Journal for Specialists in Group Work

ISSN: 0193-3922 (Print) 1549-6295 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/usgw20

Enhancing the group experience: Creative writing

exercises

Kathie Wenz & J. Jeffries McWhirter

To cite this article: Kathie Wenz & J. Jeffries McWhirter (1990) Enhancing the group
experience: Creative writing exercises, Journal for Specialists in Group Work, 15:1, 37-42, DOI:
10.1080/01933929008411910

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/01933929008411910

Published online: 31 Jan 2008.

Submit your article to this journal

Article views: 116

View related articles

Citing articles: 14 View citing articles

Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at

http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=usgw20
 Enhancing the Growp Experience:
Creative W riti ng Exercises
Kathie Wenz
J. Jeffries McWhirter

In this article the authors review the literature surrounding the use of
personallcreative writing as an adjunct to group therapy. Several writing
exercises, as well as client responses, are included. Suggestions f o r
using writing with groups concludes the article.

Creative writing such as free-form poetry
and prose, structured exercises and activi-
ties, and personal journal logs offer interven-
tion techniques to’ the group facilitator.
Writing as a technique is appearing consis-
tently in the literature, indicating an aware-
ness of the potentialities of the process.
Groups may especially benefit from writing
exercises, since they appear to increase in-
teraction and cohesion (Mazza, Mazza, &
Scaturo. 1987).
Group facilitators may avoid investigat-
ing this technique due to “writing appre-
hension’’ (Allen, 1985)or ‘‘writing anxiety”
(Grundy, 1985), a phenomenon affecting
many people in modem American culture
(Allen, 1985). The net result of writing
avoidance is that an effective tool for group
process is lost.
The purpose of this article is to encourage
counselors to consider using poetic and cre-
ative writing in their groups. A brief review
of the literature is presented and three exer-
Kathie Wenz is a graduate student in the Master
of Counseling Program at Arizona State Univer-
sity. Tempe ond a secondary school counselor at
Maricopa High School. Maricopa. Arizonci. She
has published considerable poetry under the
pseudonvm Windwomyti.J . Jeffries McWhirter is
a professor in the Counseling Psychology Pro-
gram a1 Arizona State University. The authors
thank G . Lynti Nelson. Ph.D.. Department of
English. Arizona Srare University. Tempe for his
suggestions and support.
cises are described along with actual client
examples. We conclude with suggestions for
the use of writing in the counselor’s groups.
A BRIEF REVIEW
The literature indicates that both published
and self-generated creative writing, journal
writing, and poetic writing are being used in
a variety of clinical settings and with a
number of counseling concerns. Petrick
(198 I ) found that out of 25 psychologists,
15 used writing in some form frequently,
while 10 employed the technique infre-
quently. Other authors (Brand, 1979;
Mazza, et al., 1987) indicated that writing
is often used clinically, and though empiri-
cal evidence is difficult to obtain, anecdotal
evidence of its therapeutic benefits is sub-
stantial.
Some areas i n which writing is being used
are in couples group therapy (Lauer &
Goldfield, 1970; Lerner, 1982; Mazza &
Prescott, 19811. short-term group therapy
(Mazza & Price, 1985), career counseling
(Mazza & Mazza. 1982; Sher, 1979; Bolles,
1989), alcoholism counseling (Mazza,
1979). adolescent groups (Mazza, 1981;
Morrison, 1969). and with abused children
(Mazza, et al., 1987). Writing has also been
used with college students as a substitute
for one-on-one counseling (Phillips,
Gershenshan, & Lyons, 1977; Phillips &
Wiener, 1966), with incest survivor groups

