Date/Time
Date(s) - Sat 18 Jul 2026
10:00 am - 5:00 pm
In association with the Psychosynthesis Trust ‘world cafe’ day
The emphasis on non-fiction texts in therapy training can overlook the value of reading fiction and how it informs therapeutic understanding, process and skills. To read a novel is not so much about learning facts and theories, but requires and develops patience, concentration, empathy and imagination. To read a novel isn’t about figuring out interpretations, but following the unfolding events of a story/life. Reading fiction helps therapists to notice, value and work with this transformative act of imagination – as a time between stories, a slow re-imagining of self and world.
questions for discussion :
1, What are the therapeutic processes and outcomes of reading fiction?
2, How might reading fiction inform therapeutic practice?
3, What is it that makes reading fiction difficult (and how to navigate this)?