Writing and Facilitation

I write because it helps me to see and make sense of my life. I write to find out what I think and feel. I write because, in the blur of a busy life, it makes me feel alive. Mostly I write short stories, both fiction and non-fiction: I like how short stories can convey a whole world on only one page. I like how they can make you stop and pay attention to things overlooked.

I facilitate writing processes with development practitioners across the African continent, as well as from India, Brazil, Nepal, Vietnam, New Zealand and the Netherlands. This work involves using creative writing to help practitioners find the stories in what they have done and what they have seen, to recognise and to value their own authority, to develop confidence in their interpretation of things and to find their own way of expressing it despite the confines of mainstream education, organisational or donor protocols and academic norms. Gone are the days when writing was seen only as a means of communicating: it is also an effective tool for reflection, personal development, organisational learning, monitoring and evaluation. See Writing to learn, learning to write & What in the World are Writeshops?

I offer a range of writing courses; specially tailored in-house writing processes for organisations; writeshops for groups co-authoring a publication; one-on-one mentoring; writing; and editing services.

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Sandra Hill has an honours degree in social sciences and is currently completing her masters in creative writing with a special focus on creative non-fiction. Active in the development sector since the early 90s, she founded and directed the Woman on Farms Project before moving into organisational development. She worked for CDRA from 2006 – 2011, specialising in qualitative research, organisational learning and writing facilitation, work she now continues as a CDRA Associate.