Writers Salon | Writing when life’s on the wonk with Rue Collinge

Come and join Connect through Creativity's CRIPtic x Spread the Word Salon with Rue Collinge and sign up for the Salon open mic if you'd like to share your work.

Whether you are new to writing or are a seasoned and published poet, gain inspiration and start a new ongoing adventure in creativity.

About the workshop

Come one, come all - as long as you’re prepared for shenanigans! A warm evening to share our tips and tricks for training dragons, whatever that looks like for you. Perhaps you specialise in fireproofing furniture, or wrangling a wily wyvern… A space to celebrate, groan, and come together in the challenges - and innovation - of life as disabled writers.

Rue will be sharing a range of wild and colourful prompts to get you writing, along with a sneak peek of her pamphlet ‘How to train your Dragon’, with space for a Q&A. You are also invited to sign up for the open mic - we would love to hear whatever you have to share!

About Rue
Rue Collinge is a poet and community artist, whose work focuses on people, belonging and disability. Raw and honest, she has performed across the UK and on the radio. She was awarded the Disabled Poets Prize 2025 for her debut pamphlet, ‘How to train your Dragon’, now out with Verve Poetry Press. She is a Pushcart and Forward Prize nominee, won the Larkin Prize in 2020, and was a semi-finalist for BBC Words First. Her poetry can be found in multiple anthologies and magazines. Keenly aware of what it is not to have a voice, she strives to help others unlock their own. She works as a freelancer from her home in North East England.

Access Information

• Auto-captions
• Self Descriptions
• BSL Interpretation
• Comfort Breaks

About CRIPtic Arts

CRIPtic Arts exists to ignite disabled excellence across the arts. We provide active disabled leadership which advances world-class arts work with disabled creatives. From high-quality community activities to showcasing breakthrough performers; we’re blazing a revolution in accessibility.

About Spread the Word

Spread the Word is London's literature development agency. We have have a national and international reputation for change-making research and developing programmes for writers that have equity and social justice at their heart.

With thanks to the City Bridge Foundation for supporting the CRIPtic x Spread the Word Salon and Connect through Connectivity.