A woman stands in front of a microphone and smiles. She is looking down and seems about to begin to read. She has purple streaks in her black hair, wears glasses, and has turquoise earrings on that look vaguely Native American.

Your story matters.

Write Around Portland facilitates storytelling in underheard communities.

We bring people together to write, heal, and transform.

Fostering well-being through respectful, shared creative writing experiences. Since 1999.

Write Around YOU

We partner with nonprofits to bring creative writing to underheard communities where people already live and receive services.

better Together

We write together over 6-10 sessions. With fun and thoughtful activities, we write freely without judging ourselves. No preparation or experience required!

Creativity + Care

We share our work aloud (if we want to!) and offer positive, specific feedback. Over time, we learn our strengths as writers and listeners.

Get Involved!

Write Around Portland's End of Year Campaign: Give the Gift of Connection. Click here to donate now.

Dear Community Members,

People have never felt so alone. They’re overwhelmed and burned out. It’s easy to feel like our society has cracked apart. But there’s an antidote.

This year, we held a six-week writing workshop at Alano Club, a community space for people recovering from addiction. As the writers came together to write and share stories, they discovered a powerful sense of belonging. Now, months after we have left, they are STILL writing, sharing, and supporting each other!

Your donation this holiday season will make this transformation possible in the future.

Like you, we believe in the power of words to bring people together. To heal wounds. To create a world where no one has to feel alone.

Your gift will help people experiencing grief, homelessness, illness, or isolation. Can we count on your support? Please make your year-end gift to Write Around Portland today!


More Ways You Can Help

Join Inkwell

Sustaining Inkwell donors help us reduce fundraising costs and plan for the future.

Volunteer

Become a facilitator or help us operate our creative programming.

Write

Join us for a writing workshop where “messy” is a good word!

For us, writing isn’t about the finished product.

Through guided creative exploration and the sharing of stories, we help people listen across difference. We honor, uplift, and celebrate all voices, especially those that aren’t typically heard in our society. We cultivate empathy and compassion. And we publish new narratives that resist polarization and stereotyping.

Serving the Nonprofit Community since 1999.

Our twist on expressive writing has a profound impact on physical and mental health.

Through programs offered in-person at homeless shelters, prisons, hospitals, treatment centers, senior centers, schools, and other healthcare and social service settings, we reach hundreds of underheard people each year. What could creative writing do for your clients?

“Before this workshop, I believed that I had absolutely no creativity when it came to writing. After only the first night, I realized I had it in me all along.

Write Around Portland Participant
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