People who run workshops learn by doing, and here the author brings her 20 years of experience to the fore. In this, the first comprehensive handbook on how to run creative writing workshops, the author gives the reader ideas and advice on how to improve their approach to day, week or longer workshops whether they are just starting out or already working in the sector. Along with great advice the book contains essential, easy to use plans, activities and case studies from business, major arts organisations and schools. These are designed to ensure the reader understands how to run successful creative workshops in the community, business and the education sector. The author understands that when the conditions are right, a workshop is seriously playful, and an increasingly popular and effective way of developing creativity and creative skills, airing issues and resolving problems. The author outlines how to give a workshop a personal touch. People are more effective as workshop leaders when they develop their own material because they have spent time understanding objectives, subject matter and delivery. The Workshop Handbook answers questions like: What is the best place for a workshop? How do you develop materials and work with people with different needs? Are there pitfalls for a workshop leader? Five sections deal with how to time and organise a workshop - from a single one-off event lasting 45 minutes to a residency stretched over months. The final chapter features a collection of exercises created by the author to help the reader develop their own workshop techniques, by focusing on ice-breakers, identity, language and questions.