The Journal for Specialists in Group Work Volume 15, Number 1, March 1990,3742
38 WENZ AND McWHlRTER
(Bass & Davis, 1988), with the elderly
(Barton, 1984), and in clarifying family
dynamics (Chavis, 1986; Cladding, 1985).
In addition, writing approaches are used to
treat clients with fears, anxieties, depres-
sions, and guilt (Silverman, 19861,to clarify
the intrapsychic self, create self-affirmation
and integration, and to improve the develop-
ment of successful interpersonal relation-
ships (Fuchel, 1985; Cam, 1983; Leedy,
1969, 1973). Poetic writing is also cited
specifically as a probing diagnostic tool to
assess disorders, personality functioning, and
behavioral manifestations (Silverman,
1986).
Buck and Kramer (1974) suggested that
poetic writing may stimulate group develop-
ment to heighten intimacy and cohesion.
Writing seems to facilitate the forming stage
of a group by allowing support and affilia-
tion to develop more quickly (Antebi, 1986;
Brand, 1979). Group sharing of members’
writings facilitates the exploration of inte-
gral questions: Who are you? Are we equal?
Can you be trusted? Can we give to each
other?
The discussion of a poem or piece of
writing may provide fertile ground for inclu-
sion activities (Buck & Kramer, 1974;
Press, 1979). Creating and sharing writ-
ing seems to improve and increase self-
disclosure, self-actualizing behaviors, and
self-acceptance of feelings and experience.
Perhaps this is due in part to the function of
writing as a way to express ideas, attitudes,
and feelings in an indirect manner as though
they are abstract or belonging to someone
else (Buck & Kramer, 1974). This indirect
exchange seems to pave the way for more
direct statements. Group interaction is often
increased as well (Mazza, et al., 1987). A
focus on writing in a group therapy environ-
ment may elicit new and significant insights
and feelings that may not surface through
other therapeutic modalities. Hynes (1988)
suggests this affect grows from the inner-
self which is tapped through intuitive, cre-
ative writing. One of us (McWhirter, 1988)
has used poetry and poetic writings as an
adjunct to training group facilitators for
some years. This has evolved parallel to the
development of the following exercises.
WRITING EXERCISES
The following exercises have proved effec-
tive in stimulating group interactions. Each
exercise is described and discussed. The fol-
lowing are specific examples of participant
involvements.
Exercise 1: Stain Glass Poem
Structured writing assignments provide a
framework that allows group members to
focus their attention on images, thoughts,
and emotions. They encourage a deeper ex-
pression of hidden information that can stim-
ulate the group interaction.
Directions: Answer each of the following
questions symbolically and metaphorically.
Don’t think about it . . . sense and write the
answers quickly.
1. What did the sky feel like to you this
morning?
2. How did you feel when you first
awoke?
3. Tell a fragment of a dream . . . if you
don’t remember last night, use some
other night, or make one up.
4. If you could be anywhere in the world,
time and distance being irrelevant,
where would you go?
5. If you could get to that place anyway
you wanted, how would you go?
6. As you came to this meeting, preoc-
cupied with life, suddenly something
in the bushes caught your eye. An
entity of some sort crooked its finger
and you leaned over to hear it speak.
The entity said, “The key to life is
. . .” (fill in, complete this sentence).
Now arrange these six answers into a
pattern that feels good to you, a pattern like
a stained glass window or a string of beads.
Have it look like a poem-don’t worry if it
makes a logical sense. Only 6 minutes will
be given for this before we share our cre-
 ENHANCING THE GROUP EXPERIENCE: CREATIVE WRITING EXPERIENCE 39

ations. Don’t think-do! Remember, you amidst black endless velvet

know more than you know you know.
Debriefing: After the time is up, the fa-
cilitator (who has participated in the exer-
cise) models sharing by reading his or her
“ p o e m . ” T h e n participants read their
“poems.” There is often a sense of amaze-
ment-at how good the writing is, how they
never knew how they felt about this or that
in the poem. Inevitably, members become
aware of similar issues between them.
Yalom’s (1985) therapeutic factor of uni-
versality is quickly developed. This exercise
encompasses two components vital to both
writing and therapy: language and feelings
(Brand, 1979). The act of creation may be
therapeutic; Brand (1979) asserts that: “The
very act of writing (poetry) with the sense
of having come to a resting place, is in itself
a kind of resolution” (p. 70).
Exnmples: Two examples of group mem-
ber responses to this exercise follow:
Fugue in 4110 Major
The sky clung to my skin
Like a clammy handshake
an almost translucent bright spot
where the sun slept
pierced my mind
the world intruded upon my cocoon
of safety:
My station kept changing
and 1 couldn’t find it
Oh! to sit in Peruvian hot springs
with Shirley MacLaine
being me
Got there by astral land rover
and cosmic bus
the small old lady
under the oleanders
whispered
we are all space people!
At which she laughed
raucously
and broke into song
the camptown races sing this song
do dah do dah
frayed edges of pink and rose
utter panic! I startle up 10 minutes late
grabbing today’s outfit I walk
sock footed
to the car drive off
half asleep
A snake jumped up chasing me
stand still! someone cries
I am shaking snake stands on tail
gazing into my eyes
I spread my arms and fly to white sand beaches
and calypso music
slow gentle mine
coasting in upon waves
the dolphin smiles:
your bodies are merely
earth suits
Exercise 2: Personal Logo
There is a strong possibility that imagery
was the first language (Samuels & Samuels,
1987). The power and magic inherent in
symbols has drifted through the ages to the
20thcenturydisguisedas “the logo.” Widely
used in the business world, a logo becomes
the visual message of a company. In a sim-
ilar manner, a personal logo may be a sym-
bol of one’s inner self.
Directions: Play with doodles you have
always enjoyed drawing, visualize an impor-
tant aspect of your life, capture a favorite
*.*
..
I - .. .‘

