Writing as Therapy with Dr Sian Prior

A 4-week course for adoptees and mothers

When: 2 hours per week over 4 weeks

For adoptees: Thursdays from 7 to 9pm, from 2 March to 23 March 2023

For mothers: Wednesdays from 2 to 4pm, from 19 April to 10 May 2023 

Where: Ross House Association, 247/251 Flinders Lane, Melbourne

If you are unable to attend in-person, you can submit an expression of interest to participate online via the registration form below.

About this course:

Writing is a tried and tested method for coping with and understanding personal crises, depression, anxieties, stress and traumatic events. The simple act of putting down words on the page can reflect our attempt to make meaning from the thoughts and feelings and experiences we have. It helps us to gain distance from the things that cause us distress. From keeping a daily diary to penning a poem, all forms of writing can help us to shape narrative from chaos. Therapeutic writing can also help us re-discover our playful selves.

In this four-part course on Writing As Therapy, Dr Sian Prior will lead you through a series of ideas and exercises in therapeutic writing, using a variety of techniques and exploring the methods that might work best for you. Each session will involve a mix of thinking, writing, reading, talking and brainstorming. No experience is necessary and grammar, spelling and writing ability are irrelevant. All participants need to bring is an urge to express themselves, a laptop or PC, and if you like to write by hand, a journal or notepad and a pen. There will be class writing activities but participants’ writing will be kept as private as they wish.

*This course is not specifically designed for adoptees and mothers; rather, it is intended to share techniques that may be helpful, amongst a group of individuals with a similar lived experience.

For a detailed course outline, click here.

About Sian:

Dr Sian Prior is a writer, broadcaster and writing teacher. She has presented programs on ABC Radio and written regular columns for The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald. Sian teaches online short courses in Feature Writing, Creative Non Fiction and Writing As Therapy. She has a doctorate in Creative Writing from RMIT, where she has also taught in the Professional Writing and Editing Associate Degree for many years.

Her first book Shy: a memoir (Text Publishing) came out in 2014. Her second book, Childless: a story of freedom and longing, was published in 2022 and was short-listed for The Age Book of the Year Award.

Website: https://www.sianprior.com/

Sign up

To register your interest for the adoptees’ course, please fill out this form.

To register your interest for the mothers’ course, please fill out this form.

For any other enquiries, please contact us at info@vanish.org.au