Abstract
My practice-based research investigates the relationship between creative writing and wellbeing, specifically within the context of the humanitarian aid memoir. It comprises an autobiographical fiction novel, Aidland, and an accompanying critical reflective exegesis, exploring aspects of my writing process in the context of a literary review of the humanitarian aid memoir genre and relevant research in the field of writing and wellbeing. My research explores whether and in what ways I might be able to ameliorate the chronic effects of trauma I had experienced as a humanitarian aid worker and improve my own wellbeing by writing about my experiences. I created a method called ‘comparative exploration’ that enabled me to compare my past experiences to my current understanding of them and to select traumatic memories that I wanted to explore and resolve.My initial process of memoir writing resulted in retraumatisation and failed to provide the improved wellbeing that I had hoped for. This ‘failure’ inspired the exploration of different creative modalities, and I recrafted my creative work as autobiographical fiction.
Fiction techniques, including the use of a fictional narrator, narrative point of view, characterisation, and metaphor, helped me to explore trauma more safely and resulted in marked improvements in my sense of wellbeing. I make some tentative suggestions that may be of use to others working in the area of humanitarian aid memoir and seeking to improve wellbeing through writing their stories.
| Date of Award | 22 Aug 2025 |
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| Original language | English |
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| Supervisor | Sophie Nicholls (Supervisor) & Bryn Tales (Supervisor) |