Creative Writing workshops
We offer workshops in creative writing; prose and poetry. Please get in touch for details and to discuss your needs: psma@theportico.org.uk
Workshop details:
Delivered to schools and colleges in Greater Manchester
Duration: 2 hours maximum
Key Stages 2, 3, 4 and 5 (Ages 7 - 18 years)
Up to 30 students in a session
Cost: £200.00
See Videos and Resources pages for further inspiration and writing tips
Special workshops inspired by The Portico Library’s book collection:
Maps and places:
Combining Character and Place - generating story ideas with Martin Griffin
Using examples from the Portico collection, young writers will consider the importance of place in short fiction, and experiment with exciting combinations of characters and locations to see which suggest the best stories.
There will also be advice about pace and plotting.
North-West folklore and legends:
Fairy-tale and Folklore Mash-Up with Marie Basting
Inspired by fairy tales and legends from the Portico collection, children will create their own magical characters and write the opening to a fun fantastical story set in the North.
Marie will leave schools with plotting and editing resources.
Travel and explorers:
Looking at stories through a personal lens with Jack Nicholls
Diving into the books in the Portico written by real-life explorers of far-flung locations with poet and filmmaker Jack, students will discover how to write about people and places in a way that feels fresh and personal and begin to write stories about the North that only they could tell.
Resources will be provided so writers can complete their stories.
GCSE texts:
From the Portico Library shelves with Jack Nicholls
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens , Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
Comic Creation:
With Marc Jackson
Learning the skills of telling a story through comic illustration and text
Rewriting Manchester
The Rewriting Manchester Workshop explores why we write about place and what draws us to certain places. This is a chance to explore the alternative scene in Manchester and create something that reflects your vision of that particular place.
Are you a writer, poet, love crafting or are you just a Manchester enthusiast? If so this workshop is for you. The first hour explores place writing and the emotions that go into that process. The second takes a more hands-on approach to creativity - This is where we will focus on bringing all of your ideas together in the form of an 8 page mini zine.
With Abbi Parcell
Praise for the workshops
It was brilliant and I would highly recommend it to all schools. Marie is fabulous!
Tami Wylie, Teacher, Holy Cross Primary School, Oldham
Martin’s workshop was amazing and had fantastic plot ideas
Emily Powell, Librarian, Levenshulme High School
I found Martin’s trip motivational as he told us all about the previous Sadie Massey Awards. He also told us about all the opportunities that come with writing.
Student, Levenshulme High School
After the session, eight have expressed a firm interest in finishing their work for the competition and one brought it in the next day! They all gained lots of confidence that they can take into their GCSEs as well as narrative writing is a key part of the examination.
Paul Blakemore, Deputy Head, Standish High School
I like how we were allowed to come up with our own ideas
Student, The Friars Primary School, Salford
It was really fun! You get to express yourself creatively!
It was good to help with how to write from different perspectives, also Jack was funny and helpful, it was a good session.
Students, Oldham Sixth Form College
Writing tip videos
Writing tip videos to watch or share in the classroom:
https://www.theportico.org.uk/inspiring-videos-from-our-authors
Featuring Jack Nicholls, Marie Basting, Martin Griffin and Reece Williams
Find out more about the Portico Library and its Book Collection that has inspired our creative writing workshops
Emma Marigliano - Independent Researcher and consultant
Emma Marigliano worked for more than 30 years for The Portico Library, and as its Librarian for more than 20 of them until 2017. Illustrated books and illustration are her main areas of interest and research, and she has a considerable personal collection, particularly of illustrated editions of Dante’s Divine Comedy, principally from the 19th century. Emma is currently Chairwoman of the Independent Libraries Association supporting around 40 libraries throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Channel Islands. She is an advocate of the printed book and libraries generally – and is passionate about the value of both.
With thanks to
Meet our team of authors and educators
Marie Basting
Marie Basting writes funny fiction for middle-graders. Her debut novel, the critically acclaimed Princess BMX, was listed by the Guardian and BookTrust in their ‘best new books’ category and has been praised by Gender Collect as one of the best books out there for smashing stereotypes. Her latest books, My Family and Other Romans and Auntie Medusa and Me have been equally well received with the former winning a Books for Topics award for curriculum support.
Told by a career adviser, that girls like her don’t become writers, Marie loves nothing more than inspiring others to believe in themselves and achieve their dreams whatever the limits put on them. Her school and festival events have inspired thousands of children to smash stereotypes and to read and write for pleasure. In 2019 her commitment to championing adult creatives was recognised when she was awarded an Outstanding Contribution Award by the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.
Born in Liverpool, Marie now lives in Manchester where until recently she lectured in creative writing at Manchester Met University. She holds an MA in Creative Writing and a Level 7 qualification in Action Learning.
