12 UNISON members in Merseyside have written a book of short stories.

The writers with their book, Reflections, at the launch event

The book, called Reflections, was created with Writing on the Wall, the Merseyside Literature and creative writing organisation
The members developed their writing and spoken word skills on a 12 week course called What’s your Story with Writing on the Wall (WoW), after a course was advertised to UNISON members in Merseyside.

Kevan Nelson, Regional Secretary of UNISON in the North West, commented:
“The members who participated came from all different sectors of our union and brought with them experiences from their work and personal lives which undoubtedly influenced their writing: The stories are funny, heart-warming and at times, sad. The group wrote about a lot of different subjects, themselves and their personal stories along with things to do with their daily life; the stories are about love, loss, family, work, and being a parent, and a particularly onerous train journey...
Reading the these stories and hearing the strong voices of our members has been a privilege and has reminded me, once again, of the importance of sharing experiences of ordinary working people and what we can learn from each other. They are a great read and I really enjoyed each and every one.

On the course the UNISON members worked with authors and poets to develop their work.
One of the members said; ‘it was such a great experience, the rest of the group were lovely and the course really gave me confidence in my creative skills. Seeing my work in a book is a dream come true.”

The book was launched at an event in Liverpool on 13th November and it gave members the opportunity to showcase their writing by reading excerpts from their book to an audience of friends and well wishers, as well as writers and the Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Anna Rothery.

Reflections will soon be available to buy on Amazon and we will update the blog when it becomes available to buy.
UNISON North West does have a few free copies available to give to members. If you would like a copy, please email [email protected] (while stocks last).