We are currently seeking London-based writers of Caribbean descent between the ages of 18 and 35 to apply to be part of our new Windrush Project - Wi Deh Yah.
Wi Deh Yah is an 8-week creative programme for London residents from a Caribbean heritage aged 18+, exploring Windrush archives. Participants will engage directly with historical materials connected to the Windrush generation and create new poems and short stories inspired by and in response to these archives.
The programme combines guided archive visits, critical conversations about archival practice, and creative writing workshops led by Caribbean writers and archivists. The project culminates with a public showcase and a filming of participants reading/ performing their work. Thus, preserving, reinterpreting and amplifying Windrush stories.
The project includes:
Archivist facilitators: Tianna the Writer and KaitleneKoranteng
Creative writing facilitators: Leone Ross and Courtney Conrad
Archive workshops will offer an introduction to the Windrush generation and the importance of archives in preserving Black British history. Learning and discussing what archives are, who they are for whose stories are often missing. introduced to handling archival materials and ethical engagement. Discussion on how archives shape national memory and identity. Navigating digital archives, Reading between the gaps, Understanding silence, absence, and erasure
Please note, visiting archives (travel can be reimbursed)
Creative Writing workshops will offer reflective writing exercises based oninitialresponses to archival items. Techniques for transforming archival material into poetry: Exploring voice, form, fragmentation, and memory. Writing new poems inspired by selected archive pieces. Using archival material as a starting point for fiction Exploring character, voice, and imagined histories Writing short stories that honour archival truths while embracing creativity. editing and feedback
Dates:
To apply, please send a sample of your writing this can be two poems or a short story (5000 words max).
If you have any questions about this opportunity, please contact courtney@londonwriterscentre.org.uk