Workshops For Writers - May 7: Writing About Mental Health
Join Meredith Tate and John Allen from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on May 7 for an in-person writing workshop hosted by the St. Louis Writers Guild. This workshop will be held in person at The Lodge Des Peres, 1050 Des Peres Rd., St. Louis, MO, 63131 and will also live-stream on Zoom.
The workshop will follow the 2/28/22 St. Louis County Health Advisory. MASKS ARE OPTIONAL, and we will not collect attendee information for contact tracing. No food or drinks will be served.
10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Meredith Tate presents: Mental Illness, Psychiatric Hospitals, and Therapy in Fiction: AKA How to Write About Mental Health Without Being a Jerk.
Mental illness, psychiatric hospitals, and therapy are often depicted in fiction. But how often is that portrayal inaccurate—or worse, harmful? This talk by social worker Meredith Tate will take a deep dive into common mental health tropes, including myths versus facts, and explore how to accurately discuss these topics in your own writing in a way that doesn’t contribute to stigma.
11 a.m. to 12 p.m. John Allen presents: A Narrative Approach to Depicting Mental Illness.
When people become ill in their bodies, they use story and narrative to make sense of their condition. So too with mental illness. In this workshop presented by hospital chaplain John Allen, we will look at the concept of illness narrative and how a narrative-based approach to writing about mental illness avoids common tropes associated with it. We will also look at examples of fiction and nonfiction that authentically portray mental health issues using a narrative approach.
For the Zoom address, find the turquoise “Join current SLWG meeting” button at the top of the St. Louis Writers Guild’s Events page (http://www.stlwritersguild.org/events).
John Kevin Allen is a hospital chaplain and clinical pastoral educator who has specialized in the pastoral care of those suffering from mental illness in outpatient and inpatient settings. He regularly offers in-house workshops on mindfulness and on the power of narrative in the pastoral care of behavioral health issues. His writings have placed in the Soulmaking Keats Literary Contest and have found a home in The Journal of Pastoral Care and Counseling, Broadview Magazine, and Chicken Soup for the Soul. He earned his graduate and doctoral degrees from Eden Theological Seminary in St. Louis, where he serves as an adjunct instructor. He and his wife live in High Ridge, where they spoil their three grandchildren and four cats. He is at work on his first novel.
Meredith Tate is a licensed social worker who grew up in Concord, New Hampshire, where she fell in love with her two passions–writing and traveling. She earned her master’s degree in social work from the University of New Hampshire and has lived in three countries. Currently, Meredith lives in St. Louis with her husband and spoiled rescue dog. When Meredith’s not writing, she loves photography, playing the piano, trying new recipes, and chasing her goal of seeing every continent.