As a writer or an artist, feedback is almost always a double-edged sword. No matter your relationship with feedback, it is clear that receiving such may feel rather daunting. However, getting the right kind of feedback can do wonders for one’s artistry and body of work—like taking a good piece up a notch and showing just how much more it can grow. 

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That is one of the many reasons why creatives—like myself—seek to join workshops that can hone their craft and dissect their outputs. Workshops are highly desired avenues for writers and artists to deepen their relationships with their creative pursuits. Given the typically exclusive nature of workshops, which helps preserve their intimacy and focus, limited information is available about what truly ensues at these events. But having participated in the 29th Ateneo HEIGHTS Writers’ Workshop (AHWW), however, I’ve decided to let readers in on the inner workings of a HEIGHTS workshop.

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The Atenean Poets (plus Fictionists and Nonfictionists) Society

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Prior to becoming HEIGHTS Ateneo’s Editor-in-Chief in 2020 to 2021, Stanley Guevarra participated in AHWW 26, which was its first held online, as a fellow under the fiction genre. He had always wanted to join the workshop and finally seized the opportunity during the COVID-19 lockdown when all there was to do was write. 

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Due to the online setup, Guevarra shared “mixed feelings” about the experience but considered it a success, especially for a workshop that was largely experimental. The pandemic forced the AHWW team to adapt the thorough cycles of feedback via online means, with pieces getting workshopped synchronously via Zoom and asynchronously via Google Sheets. “I remember the bits of advice that were given to me here and there,” Guevarra shared. 

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AHWW, regardless of its medium and method, is known for its generosity in both technical advice and general wisdom. For Guevarra, the most influential tidbit of knowledge was how “writing is always a work in progress.” This was exemplified in the workshop process itself, as panelists and fellows alike shared their comments and thoughts on the creative pieces being discussed. 

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While one may understandably think that the process is over once they finish a piece, opening these pieces up to feedback through workshops marks a new stage for growth. In some cases, workshop feedback can even start a new cycle of progress for a written work, especially if the writer sees various points for revision, refinement, and exploration.

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As for me, I was lucky enough to experience an onsite AHWW, but coinciding schedules made me miss the first half of day one. Thankfully, my panel day was on day two, which I was able to attend in full. The onsite setup paved the way for a more intimate and personal atmosphere despite the large room, allowing fellows and panelists to move around during breaks and talk to each other about work and writing. I submitted two essays I wrote in 2023 for a personal month-long challenge of writing 500 words a day. These essays revolved around themes of beauty and desire, contextualized in adolescent thoughts and woes. While these pieces were technically completed, I submitted them with the knowledge that they could still be expanded on. AHWW proved me right, as my workshopped piece went from 500 to 2,000 words.

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Advice to stay alive for

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Guevarra shared two key insights for incoming fellows to prepare for the workshop. First, he urges fellows to understand that workshops can generally make them feel exposed or placed in a “vulnerable or safe space”. While he personally did not encounter triggering experiences, he pointed out that comments had the potential to “strike a chord” among the fellows due to their personal nature. Separating art from the artist is easier said than done, and this adage becomes harder to stick by in the context of critique—where improving a work often feels like improving the person behind it. 

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Rather than the feeling of “bracing yourself,” however, Guevarra says that the vulnerability is an invitation to let down one’s walls. “Prepare for that kind of vulnerability, that kind of openness. Prepare to be exposed,” he expressed, citing potential difficulties in absorbing the comments provided by panelists and fellows if a participant came with their guard up.

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“Make sure to read everyone’s pieces” is Guevarra’s second key reminder for aspiring and incoming fellows. Reading other pieces is a sign of respect towards fellow participants and is instrumental in contributing to the workshop discussions at large. The ideal workshop fosters an environment of mutual support and feedback, so one should give as much as they receive.

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Building on this wealth of advice, I’d personally tell fellows to take a lot of notes, especially during their panel. Raw, informal notes, whether through digital or analog means, work best, but I’m partial to digital notes as they’re much easier to return to. I like looking through my workshop notes when I’m working on new pieces, as I’m reminded of my strengths and points of improvement on top of sources of motivation to keep developing my voice.

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Seizing the workshop experience

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After completing a workshop, Guevarra encourages fellows to join more, as each experience offers something different from the last one. To him, immense value is brought to the surface in being able to gauge literary standards across groups. Additionally, zooming out of the personal experience, he considers workshops as catalysts that can directly shape a part of a nation’s writing style and trends. 

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With this power also comes a slight disclaimer: Workshops naturally tend to have ideological or stylistic biases. While fellows should come into workshops with open minds, discerning what feedback truly applies to their work is an equally important skill to attain. This reinforces the need to join more workshops, paving the way for a holistic and interdisciplinary understanding of one’s craft.

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“Beyond the workshop, keep writing,” shares Guevarra, emphasizing the need to actively find ways to keep oneself motivated if the motivation to write seems to run thin. This is advice I myself need to hear every now and then. AHWW may be a space to discuss “finished” and relatively complete pieces, but for every participant, this workshop marks new beginnings wherever they may be in their creative journeys. Whether you’re a fellow entering this year’s AHWW or just anybody with creative pursuits, it’s helpful to remember that there doesn’t always have to be an end in sight—just the start of a journey that can take you to where and what you want to be.

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Ally studies Communications Technology Management at the Ateneo de Manila University – a flowery way of saying marketing, where marketing is the accountant parent-approved way of saying she wants to make a living out of telling stories. To avoid completely falling into corporate slavery, she writes essays and articles published on Rappler, Young STAR, The Philippine Daily Inquirer, and The GUIDON. She has concretized her interest in Korean pop culture with a minor in Korean Studies because to her, ambition ceases to exist without some form of obsession.