Sarah Lowndes reads three poems from Jay Bernard, Surge (London: Chatto and Windus, 2019): "Kitchen", pages 15-16, "Duppy", pages 22-24 and "Stone", page 28.

Welcome to the third of four online reading and creative writing workshops compiled and led by Sarah Lowndes.

These recordings and creative writing prompts are inspired by the works displayed in the Norwich Castle Museum & Art Gallery and Arts Council Collection exhibition The World We Live In: Art and the Urban Environment.

Creative Writing Prompts

1. Write a description of a house you know very well, as Jay Bernard does in Kitchen.  Is there a door that squeaks, or an uneven step, a special view from a particular window?  How did you feel when you were in that dwelling place?

2. Write about an experience of being part of a crowd – it could be at a sporting event, a concert or festival or a political demonstration. What were the sounds, sights, smells, emotional and physical sensations of being there?

Workshop 3: Speaks the Crowd

Sarah Lowndes reads an extract from Joan Didion, “Why I Write” (1976) from Let Me Tell You What I Mean, (London: 4th Estate, 2021), pages 45-50.

Welcome to the final of four online reading and creative writing workshops compiled and led by Sarah Lowndes.

These recordings and creative writing prompts are inspired by the works displayed in the Norwich Castle Museum & Art Gallery and Arts Council Collection exhibition The World We Live In: Art and the Urban Environment.

Creative Writing Prompts


1. Write about a taste you have never forgotten, like the rancid butter in the train dining car, described by Joan Didion.  It could be a delicious taste or a disgusting one, but describe it carefully, while also explaining where, when and how you tasted that particular food or drink.

2. Describe a building that you always look out for, like the Bevatron lit up at night described by Joan Didion.  It could be a local landmark or an ordinary building that holds specific personal significance for you.

Workshop 4: Pictures That Shimmer

A podcast created by school students with oral history recordings of people from Norfolk who lived through WWII.

Norfolk's War Project - Daily Life

A podcast made by schools students with extracts of interviews with people from Norfolk who lived through WWII.

Norfolk's War Project - Evacuees

Norfolk's War Project - Keeping Safe

Norfolk's War Project - In Uniform

Norfolk's War Project - End of the War

Norfolk Museums Service comprises 10 museums, a collections study centre and countywide services relating to archaeology and education in Norfolk, UK.

Tracks by Norfolk Museums Service