About Gateless Writing Salons
Gateless Writing Salons create a container for writers to practice radical self-compassion and take an appreciative stance to the creative process and their work.
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In a typical session, we sink into the subconscious via a sudden prompt to allow what wants to come to spill onto the page, then move into a more expansive time to write "alone among others." After, we come together to read our new work fresh from the page.
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No critique is given, just a few pearls of purely positive feedback. These sessions are excellent for writers at every stage, from curious beginners to seasoned authors. Everyone benefits from the time and supportive space these salons create.
About Word and Image Workshops
An immersion into a Word and Image Workshop explores the interplay of how visual expression can inspire and inform the written word, and, as well, how the narratives and sentiments of our poetry and prose can be expressed via two and three-dimensional work, including mixed media collage and assemblages, but also ephemeral art made in nature that is left and let go.
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This approach allows us to begin our work without the burden of self-doubt, old stories, and critical voices. It offers the opportunity to suspend judgment about the creative process and reformulate and deepen our processes of art-making.
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All Levels Of Experience Are Welcome
The methodologies, by nature, delve into the notion of Shoshin (Zen Buddhism) or “beginner’s mind.” We believe that when we meet, we are all beginners, new each time to each other, and new to the current experience. We strive to let go of preconceptions about our own creative impulses and those of others. We strive to be open and eager in the promise of a wide-open page, no matter how beginner or advanced we feel we are in a particular skillset.
Jodi is a natural teacher and mentor. Her knowledge of the writing process and her experience as a writer provides a strong foundation as she effortlessly guides writers to dig deep within ourselves. She supports and nurtures us while we bring our best and truest writing to the page.
Mary Anne Moisan, Physical Therapist, Maine