Feeling stuck in a writing project? Making something with our hands can often be helpful to think creatively.
In this practical and imaginative workshop, writer and artist Roua Horanieh will guide you through simple making and drawing exercises designed to help you visualise ideas, overcome creative blocks, and discover new directions for your work.
When we’re making something beautiful, meaningful, or simply fun, we can lightly hold an idea in our minds and let it gently look for places to wander into. Places that can sometimes surprise us and that are sure to spark our curiosity and fuel our imagination.
Roua Horanieh has years of experience working in architecture and collaborating with art practices. She regularly draws and makes models when developing her writing projects.
Sometimes the models and drawings are ways to explore the actual structure of an essay, a scene or a story, but sometimes they are just a development tool, a way to think about the elements of a text, the characters, the locations, the themes, the action taking place, the tension in the narrative, the dramatic questions.
What to expect
In this session, you will be invited to think about your writing project and lightly hold in your mind a challenge you are facing.
With simple materials we will provide, you will be encouraged and supported to make a small model or a sketch and to explore how it can help you get better clarity on how you would like to move forward with your writing project.
You will be able to continue this practice in your own time, exploring your challenges in a light, playful and creative way.
What you will take away from the session:
- a new approach to tackling the challenges of your writing project.
- a materialised visual of how you could structure your writing or your thoughts around your writing.
- an inspired and energised sense of your writing project.
- better clarity around what you’re trying to do with your writing project.
Roua Horanieh
Roua Horanieh is a playwright, fiction and non-fiction writer whose work explores place, migration and storytelling. Originally from Syria and now based in the UK, she is also an overseas-qualified architect who has collaborated with artists and communities on creative and participatory projects.
Her play Home, Pizza/Visa and a Pledge to the Queen was shortlisted for the Royal Shakespeare Company’s 37 Plays Competition in 2023 and toured Germany in 2024. Her writing has appeared in Hold To Record, From the Silence of the Stacks, Counterpoints Arts Blog and The Millions. She works extensively with migrant communities and has led workshops for organisations including Compass Collective, Babylon Migrants Project and Brunel University.
NCW Academy Bursary Programme
There is one bursary space available for this workshop.
You are eligible to apply for an NCW bursary if:
- You are a full-time student or pensioner
- You are in receipt of Jobseekers’ Allowance, Disability Benefits, Income Support, Universal Credit or Working Tax Credits
- You have an income of less than £18,000 per year
- If none of these apply but you feel you are still eligible, you may be asked to submit a signed declaration outlining your circumstances.
To apply for the bursary placement, email academy@nationalcentreforwriting.org.uk with the name of the course/workshop you would like to attend. Please also attach one of the following proofs of low income listed here.
Plan your visit
National Centre for Writing is located in the heart of Norwich city centre by the river, and is easily accessible by foot and by public transport. Plan your visit with our guide to the local area, including transport and nearby attractions, as well as full details on accessibility on site.
Accessibility
We want to ensure that Dragon Hall is open and accessible for all. It is largely wheelchair accessible and is equipped with two raising platform lifts, disabled access toilets, hearing loop facilities and some dimmable lighting. Click below for details on parking, access into the building, a breakdown of terrain, facilities, and more.
Box office & shop
Our box office and shop is located within the entrance space of Dragon Hall. Visit us between 10am–3pm on Sundays & Mondays. Payment by card only. Outside of these hours, book online via the website or call us at 01603 877177.
Explore more workshops
It’s What’s Inside That Counts: Body Horror Fiction with Amy Twigg
Join Amy Twigg for a fiction-focused workshop exploring why body horror resonates so strongly today and how you can harness its power in your own work.
Saturday 7 November
What Can A Novelist Learn from Standup? with Fran Fabriczki
Take inspiration from the world of stand-up comedy to invigorate your writing with this exciting craft workshop.
Saturday 6 February
Character-Led Screenplay Writing with David Drake
This creative workshop will demonstrate the ways we can develop our characters, follow their lead, and put decisions in their hands so our screenplays feel more alive.
Saturday 27 February