Writing with Pleasure in 2025

Resources for writing productively - with pleasure!

Jan 10, 2025

Dear fellow writer,

If you’re anything like me, you crashed into 2025 full of ambitions for becoming a better writer: more stylish, more productive, more disciplined, more prolific. Perhaps you also dreamed of magically morphing into a kinder friend, a more empathetic teacher, a more assiduous exerciser, a more saintly human being?

Yet here we are, well into January, and most of those resolutions have already fallen by the wayside. Why? Because they weigh us down rather than lifting us up. It’s hard to stick with commitments that make us feel bad about ourselves before we even begin.

That’s why I’m kicking off 2025 in the WriteSPACE with a focus on writing with pleasure. The following resources can help you achieve your writing dreams — not by setting up unrealistic goals and punitive routines, but by leaning into the joy of writing.

The Pleasure Catalyst

First up is my popular Pleasure Catalyst, which runs from February 1 through March 13. I created this course for academic and professional writers (and all kinds of writers!) who want to reframe their negative emotions about writing and discover new paths to pleasure. Over six weeks, we’ll explore six core components of pleasurable writing — patterns, tools, processes, identity, challenge, and balance — and I’ll guide you through a series of playful-but-serious “pleasure prompts” for transforming your writing practice from a painful chore into an enjoyable challenge. You can interact with your fellow Pleasure Catalyst participants through our lively online discussion board and at weekly Live Writing Studio sessions on Zoom — or, if you prefer, settle back and learn quietly at your own pace. With access to the course materials for the lifetime of the course (in other words, years!), there’s no need to hurry. Remember, this course is all about pleasure, not pressure!

Here’s what previous participants have said about the Pleasure Catalyst:

The Pleasure Catalyst enabled me to come to consciously think of how to write with joy and a sense of play. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to work through this programme and connect with such a fabulous and impressive set of people around the world. (Kate Waterworth, Clinical Sciences, New Zealand

The Pleasure Catalyst was a luscious, sensual and very rich course that took my writing to a different level through deep reflection and exchange with peers. (Birgit Heckemann, Health Sciences, Sweden)

It was a source of comfort to hear that other writers struggle with the same things as I do, but for me the most valuable part was the reaffirmation that identity, our standing place, matters, and that I should engage with it, instead of trying to get away from it. (Wessel van Rensburg, Business and Politics, UK)

There’s still plenty of time to join this year’s cohort. I’d love to see you there!

Learn more and enroll

Free portals to pleasure

Tarot for Scholars — Join me and ScholarShape founder
Margy Thomas

for our latest scholarly collaboration on Substack: a year-long series of video conversations encompassing all 78 cards in the classic tarot deck, interpreted through a scholarly lens. Curious? Confused? Skeptical? Intrigued? Watch A Scholar’s View of Tarot for a compact introduction and overview, or simply subscribe (it’s free!) and enjoy the ride.
#AcWriMoments — Speaking of scholarly collaborations: Margy and I have now transformed our 14-month-long #AcWriMoments project into an evergreen resource that you can access any time, featuring new paper collage artwork by yours truly. Click here to check out these 42 fabulous daily and monthly prompts for finding courage, clarity, and purpose in your scholarly work, contributed by writing scholars, coaches, consultants, and editors from around the world.
Open Beach House — And finally, mark your calendar for my annual Open Beach House, hosted live from my Island Time Writing Retreat on Waiheke Island in Aotearoa New Zealand. This free one-hour Zoom event will be offered twice in one week: on Tuesday January 28 at 8-9 am GMT (London time) and on Wednesday January 29 at 3-4 pm EST (New York time). Registration details coming next week!

If you appreciate hearing about resources and events like these — or just want to make my day — please take a moment to drop me a heart, leave a comment, and/or click Restack at the bottom of this message. Your enthusiasm and support mean so much to me.🩷

Kia pai tō koutou rā (have a great day) – and keep on writing!

Helen

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