Ecological writing is both a process aimed at learning to connect with our voice, stories, and truth and a means to create authentic work. The notion of the ecological model is inspired by the life of a forest (relational, chaotic, intertwined, inside-out, ever-changing) as opposed to the more standard “architectural” model of writing (pre-designed, outside-in, concrete, static, finite, separate). The architectural model of writing focuses almost exclusively on writing skills and creating product. The ecological model of writing focuses on skills, but also works to empower writers to locate and write in their own voices, from their own lives. Through a process of working with text, prompts, questions, and conversation, facilitators Katie Mather and Tamara Ellis Smith hope to access participants’ creative ecosystem (experience, memory, people, text, art, life) —connecting with each other and, ultimately, ourselves.