Find out more at: http://mariebasting.com/ @riewriting
Martin Griffin
Martin Griffin is an award-winning writer of fiction who began his career writing for younger readers (The Poison Boy which won The Times/Chicken House Children’s Book Award, followed by Lifers and Payback) but now writes crime fiction for adults.The Last Visitor was published in August 2024 and his snowbound thriller, The Second Stranger, the previous year. He also has 20 years’ experience teaching post-16 students, latterly as a deputy head teacher. He works with schools and colleges to design and implement effective study skills programmes, and is the author of The A-Level Mindset, The GCSE Mindset and The Student Mindset as well as creative writing handbook Storycraft.
X: @FletcherMoss
Photo credit: Paul Reich
Danielle Jawando
Danielle is an author and screenwriter. Danielle is the author of three YA books: And the Stars Were Burning Brightly, When Our Worlds Collided and If My Words Had Wings. And the Stars Were Burning Brightly, won best senior novel in the Great Reads Award, and was shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, the YA Book Prize, the Jhalak Children’s & YA Prize, the Branford Boase Award and was longlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal, the UKLA Book Awards and the Amazing Book Awards. Danielle’s previous publications include the non-fiction children’s book Maya Angelou (Little Guides to Great Lives), the short stories Paradise 703 (long-listed for the Finishing Line Press Award) and The Deerstalker (selected as one of six finalists for the We Need Diverse Books short story competition), as well as several short plays performed in Manchester and London. Danielle has also worked on Coronation Street as a storyline writer.
Oliver East
Oliver East is an illustrator and public space artist, specialising in comics about architecture, and impromptu public sculpture.
He teaches BA (Hons) Illustration at Sheffield Hallam University.
Oliver is the Art of the Book Award judge
Oliver delivers workshops only in the summer term.
Jack Nicholls
Jack Nicholls is an award-winning playwright, poet, and writer of fiction. He is the 3rd prize winner of the 2020 National Poetry Competition, and his debut poetry pamphlet Meat Songs was published by The Emma Press. Meat Songs was praised by Sabotage Reviews for ‘its surrealism, its dark comedy [and] its pitch-perfect sense of style […] Nicholls has a voice all his own.’ His poems also feature in The Poetry Review, The Scores, and The Tangerine, among many other publications. A member of the Royal Court Theatre’s invitational Writer’s Group and graduate of their ‘Writer’s Group North’, his debut play Harsh Noise Wall was long listed for the 2019 Bruntwood Prize, and received rehearsed readings at the Royal Court and Northern Stage, Newcastle, and his digital play Keep Going Then Vanish was produced by ThickSkin and the Royal Exchange in 2021. He also won a place on the BFI’s 2020 Script Lab, where he developed the screenplay for a short horror film, and makes comedy with a sketch group, with whom he has performed at three Edinburgh Fringe Festivals. As an educator, he is professionally experienced in providing engaging workshops to children and adults of all abilities and needs.
Reece Irvin Williams
Reece Irvin Williams is a graduate of the prestigious Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, holding a 2:1 BA Hons in Music, Theatre and Entertainment Management. He is a Mancunian poet of Jamaican and Trinidadian heritage. Having been a member of the Young Identity and Inna Voice spoken word collectives since 2007, Reece now acts a Peer Mentor and Project Administrator for Young Identity. Since joining YI, Reece has performed on the local, national and international spoken word scene (Brave New Voices, 2008 & 2009; NuYorican Poets Café, 2010).
Links:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSD86Hze30Y
Ella Otomewo
Ella is a poet, artist, and educator who found her voice in the spoken word community; but now creates for both the page and the stage. She is the New Writing Co-ordinator at Cultureword, and has an MA in Creative Writing from the Manchester Writing School at MMU. She has facilitated creative workshops for universities, community groups, libraries, schools, and festivals, and has performed her poetry all over the UK and in Europe.
Instagram: ella.otomewo
X: @EllaOtomewo
Facebook: @EllaOtomewoPoet
Abbi Parcell
Abbi Parcell (BA MA PGCE) is a butch writer and poet based in Manchester. She explores testimony of lived experience through auto-fictional practice. Her work explores intersections that shape personal identity, considering how internal processes intersect with external perceptions. Abbi focuses on the importance of establishing lesbian histories, connections and how radical it has always been for lesbians to simply exist.
She is currently the Writer in Residence at the Portico Library and is completing her PhD in Auto-fiction as Testimony at The University of Salford. Abbi has also worked with The Manchester Poetry Library, The International Anthony Burgess Foundation, Manchester City of Literature, LIRG and The Poetry School London. Her poetry collection Hold Your Metaphors Accountable was released in 2023 and was published by Team Trident Press.
Abbi delivers the Rewriting Manchester Workshops as well as zine-making and creative writing
Marc Jackson
Marc is a cartoonist from the UK, and has created characters and comics for BEANO, The Phoenix, Hey Kids Comics, and is the publisher of GOOF, a new comic for kids! Marc runs Room for comics (a comic art studio in Macclesfield, Cheshire) with his wife Jane, and they also organise MACC-POW! Macclesfield’s annual comic art f