Kingston, Jamaica: The Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC), an agency of the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport will host five, intensive and engaging Creative Writing workshops. The workshop series will run from Tuesday November 21 to Tuesday, December 5, and will be instructed by top local writers, covering the areas of Essay, Novel, Play, Poetry and Short Story. The workshops will be held at the Louise Bennett Garden Theatre, 36 Hope Road, Kingston 10, beginning at 10:00 a.m.

 

The first of the series, the Novel Writing workshop will be held on Tuesday, November 21 under the tutelage of Dr. Aisha Spencer, while the Play Writing Workshop will be held on Thursday, November 23 and the Short Story writing workshop on Thursday, November 29 will be taught by Dr. Harold McDermott and Mrs. Anna-Lisa Rodriguez respectively. The Poetry writing workshop will be held on Friday December 1 and will also be led by Dr. Aisha Spencer while the Essay writing workshop will be held on Tuesday, December 5 and will be taught by Miss Trisan Brown.

 

Registration will take place at the workshops, beginning at 8:30 a.m. at a cost of $2,000 per participant per workshop, inclusive of lunch and workshop materials and a Certificate. Interested persons may also contact JCDC parish offices or the Head Office to register before November 21.

 

“Writing is a major part of the Jamaican Creative Industry and over the years the JCDC has facilitated the literary development of numerous well known Jamaican writers through both our writing workshops and the annual Jamaica Creative Writing Competition and Exhibition.” said Stephen Davidson, Director of Marketing and Public Relations at the JCDC.

 

“These workshops are open to all aspiring and professional writers who are looking to hone their skills, including those preparing entries for the upcoming Jamaica Creative Writing Competition.” Davidson continued.

The Jamaica Creative Writing Competition has been one of the best channels of providing Jamaican writers with the opportunity of recognizing and validating their talent, while showcasing and promoting writers and their original work.

 

The competition is divided into three levels: Junior, Intermediate and Adult and awards are given to the top writers in each level of the five areas. Entrants are encouraged to write about the Jamaican experience.

 

Entries for the competition are now open, and will remain so until April 27, 2018. Persons can access entry forms, rules and competition guidelines from the JCDC website, www.jcdc.gov.jm, its Head Office at 3-5 Phoenix Avenue in Kingston or Parish Offices across the island.