Between January and April 2024, Professor Mario Aquilina delivered workshop series in essay writing at four Post-Secondary schools in Malta. Each series consisted of a total of 3 hours of contact time focusing on writing about place from a personal perspective. 

The participants read and discussed a number of well-known essays to then explore ideas such as voice in writing; the relation between the personal and the public in the essay; and other aspects of essayistic writing, such as form and style. The sessions showed participants ways of writing that do not depend on reproducing known structures and on following pre-established forms but that allow for the discovery of ideas through the process of writing itself.

Around 70 students from the Junior College, St Aloysius College, De la Salle College, and St Martin’s College participated in the workshops. The students had the opportunity to submit their own essays and to receive detailed feedback about their work. The best essays submitted will be published on the project’s website over the next few weeks.