It’s All to Learn

the sun has moved in its skyhome
arising somewhere else
now
..... *.
s a -
...::.:.
40 WENZ AND McWHIRTER
place on earth; keep playing and drawing
until a symbol seems right for you. And then,
tell a story about it.
Example: An excerpt of a response to this
exercise is the logo at the bottom of the
preceding page. Subsequent written descrip-
tion is based on the logo.
Dancing Star
Once there was a woman who longed to fly.
Raised in love by her grandparents until age 6 ,
she had been a happy child with golden hair and
bright blue eyes. Her mother was busy at teaching,
her father had left at birth. Grandpa was the person
most dear to her.
One day, her mother brought home a man. The
child saw a dark circle of brown and gray around
his head, and hid behind her mother. But her
mother only pushed her toward him saying: “He
will be your father.” Soon ‘the mother married.
Within months, the child’s beloved grandpa died.
For the next 1 I years the child’s life was filled
with terror. Her new father would come into her
room and touch her in secret places. After bedtime
she would lie awake, listening to the night sounds.
She knew that when all was quiet and the house
breathed in slumbered rhythm, he would appear.
She would feign sleep, but to no avail. For a time,
she turned her face desperately to the wall, away
from his kisses. That didn’t helpeither. Eventually
she discovered a place to withdraw to. deep in her
mind. Nothing touched her there. She was afraid
to tell anyone. . .
She became a star! And . . . she could fly!
Laughing at her luminescence, delighted with
herself, she ascended to the moon and danced. She
balanced in a pirouette on the very tip of the
crescent, light and free. Love filled every cell of
her being. She gazed through the cosmos, know-
ing that through pain and sorrow. beauty and
dignity prevailed. Life was surely a gift.
Exercise 3: Epigram
Epigrams are short, witty, pointed sayings.
Some we remember for a long time because
they touch an aspect of our belief of value
system in a special way. Epigrams can be
used to highlight important issues for indi-
vidual participants.
Directions: Identifying an epigram and
then writing about its personal meaning is
an excellent way to begin or complete a
journal, or to check in with yourself. Epi-
grams may be found almost anywhere, from
a book of quotations to an herbal tea box.
Do not search too hard for the perfect one-
let it find you. Copy it onto a fresh piece of
paper, then begin to explore and write and
wonder about i t . . .
Example: The following is a partial ex-
cerpt from one group member’s exploration.
Celebrate rhe Possibilities
Somewhere between childhood and motherhood
(which had ended and began without any choice)
the woman had gotten lost in darkness.
A possibility is that I might let my eyes go soft
and see the wind and want to ride it. Away from
here. Away from grabbing hands that pull and
moan at the tattered pieces left of my soul. The
wind would carry me to an island of deep lagoons
and sandy beaches where I could walk and find
bright shells and ocean-worn wood to stroke . . .
mermaid treasures. I could be a child then, a child
protected by the wind and no person could hurt
me with their touch. No one could touch me and
my body would be my own.
USE OF WRITING IN YOUR
GROUPS
According to Brand (1977). there are sev-
eral therapeutic benefits of writing in coun-
seling. We apply the following to groups.
Writing is an expressive and creative
act which offers a medium to analyze
and integrate emotion in a personal
way, countering the repressive and
regressive factors in the personality
and in society.
The intent of writing provides mate-
rial to be analyzed and discussed in
the group, much as dreams, fantasies,
projective tests, and other imagination
mediums.
Writing improves the counseling pro-
cess through opportunity for re-
hearsal: How will I present this to my
group? It also extends the therapeutic
hours since insight. cognition, and
self-reflection are encouraged.
 ENHANCING THE GROUP EXPERIENCE: CREATIVE WRITING EXPERIENCE
Writing may be used in groups as an
initial icebreaker, using an exercise such as
Stain Class Poem to facilitate trust building
and affiliation. During the group, writing
may also be pursued outside the group. Jour-
nal logs may assist members in tracking
their own therapeutic process, as well as
establishing a focused procedure to highlight
group development. Issues such as hidden
agendas and group norms may achieve clar-
ity when written about and shared among
members and facilitators.
A rnindset for writing is useful. Facilita-
tors may create this within the group with
reflective music or silence. Setting a time
limit also defines boundaries and sets inten-
