In collaboration with GRIT, this workshop is led by award-winning author and academic Dr. Defne ÇİZAKÇA—an expert in creative writing and the intersections of art, literature, and culture. Participants will encounter unconscious archetypes and symbols through creative writing exercises inspired by a Jungian perspective, exploring new ways of storytelling.
- Event Date: Monday, April 7, 2025 (19:00–21:30)
- Duration: 2.5 hours
- Location: Online (connection details will be provided later)
- Participants: Limited to 10 university students
- Certificate of Participation: A digital certificate will be emailed at the end of the workshop
- Registration Deadline: March 25, 2025 (Participants will be notified by email or phone on April 2, 2025)
As places are limited, please complete the registration form as soon as possible to secure your spot.
Click here for details and registration
During the workshop, the book Sıdıka Hanım’ın Büyüleri: 30 Creative Writing Exercises to Get into the Subconscious(Pinhan, 2025) will serve as a reference. The aim is to harness the unconscious as an antidote to perfectionism and the fear of the blank page, inviting participants on both an inner journey and a creative writing experience.
About Defne Çizakça
Dr. Defne ÇİZAKÇA is an award-winning writer and editor specializing in literary fiction and magical realism. Her historical novel, Melankolik Cinler Kılavuzu (İthaki, 2024), explores the life of the first female alchemist of the Ottoman Empire. She has also published illustrated fairy tales—Sen, Ben ve Bütün Canavarlar, Þórdís, Bana Bir Fal Bakar mısın?, and Galata’nın Kıvırcık Cadısı—and the bilingual art book MisafirHane / GuestHouse (2019), which received the Cultural Renovations Fund of the Netherlands Consulate General in Istanbul.
Born in Cyprus, Dr. ÇİZAKÇA has lived in numerous countries and holds a BA and MA in Continental Philosophy from KU Leuven and a PhD in Creative Writing from the University of Glasgow, where she won the Gillian Purvis Award for New Writing. Her short stories have appeared in journals such as New Writing Scotland, Gutter, and Glasgow Review of Books, among others. She has served as Writer in Residence at the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation (New Mexico) and at the Hunterian Museums (Glasgow), and has taught creative writing in diverse settings, including a women’s prison and international summer schools. During the pandemic, she became a certified Jungian coach, incorporating Jungian insights into her creative work. Currently, she is finalizing a short story collection that will be published in three languages, while continuing to write personal fairy tales on commission.
For more information and current projects, please visit her personal website.
