Archival research is fascinating, seductive, rage inducing, frustrating, exhausting, boring, and heartbreaking. It is fundamentally non-linear. Archival research journeys always lead in unexpected directions.

What does it mean to do archival research? How might you approach it? What do you need to be attentive to? And how will you respond when you encounter the unexpected?

I offer a smorgasbord of workshop options that can be offered individually or combined in different ways. Although these workshops work best in person, they can also be offered virtually.

Introduction to Archives and Archival Research: a workshop for folks who have never had the opportunity to work with archival materials.

[2-3 hours]

Working with Archival Materials: a guide to the practicalities of working with archival materials, sharing best practices, some no-no’s, and more.

[2-3 hours]

Minding the Gaps: A workshop about working with archival materials, moving from ‘facts’ to ‘story,’ thinking about questions of ‘objectivity’ and ‘subjectivity,’ and considering ways of working with the inevitable gaps.

[3 hours]

When Archives Break Your Heart: A workshop on self-care in archival spaces.

[3-9 hours]

Writing Back: Power, Resistance, Guilt, Refusal, and Rage: A workshop that centres t the notion of power in archival collections and sources, looks at the ways that researchers and writers can write back to the violence and erasure they might encounter, and considers how they might deal with questions of guilt and rage by examining the work of scholars, writers, and poets who have done just that.

[3-6 hours]

Complete series: 12-15 hours (e.g. 4-5 3-hour sessions)

What participants are saying:
“Hearing Sonja’s very specific guidance on writing from archives broadened my vision of my project. And I feel encouraged to continue on. Her examples and exercises were spot-on useful; I will use them in my work. And being able to ask her questions was great! Thank you!”

"This workshop flew by time wise. I felt the instructor Sonja Boon took the time to explain, encourage, and warn about anything that could potentially be distressing and appeared very engaged with the material and in presenting it. We could respond via voice or chat or not at all in the exercises and all felt right. The pace was not rushed and lots of information be considered. I found the workshop helpful and useful and will use it in my own research. I am grateful for the time spent preparing it and for the offering. Thank you!”

Contact me to book a workshop!

In her award-winning book, All That She Carried, Tiya Miles writes, "[Ursula LeGuin] reminds us that a book is a sack; a medicine bundle is a sack; a house is a sack; a church is a sack; even a museum is a sack. We must add, too, that the earth is a sack. All are containers for carrying" (276).

If we imagine our creative lives as sacks, what might we wish them to carry? What riches might they contain? What values do they hold? What might it mean to centre vulnerability, joy, delight, pleasure, love, reciprocity, love, and resistance.

In this workshop, participants will engage in a range of collaborative exploratory activities. Together they will create sacks that each participant will then take home.

All supplies will be provided.

[3 hours]

Contact me to book a workshop!

Do you feel trapped by the thought of being controlled by an outline? Does plotting in advance make you want to tear your hair out? Do you resist any notion of organizing your ideas in advance, preferring instead to write your way in?

If any of these questions resonate with you, then you’re exactly like me: a committed pantser.

I’m a fervent believer in writing my way into story. I live most comfortably in non-linear spaces filled with bright coloured markers, concept maps, scissors, and tape. And I feel cornered (and sometimes threatened!) by outlines. But I also know that I can also benefit from outlining, and that the two – pantsing and plotting – can work well together if I let them.

This is a workshop for the committed pantser. It offers a set of playful tools and exercises that break through resistance, and that draw on pantsing identity to create plot. Be prepared to play, laugh, and learn.

[1.5 to 2 hours]

Contact me to book a workshop!