Andrew Dunn

Check out this fascinating interview, published in Psychology Today, in which long-time WWM participant, Mark Taylor, shares his thoughts on the importance of Creative Writing Workshops and its effect on combating social isolation and loneliness.

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In a recent article, in Electric Literature, of artists discussing what it means to make art in the Trump era, fiction writer, educator, (and WWM facilitator), Olivia Kate Cerrone, shared Writers Without Margins and executive director, Cheryl Buchanan as inspiration for tough times. “Buchanan’s work is a constant reminder of the power that individuals still have at the grassroots level, making a real difference in their communities,” Cerrone said.

Thanks, Olivia!

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Every other year, the folks at Split This Rock recognize and honor a poet or poetry collective doing innovative and transformative work at the intersection of poetry and social change. This year, in particular, we were fortunate enough to receive an honorable mention!

Thanks Split This Rock for recognizing our hard work and thanks all the finalists and other honorable mentions for the incredible things they’re doing around the country!

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Looks like the folks at Bay Cove Home Services were so impressed by our workshop in partnership with the Kit Clark Center for Change that we made the front page!

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Wanna learn more about the inner workings of our writing workshops? Check out this collaborative reflection written by Cheryl Buchanan, our Executive Director, and Massiel Torres, a student at Emerson College, detailing their experience with the ReVisionaries, a writing partnership between clients at the Center for Change and a group of dedicated undergraduates from Emerson College!

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Alumna Cheryl Buchanan (’00) is founder of the non-profit organization Writers Without Margins, which brings writing workshops to homeless shelters and other human services organizations in the Boston area.

After graduating from Arizona Law, Cheryl began her legal career as a media lawyer, working in Las Vegas with James E. Rogers. She was General Counsel for 10 NBC affiliate stations owned by Intermountain West Communications (formerly Sunbelt Communications).

In 2002 she moved her practice to California. Her advocacy work is:

“grounded in her experience as an attorney in California where she assisted more than 500 survivors of child molestation, helping them to tell their stories as an integral part of personal recovery from trauma” (see full bio here).

Cheryl began to teach writing at the college level in 2004 and has done so ever since. She has also been the creative director of an international television production company, Handbook Productions, which created content for the Discovery Channel.

In 2015, Cheryl obtained an MFA in writing, literature, and publishing from Emerson College. As part of her coursework, in 2014, she began conducting writing workshops with clients at two local homeless shelters in a project of her own design. The Writers Without Margins organization, formed in June of last year, is an extension of that project.

The Berkeley Beacon, an independent newspaper of Emerson College students, recently featured Cheryl and the organization: “As a former attorney … Buchanan understands the power of storytelling. In a city with one of the largest homeless populations in the country, she dreamt up a non-profit organization that focused on the ‘fusion of art and advocacy’ through reading and writing workshops.”

Writers Without Margins has published print and documentary videos featuring participants in the workshops.

Cheryl described her motivation as follows: “I went back to school to obtain a stronger background in literature but my reasons for the work haven’t really changed. I think many fellow attorneys might agree that there is always an urgency behind our writing and a chorus of voices behind our words. This is just another approach, to amplify individuals and let them speak for themselves, through art.”

The commitment Cheryl has shown to giving voice to her clients through her law practice and now in her writing and teaching within marginalized communities evokes the true meaning of the word advocacy.

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