Poetry was in the air in Saffron Walden on Wednesday as twenty of our young writers celebrated the release of two books at Hart’s Books. Lilly Worboyes read from her Greek mythological story, Tartarus’ Box, and her peers from Writers Room, based at Fairycroft House, recited poems from the third anthology published by Creative Walden.
“So many of them realise that writing from the heart has a way of easing their troubles and so we get these incredibly striking works of deep emotion and authenticity,” said Paul Bellany who started the group in 2017. “Five years ago we launched book one, we’re now on our seventh publication and the group is achieving more than we ever thought possible.”
Alice Bromell, whose book ‘The girl who decided to go for it’ was published in 2022, gave a moving tribute to Laura Worboyes and all the parents who wholeheartedly support the ‘total creative freedom’ ethos of Writers Room. Laura and her daughter Lily, 13, who suffers from the debilitating condition SPD, climbed Scafell Pike last year and raised over two thousand pounds which helped the group meet the shortfall now that local funding has been dramatically reduced.
“Writing has helped me through challenging times and has allowed me to process, release and express all sorts of feelings. The children are lucky to have creative writing in their toolkit to help them through their lives,” said Alice Bromell.
