Date/Time
Date(s) - Thu 5th Jun - Sat 28th Jun, 2025
6:30pm - 8:30pm
Finding hope in loss
Writing from a place of pain, about people and things that are no longer with us can be really hard. How do we begin to write the vastness of grief and loss, and what can it do for us? How do we write into our grief rather than around it? I’ve had my share of loss and pain, of losing myself and loved ones, and have experienced loss of connections and home. I have found that writing has helped, even though the pain and loss seems insurmountable at times. In this gently paced and supportive four-week writing course, we will look at other seminal writings about loss and pain in poetry, fiction/auto-fiction and non-fiction, and workshop your own narratives in a safe space.
We will look at how we can process grief and loss, how we turn the messy and raw ball of emotions into words, how we write from a place of vulnerability, what can writing do for us (and what it cannot do), what strategies and tools we can use, and how – and if – we can channel some of the despair and grief into hope and change. We will work through writing prompts in each class, and you are welcome to share as much or as little as you want.
You will be in online workshops with a group of up to 12 participants writing into grief and loss, likely to be covering some sensitive issues, with your tutor and a member of Moniack Mhor staff present at all times. We will strive to create a safe and nurturing online space for everyone taking part, and hold space for your feelings. We’re sorry that neither your tutor nor Moniack Mhor staff are trained to be able to offer individual therapeutic support during the course.
Moniack in a Month: Writing into Grief includes:
- a short introductory welcome session
- four stimulating online workshops, preceded by optional drop-in social time
- one 30-minute tutorial
- a final ceilidh session – sharing of work (optional)
- Contact and support from your community of writers via Google Classroom (optional)
- Drop-ins before each workshop to help you get to know your group (optional)
- Support from your Moniack Mhor host
Pragya’s workshops will focus on the following themes:
Workshop 1 – How to begin?
Workshop 2 – Saying the hard stuff
Workshop 3 – Room to breathe
Workshop 4 – Hope is the thing with feathers
Timetable
Week 1 Thursday 5 June 18:30–21:00 Welcome Session and Workshop 1
Week 2 Thursday 12 June 18:30–20:30 Workshop 2
Week 3 Thursday 19 June 18:30–20:30 Workshop 3
Week 4 Thursday 27 June 18:30–20:30 Workshop 4
Week 4 Friday 28 June 18:30–20:30 Ceilidh
Tutorials
Your one-to-one tutorial with Pragya will be scheduled when the course starts and will most likely take place in weeks 2 or 3. You’ll be invited to submit up to 1,000 words (fiction, non-fiction etc) in advance. Pragya regrets she is unable to offer comment on poetry.
Tutor
Pragya Agarwal is a visiting professor of social inequities at Loughborough, a visiting scholar at University of Oxford, and a Royal Literary Fund Fellow at the University of Cambridge. She is the author of four widely acclaimed non-fiction books including Sway (which was Guardian ‘Book of the Week’ and NYPL ‘Book of the Day’), Hysterical and (M)otherhood that were nominated as best smart thinking and popular science books of the year. Pragya has also written for The Guardian, New Scientist, Wired, Scientific American. Times Literary Supplement, Literary Hub, amongst others. Besides being a senior academic in US and UK universities for over 20 years, Pragya has also been teaching creative writing for Arvon, Irish Writers’ Centre and Ty Newydd.
Fees
The full fee for this online course is £360. A deposit of £100 is required to secure your place, which is non-refundable after a 14-day cooling-off period. The balance payment of £260 is due six weeks before the course begins.
Bursaries are available, and you also have the option to pay in instalments, please email online@moniackmhor.org.uk to enquire.
All activity takes place on Zoom, and workshops include a short break. Moniack Mhor staff will be on hand to support you during your course.
For more information please email online@moniackmhor.org.uk.
Access
Please let us know in your booking form if you have any access requirements when working online so we can do our best to support you. For more information about access to our courses, please visit our Access page.
Terms and Conditions
Please read our Terms & Conditions before booking.