Unique Sensorial Writing Workshop Hosted By Master Medical Herbalist
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Ever heard a tomato plant under stress?
Be prepared to be amazed at a specialised creative writing session hosted by a Medical Herbalist focusing exclusively on sensorial writing at the upcoming ‘Ireland Writing Retreat’ on Donegal’s beautiful ‘Wild Atlantic Way’ late-June on the west coast of Ireland.
Sensitive, sophisticated micro-recordings of plants under duress are an integral element of this inspirational 3-hour workshop helping participants write convincingly with all their senses, not just the most used one - the visual.
“Touch, taste, smell - they are all as immensely important to our everyday lives as sight so writers who use them more often in their work create a stronger sense of place, of atmosphere and mood, even in developing their characters in a more memorable way,” said Columbia Hillen, Master herbalist and teacher at The Plant Medical School in Wexford, Ireland, a university journalism graduate who was also managing director of a publishing company for more than ten years. “Most writers use visual images to enhance their stories but adding what can be gained through our other senses creates exciting new dimensions to writing styles.”
Columbia’s unique writing workshop combines an absorbing multi-media presentation with the active involvement of participants working closely together with plants and herbs in the classroom.
“Learning about the health-giving benefits of everyday herbs and plants and applying them to help people overcome medical situations is my passion,” said Columbia, who lived in the countryside of Transylvania for many years where her grandmother was a herbalist. “Understanding more about plants and herbs and their effects on us can help improve a person’s ability to produce more evocative sensorial writing.”
In addition to Columbia’s innovative workshop, sessions will also be hosted by author and former international correspondent for The Irish Times and The Times of London, Sean Hillen, and author and creative writing professor, Kathleen Shine Cain Ph.D., Professor Emerita at Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts who also spent a year as a special guest teacher in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
As part of the overall retreat package participants will also enjoy daily excursions into the lush Irish countryside to admire gorgeous coastal scenery and visit key historic and cultural places including a castle with a colorful past, lakeside national gardens, a trip to an iconic mountain strongly linked to local legends about faeries, a ferry-boat to an island with strong literary connections and lunch in a century-old thatched cottage located by the sea where a special workshop will be held. The retreat also includes live evening music and dance performances.
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