I’m a workshop facilitator at Fighting Words NI. Last spring, following my graduation from Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, I received the Lumos Travel Award. This award provides funding for Belmont alumni to explore ideas which impassion them through self-designed, international work projects. Throughout the course of my English degree, I studied storytelling’s potential to support individual empowerment and social change movements. I chose to do my Lumos project with Fighting Words NI because stories are at the heart of the organisation – everything here revolves around a steadfast belief in their power.
My very first workshop, last September, was on Zoom, and I remember feeling intimidated by even the simplest of roles. I was nervous that I wouldn’t be able to understand the children’s accents, or that I would freeze and forget what I was supposed to do. My workshop leaders accommodated my nerves graciously and gently encouraged me to take on more. By December, I was leading workshops, transformed from tentative typist to confident story-maker. Each workshop has been unique and completely invigorating.
I can’t begin to recount all that I have learned through workshop facilitation. Fighting Words NI is a place where humility, precision, humour, quick thinking, compassion, intentionality, reflection and silliness come into practice every day. Each aspect of our workshops has been carefully crafted to best serve the child and the spirit of creativity. We employ playful props and characters to generate a sense of magic, refer to the young people as authors to convey our confidence in them, de-emphasise grammar and spelling to release them from perfectionistic inhibitions, use our first names to subvert typical classroom expectations, affirm everyone’s suggestions to eliminate the fear of failure, and debrief after every session to evaluate how we could improve the next workshop. Although these practices have been intentionally constructed, nothing is taken for granted or set in stone. Our commitment to constant reflection and evaluation keeps us out of pedagogical ruts which serve tradition more than the young people.
By inviting young people into a space where they can be themselves, exercise creativity earnestly and without judgment, and receive guidance and affirmation from adults, we open them to a world they may never have previously imagined. Time and time again, teachers and students alike are shocked by how much the young people enjoy and excel at writing stories. Once freed from the rigid rules and expectations of the traditional classroom setting, students are lit on fire by an enthusiasm for storytelling, writing, and sharing. They are empowered by the knowledge that this skill has always resided within them. The concept of creative writing shifts from a burden to a passion. It is so fulfilling to watch this happen right in front of me – some students start out their individual writing time feeling dejected about having no ideas, but after a few questions from a Fighting Words mentor, inspiration strikes. Sparks light in their eyes and they’re off to the races, ideas spilling from their mouths faster than their pencils can move. The magic starts in our workshops, but it follows the children back to their classrooms – many continue writing the stories they started with us and retain their newfound enthusiasm for thinking imaginatively.
After the children leave each workshop, there is a palpable buzz in the room. We all feel the glow of being in a space where creative freedom reigns. The process is transformative, and I have found my own perspective shifted by my interactions with young creatives. I admire their generous emotions, their delight for all things outrageous and their earnest desire to share brilliant ideas. It requires an incredible amount of vulnerability to pour your heart into creating something and then share it with others, but these young writers do it every day in Fighting Words spaces.
Storytelling can change lives. It creates empathy, sparks discussions, connects strangers and represents diverse experiences. We need stories on a personal, local, and global scale. I can’t wait to see all our young people, empowered in their ability to create, authoring goodness in the world.
