
- an open call
- a celebration launch for After the Applause, a staff anthology at Northern Stage (this included staff recitals, actors performing staff’s words and live music from Katie Doherty)
During the first Writer in Residence programme, Newcastle Hospitals staff wrote and shared tales creatively. Talking about stories; experimenting with poems, lists, conversations and scribblings. Finding escapism in new futures and alternative realties. We compiled a collection of creative writing pieces from staff, in an anthology. The anthology aims to profile staff’s own stories. The collection, called ‘After The Applause’, paints a portrait of the here and now, through thoughts, hopes, fears, and collective imaginings for possible futures. It also profiles the writing talent and strength of creative voice that we’ve been witness to within Newcastle Hospitals staff teams.
If you would like a free copy of the publication, please email [email protected]
Due to its popularity Laura Lindow will be returning with monthly Keep Writing online wellbeing sessions for staff. Find out more on our keep writing for wellbeing page.
