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Storytelling as a Tool for Connection

Storytelling as a Tool for Connection

Storytelling has been a way for people to pass along knowledge, entertain, and make sense of the unknown. It gathers people together to reflect and deepen ties to community. This creative writing program is designed to offer a space for people to strengthen ties to the community and deepen their sense of belonging. Participants will engage in a series of guided writing exercises, craft techniques, and reflection prompts that foster self-discovery and creative expression. This educational offering allows participants to slow down and imagine future possibilities.

Whether you're a seasoned writer or just beginning to explore the possibilities of developing a writing practice, this program offers a welcoming space to deepen our connections to the NU campus community.

By engaging with these programs, participants will:

  • Use reflective writing to explore personal experiences, thoughts, and emotions
  • Identify and express moments of growth, change, or realization through writing
  • Establish habits for creative and reflective writing
  • Recognize shared human experiences and diverse perspectives through writing

Program Offerings

  • Building a Reflective Writing Practice

    • This mini lesson explores the benefits of developing a reflective writing practice. There are writing exercises, tips for finding your routine, and text suggestions for deepening your understanding of this practical skill. If you want to learn alongside others, you can come to the online workshop on November 13th 6:30pm-8:00pm.
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  • Indigenous Storytelling Zine Making Workshop 

    • November 11, 6–8 p.m. | Women’s Center Community Room
    • A zine-making workshop open to all faculty, staff, and students. Drawing from work focused on Indigenous storytelling and future visioning, this project builds on the power of collective creativity to foster belonging, self-expression, and community care. The workshop centers storytelling as both a deeply personal and inherently relational act that affirms identity, belonging, processes experience, and imagines liberatory futures.
    • Workshop facilitated by Crystal Renee Drake. Crystal Renee Drake is an Odawa queer femme artist, therapist, researcher, and educator whose work lives at the intersection of activism, community engagement, and cultural storytelling. Rooted in fiber and textile practices, their art embraces intuition, bold color, and process as tools for healing, connection, and imagination. They are deeply committed to collaborative, community-based projects that explore personal and collective narratives that center on futures where sovereignty, environmental balance, and cultural continuity thrive. Their research investigates the power of art to address social issues, expand critical thinking, and deepen cultural understanding.
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  • Reflective Writing Workshop: Building a Practice

    • November 13, 6:30–8 p.m | Zoom
    • Reflection is something that we do in passive and sometimes active ways every day. Whether it’s on our way to work, after reading a good book, or trying to think through a particularly difficult question, we are often pausing to mine ourselves for answers. This workshop seeks to offer participants tangible ways to build reflection into a more routine practice. Throughout this workshop, we will engage in writing exercises that can build your personal reflective practice. There will be writing prompts, images, and sounds geared towards using storytelling as a tool for deepening your reflection.

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