Express Yourself:
Writing the Messy First Draft
Join us for the creative workshop Writing the Messy First Draft: A Somatic Approach to Creative Writing
Does perfectionism stop you before you’ve written a single word? Does your inner critic hijack the creative process? This workshop teaches you how to bypass the editor and access authentic voice through your body.
Using breathwork, bilateral movement, and embodied writing exercises, you’ll learn to quiet mental chatter and write from a grounded, present state. We’ll explore the neuroscience behind creative flow and practice somatic techniques that shift you out of “editor brain” and into generative mode.
| Participants will:
– Understand how nervous system regulation supports creative expression – Practice body-based techniques for accessing creative flow – Generate 3-5 pieces of raw written material using sensory prompts – Learn to write from body memory rather than mental narrative – Take home a resource guide with somatic writing practices to continue using them independently
All materials will be provided. This workshop is open to writers of any level, with no previous somatic experience required. |
Works created during the workshop may be submitted for the Morrin Centre’s call for zine publications.
Come ready to move, breathe, and get some words on the page!
Check out the Morrin Centre Website Here: https://www.morrin.org/en/event/express-yourself-writing-the-messy-first-draft/?mc_cid=66a2230d63&mc_eid=783d4e7481
Workshop Facilitator
Amanda Jeanne is a writer and visual artist based in Lac-Beauport who integrates somatic practices into both her art-making and teaching. She publishes “Squirrel Brain, Chickadee Soul” on Substack, exploring creative practice, neurodivergence, and immigrant experience in Quebec. Amanda facilitates intuitive painting workshops and creative retreats with an embodied approach and is currently completing a memoir. Her training includes AMI Quebec’s “Write from the Heart” workshop series, therapeutic arts facilitation, and Somatic Activated Healing (SAH) method practice. You can find her work online on her website and on Substack.
The project Express Yourself—From Thought to Zine is made possible thanks to the support of the Government of Canada.