Practice 6: Chloë Sayers, Writing & Movement
The final practice in The Present Page invites you to explore the relationship between movement, the body and writing. Led by interdisciplinary artist and choreographer Chloë Sayers, this session encourages you to slow down, tune into physical sensation, and discover how movement can become a starting point for reflection and creative expression.
Through a series of simple, playful exercises, you'll be invited to move in whatever way feels right for your body before allowing words to emerge naturally onto the page. Rather than beginning with ideas or analysis, this practice starts with sensation, curiosity and presence, offering a different way of noticing yourself and the stories your body might already be telling.
Watch Chloë introduce the session
How can writing and movement connect?
When we think about journaling, we think of our thoughts, and our mind, but of course our body is present too. So much of what we think and feel relates to our bodies; they hold our tensions, worries, curiosities, joys and losses.
By tuning into our bodies, we can tap into a new layer of understanding.
Start by finding a comfortable position, seated or standing, and notice how your body feels today. Write down 1 word that best describes the feeling.
Notice your breathing: is it shallow, slow, fast?
Is your breath in your upper chest? In your lower abdomen?
Close your eyes and begin to tune into your body, starting at the top of your head and slowly working your way all the way down to the ground.
Is there anywhere that feels heavy, light, tense, restless?
Imagine you’re breathing in sunlight, filling your whole body, and as you breathe it out the sun sets and darkness arrives. Repeat this 4 times.
Exercise:
Set a timer for 3 minutes [you can choose a piece of music if you like]
Move for 3 minutes, however feels good for your body at this moment. You can do this standing or seated. The movements don’t have to be big. It could be:
- A sway side to side
- Tapping your feet
- Bouncing on your heels
- Shaking a hand, a leg, your head, your whole body
- Opening and closing your hands
- Stretching towards the ceiling or the ground
- Dancing like you’re at a club
- Jumping up and down
- Swinging your arms side to side
After the 3 minutes is up, set another 3 minute timer and write continuously for the whole time. Don’t worry about spelling or punctuation, just write.
Read through the writing and select a couple of words or phrases that stand out to you.
Notice if anything that has emerged is surprising to you.
Try repeating this exercise at different times of day, to different music, or in silence. See if that changes what appears in your writing.
You could choose to keep a list, a word or a phrase each time you do the exercise, or tune into your body. Is your body telling you something?
See if you can find a pocket of time to check in with your body in your daily life. This might looks like:
- A few long deep breaths
- A moment to notice where there’s an area of tension
- 10 seconds shaking your body
Taking the practice forward
The invitation from this final practice is a simple one: to remember that journalling doesn't begin with words. Sometimes it begins by noticing your breath, a feeling of tension, a burst of energy, or the quiet rhythm of your body moving through the day.
You might return to this exercise whenever you feel stuck, overwhelmed or simply curious. Some days you may find yourself writing pages. On others, a single word, a short movement, or a moment of attention may be enough.
There is no perfect way to keep a journal. The value lies not in how much you produce, but in making a little space to notice your experience with openness and curiosity.
Chloë Sayers is an interdisciplinary artist based in Berwick-upon-Tweed. With a background in choreography, her practice explores relationships between people and place, bodies and landscapes, and often takes place outdoors.
chloesayers.com | @chloesayersartist
If you've enjoyed our Present Page series, consider donating
The Present Page was created by Berwick Literary Festival and Anna Chapman Parker with funding from Create Berwick, Northumberland County Council and the North East Combined Authority, enabling us to offer these workshops free of charge.
If you've found this series enjoyable and would like to support more creative opportunities like this in Berwick and beyond, we'd be very grateful for a donation of any size.
Every contribution helps us develop new workshops, commission artists and writers, and create free resources that connect more people with stories and creativity.
