Kildare Arts Service : Press Releases

An Introduction to Life Writing with Dr Francesca Bratton

Are you a writer or creative practitioner based in county Kildare keen to delve into ways to generate new work inspired and influenced by archives and sites of historical interest? Join Francesca Bratton for a series of writing workshops delivered in situ at some of these locations in county Kildare. Through this series of 4 stand-alone workshops writers can aim to: 
  • begin or develop their own projects,
  • gain access to archival material and arts education in Co Kildare
  • learn more about local archival treasures & expertise.

Francesca Bratton is the Kildare Writer in Residence 2023/24, an initiative supported by the Department of English, Maynooth University and Kildare Library & Arts Services.  

Workshop 1: Life Writing: Exploring Subjects
Maynooth Library
Wed 21st February, 10am - 12pm
Through reading and discussing literary and historical examples, an introduction to the genre of life writing and its possibilities (biography, historical fiction, family histories, memoir, etc). Experiment with creative exercises that explore structure, time frames, subjects, points of view, drawing on records relating to the Teresa Brayton Archive.

Workshop 2: Life Writing: Finding the Fragments
Ballitore Library 
Wed 20th March, 10am - 12pm
Delve into the materials held in the Mary Leadbetter Archive. Familiarise yourself with the materials and respond to the documents through a series of exercises (collage, erasure, experimental cartography).

Workshop 3: Life Writing: Lost Histories
Celbridge Library
Fri 19th April, 10am - 12pm
Consider the lost stories within the institutions of the Poor Law Unions such as Celbridge Workhouse. Consider the various possible ways of structuring a piece of life writing by experimenting with short, generative creative tasks, referring to works written in response to places.

Workshop 4: Life Writing: Stories in Miniature
Maynooth Library, 
Tue 21st May, 6pm - 8pm
Examine materials from the Middleton Collection of World War One Postcards, to consider the small worlds that can be contained within a handful of words. Experiment with the postcard as a method for crafting flash fiction, or creating the beginning of a story to work with. Investigate various “false start” techniques, teasing out how each participant might approach their project, and removing the fear of the blank page.

Apply to participate:

Apply here

Places are limited. Participants will be shortlisted.
Deadline to apply: 12pm (midday) Wednesday 7th February 2024

image credit: Ballitore, a poem, from Kildare County Archives. 



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