tionality. Specific exercises such as those
described in the previous comments may be
used. Also, the writing may build on an
incident or issue unique to the group.
Anxiety among participants about “writ-
ing” is lessened through the emphasis on self
and group understanding and deemphasizing
the technical, grammatical issues focused on
in school.
Discovering their authentic “voice”
through creative writing exercises is an ex-
citing process for clients. In group work that
excitement is multiplied. Writing is a tech-
nique worth trying, rather than avoiding.
REFERENCES
Allen, J. V. (1985). Student writing apprehen-
sion: A psychotherapeutic approach. Paper
presented at Basic Writing Conference, St.
Louis, MO. (ERIC).
Antebi. E. (1986). Poetry therapy: A means of
increasing wholeness. Arts In Psychotherapy,
/3. 121-128.
Barton. J. M. (1984).Theexceptional poet. Paper
presented at annual meeting of the Western
Gerontological Society. (ERIC document.)
Bass, E., & Davis. L. (1988). The courage to
heal. New York: Harper & Row.
Bolles. R . N . (1989). What color is your para-
chute:) Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed Press.
Brand. A . C. (1977). The therapeutic benefits of
free of informal writing among selected eighth
graders. Unpublished research, Rutgers
University.
41
Brand. A. C. (1979). The uses of writing in
psychotherapy.Journal ofHumanistic Psvchol-
ogy, 19. 53-72.
Buck, L. A . , & Kramer. A. (1974). Poet9 as a
means of group facilitation. Journal of Human-
istic Psychologys 14. 57-7 1.
Chavis, G. G. (1986). The use of poetry for
clients dealing with family issues. Arts In
Psychotherapy. 13. 121-128.
Fuchel, J. C. (1985). Writing poetry can enhance
the psychotherapeutic process: Observations
and examples. Arts In Psychotherapy. 1 2 . 89-
93.
Ganz, A. (1983). Writing as a problem solving
experience. Language Arrs. 60, 736-739.
Gladding, S . T. (1985). Family poems: A way of
modifying family dynamics. Arrs In Psycho-
therapy, 12, 239-243.
Grundy. D. (1985). Writing anxiety. Arts In
Psychotherapy. 12. 151-156.
Hynes, A. M. (1988). Some considerations con-
cerning assessment in poetry therapy and inter-
active bibliotherapy . Arrs In Psychotherapy,
IS,55-62.
Lauer, R., & Goldfield, M. (1970). Creative
writing in group therapy. Psychotherapy: The-
ory. Research, and Practice. 7, 248-252.
Leedy, J. (1973). Poet?. the healer. New York:
Lippincott.
Leedy. 1. (1969). Poetry-therapy: The use of
poetry in the treatment of emotional disorders.
Atnerican Psychologist. 2 I1-2 13.
Lerner, A. (1982). Poetry therapy in the group
experience. In L. E. Abt & I. R. Strait (Eds.),
The newer therapies: A sourcebook. New
York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.
Mazza. N. (1979). Poetry: A therapeutic tool in
the early stages of alcoholism treatmentJour-
rial of Studies on Alcohol. 40. 123- 128.
Mazzd, N. (1981). The use of poetry in treating
the troubled adolescent. Adolescence, / 6 , 403-
408.
Mazza. N . , & Mazza, J. (1982). Elementary
school children and career fantasy: Patterns,
procedures, and implications. Viewpoints in
Teaching and Learning. 58. 6- 14.
Mazza, N . , Mazza. J., & Scaturo, S . ( 1987).
Poetry therapy with abused children. Arts It1
Psyhotherapy. Ids 85-92.
Mazza, N., & Prescott. B. (1981). Poetry: An
ancillary technique in couples group work.
American Journal of Family Therapy. 9, 53-
57.
Mazza, N . , & Price, B. (1985). When time
42 WENZ AND McWHIRTER
counts: Poetry and music in short-term group
treatment. Social Work With Groups, 8.53-66.
McWhirter, J. J. (1988). Seek wisdom. Tempe,
Arizona: Minden Press.
Morrison, M. R. (1969). Poetry therapy with
disturbed adolescents. In J. J. Leedy (Ed.),
Poetry therapy: The use of poetry in the treat-
ment of emotional disorders. Philadelphia:
Lippincott.
Petrick, J . F. (1981). Psychotherapy: Implica-
tions for composition. Paper presented at an-
nual meeting of the Conference on Col-
lege Composition and Communication.
(ERIC).
Phillips, E. L., Gershenshan, J., & Lyons. G .
(1977). On time limited writing therapy. Psy-
chological Reports, 41, 707-7 12.
Phillips, E. L.; & Wiener, D. N. (1966). Short-
term psychotherapy and structured behavior
change. New York: McGraw Hill.
Press, S . N . (1979). Teaching creative writing in
a psychiatric setting. Paper presented at Mod-
ern Language Association annual meeting.
(EDRS document.)
Rice, J. (1986). Psychological rules of passage
and performance in poetry therapy. Arrs In
Psychotherapy 13, 249-252.
Samuels, M., & Samuels, N. (1987). Seeing with
the minds eye. New York: Random House.
Sher, B. (1979). Wishcraft. New York: Ballant-
ine.
Silverman, H. L. (1986). Poetry therapy. Arts In
Psychotherapy. 13, 343-345.
Yalom, I. D. (1985). The theory and practice
of group psychotherapy. New York: Basic
Books.