Bruised, Burning, Beautiful: Writing through Emergency with Kerri ní Dochartaigh

How do we write of these times?

How do we write of this earth?

How do we write of this earth in these times?

On this writing course you will seek to find ways to write of the natural world— our kith and our ki and our kin alike— in light of the various crises of our age.

You will consider what it means to be a human animal living alongside other humans as well as other-than-humans; how we might give voice to the in-between-ness of our relationships, one with the other.

You will explore texts that unravel and challenge our views on how we might write the world around us— of which we are but one part.

You will look at technique; examine old and new writings of the natural world; consider authorial voice and discuss themes of responsibility, diversity and the importance of form when it comes to writing through emergency.

We will give ourselves space to mould our own words through weekly writing exercises designed for those who feel drawn towards stewardship, kinship and community.

We will work together on ways to write heartbrokenness and grief, joy and hope; as a means to bridge the gap between fear and action.

You will leave the class with the knowledge that there is never simply one voice, one way to tell one story; the stories of this earth are multilayered, cacophonous; they glisten in the cracks in between.

Moth and moss,  fixed and fluid, feathered and slimy, seen and unseen; there is still so much to protect, to hold up to the light, to hold close.

There is still time.

Kerri ní Dochartaigh’s first book, Thin Places, was published in Spring 2021, for which she was awarded the Butler Literary Award 2022, and highly commended for the Wainwright Prize for Nature Writing 2021. Her second book, Cacophony of Bone, was published in May 2023. She lives in the west of Ireland with her family.