Monday 15 April 2013

Dreams & Writing Course in Bahareya - it was AMAZING!!!

I am just back from the fabulous residential writing course I just ran in Bahareya, Egypt. 

 It was an amazing experience for us all; such sheer beauty and tranquility in the deserts and oases; so many riches available for one's writing.

I can't wait to do the next one and will start planning soon!

Huge thanks to the great work from Cresco - Dalia Abou Senna & Claes Raben who organised the travel, tours, accommodation and bliss and the wonderful, beautiful people who came along on the course: Mehra Magd, Hanaa Hammad, Mona Yassin, Hanna Sistek, Mohammed Yahia, Mirette Baghat, Nora Tee, Ola El Ababby, Mina Sonbol, Myriam Rizkillah. 

You can view the whole set of photos here: 
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151645133205337.1073741830.781050336&type=1&l=69d7266609

and you can read about what the course comprised of from an old post here: http://www.writerscentre.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-few-places-still-left-on-bahareya.html





Saturday 6 April 2013

Come Join Us On the Desert Creative Writing Trip!!! 3 Places Left!!

Dear Writers! and Dreamers!

I hope you are well and that you might want to join us on the upcoming Dreams & Writing course in Bahareya (April 12th - 14th). A relaxing and inspiring break of writing tutorial, tours and quality accommodation: http://writerscentre.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-few-places-still-left-on-bahareya.html

We leave Friday 12th April at 8am in a private coaster bus and come back about 7pm into Cairo on Sunday 14th April. There are 3 places available.

All information is on the advert on the Writers' Centre: http://writerscentre.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-few-places-still-left-on-bahareya.html

Thanks and all best, Linda


Friday 15 March 2013

'Dreams & Writing' - a 3 day Residential Creative Writing Holiday in Bahareya

Dear World!!!!

Well!  Hello!  It's been a long time since I posted here! But mark my words I have been busy and you will see why, how and doing what if you check out my main blogs:
http://www.artsresidencycairo.blogspot.com/ and http://www.writerscentre.blogspot.com/

Anyway! Without further ado - the residential Creative Writing holidays are back and this time in fabulous places other than the beautiful Fayoum.

Go check out this fabulous 3 day residential Creative Writing course that I am taking to the Bahareya oasis and desert in April!!!

http://www.writerscentre.blogspot.com/2013/03/dreams-writing-3-day-residential.html



Your Leap to Inspiration


More fabulous residentials coming up over the year.

Be part of it!

Keep watching for updates and email me if interested!

Friday 23 March 2012

The Writers' Centre

It's been a long, long time since I posted in here but life and creative endeavours have been on the ever paced fast track in Cairo and I am now unveiling my new long term project:

The Writers' Centre
opening soon
www.writerscentre.blogspot.com

A space for writers to hang out, write, use and contribute to the private library, network and share with an ongoing menu of events, readings, workshops, courses, salons and surgeries


Also offering:

Writing days out in places of inspiration and interest

Residential writing holidays to various places in Egypt such as Bahariya oasis, Nuweiba, Aswan, Siwa and Fayoum

Tuesday 5 April 2011

Plans for new residential and article

I haven't posted in here for a LONG time!!! But I have plans for a new residential course soon and will post when I have made plans.

However..Tings are BUSY in Cairo and here is an article on me and what's happening, out today!!!

http://www.thedailynewsegypt.com/art/linda-cleary-speaking-truth-in-poetry.html#

Friday 1 October 2010

Bliss in the Oasis

The 1st three day residential creative writing course in the Fayoum oasis last weekend was amazing! What beautiful serendipity that 11 people could come together and harmonise in such a wonderful way and produce great work too.

The daily workshops were focused and intensive, the social 'chill out' times were inspiring, easy and fun, the food was great (!), the location was perfect and the nights were trimmed with readings of work and sharing stories.

Thank you Mostafa, Zeinab, Nawara, Nariman, Amany, Amira, Passant, Dalia, Nick and Ismail; I got a lot of love for you guys! :-))

Testimonials here:

The course was truly an amazing experience for me and as brief as it was, was an eye opener for me in reference to things I should work on and in terms of trying to explore my potential and stretch my writing, versus, sticking to doing what I have always done.
The workshop, has also helped me identify my strengths as a writer, which I have come to conclude lies is in my ideas, and not in the eloquence of my writing. Having said that, I still will work on my writing, to make it more “powerful” with creativity and possibly by utilizing more subtle forms of expression.
Amany Eid


It's been an unforgettable experience, one that I will constantly look back on and smile.
Passant Rabie

I'm truly grateful to have attended this creative retreat with such a genuine group of people. I would do this again anytime without a moment's hesitation.

There are two complementary sides to Linda's creative writing course, each of which is reason enough to take the course over and over again. The first is that it opens up your writing in the way that it needs; if you often get blocked then you will learn to inspire inspiration, and if you often use the same clichés then you will learn to construct new forms of vivid and poetic images. The second side is the profound human experience that the course offers; the mere meeting of aspiring souls with common interest who share and interact and find refuge in their collective understanding is empowering, to say the least. Thank you Linda!

Mostafa Hashish


I signed up for this course not knowing what to expect. At most I was hoping to learn a couple of techniques that I could maybe use and,like the shy student I always was in class, hoped that I wouldn't be called on too much to read. Of course it turned out to be so much more -- a truly profound experience on all fronts. Eye-opening, inspiring,constructive, delicious, relaxing (a bit itchy at times)...and to share it with a group of people like all of you, it just couldn't have been more perfect.

Linda you are a truly inspiring and amazingly talented woman! Thank you for guiding us through this profound experience.

Amira Ahmed


Like everyone else, I'm still on a Fayoum high. It's funny how I'm having a hard time putting into words the way I felt about a writing course!

You should know that signing up for this course was completely out of character. Breaking my routine and spending a weekend away with 10, well 8, people I've never met is so unlike me. Little did I know that it would be the most amazing, inspiring experience and that I would grow so attached to the group. We are a very diverse group of people and to me that is what made us special.
I'm glad we were the first 10 students to go on this residential course and I don't know how anyone can follow that :)
Dalia Rabie

Maybe we don't know that much about each other, but we have reached a place, a sanctuary,  where we know we can always be, and where no one else will fit the bill, except us The Ghosts of Fayoum, in that island of creativity.

I came to the course as a suffocating petrified writer. My words were stifled, unwilling to be uttered. They evaded me, almost like they disapproved of me, and so were punishing me by not being there. With the first assignment they seemed to group together and decided to give me another chance.

As the minutes went by and the written pieces kept coming, my words have finally forgiven me I think, for letting them be stifled, and by my own hands.

On a more down to earth note, Linda, you have opened a new window in my form of expression. As a writer, I was more concerned with structure, plot and story-line. You opened the window onto a vast universe of words, forms and a new fusion thereof. You have set me free.

Zeinab Mubarak


It's so hard for me to express how I feel because I'm in a state of mind where if I really think about in depth about that amazing weekend I would be incapable to face the facts I'm dealing with now. It has left a huge impact on my life and perspective. Bless you.

Nawara Belal

Wednesday 22 September 2010

2 days to Go!!

In two days I will be taking the 10 participants of the first Residential Oasis Creative Writing course to Zad al Mosafer in Fayoum and we are all very excited :-)

Abdo Gobair, the proprietor of Zad al Mosafer, has been wonderful and we are looking forward to a comfortable stay in the stunning natural beauty of Tunis, Fayoum.

I will post photos and notes on the course next week!!!