Writing and Politics During Times of Revolution and Catastrophe

20 Aug 2025

Last month, the MA Creative Writing Cohort were joined by award-winning poet, playwright, essayist, short story writer and political activist of British Syrian Heritage, lisa luxx, for a personalised masterclass. luxx's work has been described as "vigorously intellectual and politically febrile" (Poetry Review) and "tender, political, simultaneously exuberant and mournful, and loving populated with family of every definition" (Safia Elhillo). Their work primarily explores revolutionary poetics, queer theory and diasporic narratives, and this masterclass saw both critical and creative explorations on the theme of necessary literature: writing and politics during times of revolution and catastrophe.  

Here you can find some beautifully articulated student responses to the event: 

"luxx hosted a phenomenal masterclass last week! Their passion for language and the different ways in which we can utilize it on the page was inspiring and thought provoking. I especially appreciated luxx taking the time to get to know us and our interests. This prompted the exploration of “How to Tame a Wild Tongue,” by Gloria Anzaldua, a text that resonated with me, as a Latinx woman, and what I try to achieve with my writing. The creative exercises luxx assigned bred unexpected but powerful results, a testament to the supportive environment they fostered. I left the masterclass with a journal full of recommended reading and writing prompts that will be able to guide my practice." 

"lisa luxx made me feel immediately safe and I never felt uncomfortable or pressured to say anything or participate if I didn't feel I wanted to. The workshop itself was very inspiring and informative and it opened up some new avenues for me in terms of how I can write and what I can write about. What specifically resonated with me was the idea of gestures and how we can communicate with our people through a secret language, or a language that is just for us. As a Maltese writer I am aware of the historical baggage that comes with writing in the coloniser's language and this workshop got me thinking about the ways I can implement Maltese language/gestures/signs in my writing without being concerned that some readers will not understanding it fully; the people who'll get it are the people I should aim to write for." 

"The discourse on gestures in literature and how they can be used to communicate with people from our own community really resonated with me and especially the part that discussed language and how there are many different iterations of one language (e.g. english)" 

"I very unfortunately had to leave early, but I absolutely loved what I was able to stick around for. luxx is a very engaging person, who creates an incredibly welcoming environment. I'm a very anxious person but I felt quite comfortable in the masterclass. The only little thing I regret would be not contributing more but that's entirely on me. They seem genuinely interested in people, and they really made use of the space that they had which was awesome - it makes me feel very sort of uneasy when lecturers or seminar leaders don't move at all. Exploring who my people are was a really fun exercise too, I found that mostly it was pockets of people, so my grandparents, a few people from the local music scene, one or two people from school. I like that my people are very different from one another, it's reassuring to me that I'm not only confining myself to one world or one life. Taking the time to appreciate this, and my people themselves, felt very positive and productive. The term "dream language" to refer to symbols has stuck with me, I found it really striking. I loved the exploration of symbols and the importance of not letting them end up serving capitalism as opposed to the people who made them. I grew up in Ireland so I'm very familiar with Irish rebel songs and poetry, but on a more international stage I hadn't really heard or read much so I really appreciated the opportunity to do that too. It was the first masterclass I've ever attended, and I enjoyed it a lot. Very grateful for the experience." 

lisa luxx is an award-winning poet, playwright, essayist, short story writer and political activist of British Syrian Heritage. luxx’s work is broadcast on Channel 4, BBC Radio 4 and TEDx. Their poetry, short stories and essays are published worldwide, in anthologies and literary journals including by Penguin Books and New England Review. As playwright and director, they are behind the following theatre shows: Eating the Copple Apple, what the dog said to the harvest and The Moon is Listening from Dawn til Dusk. luxx guest lectures on revolutionary poetics and queer theory and works as a lyricist with LA-based Marison Arts. They are a long-time transnational community organiser, having co-founded both eLaa Beirut and Nehna Hone. Their debut poetry collection, fetch your mother’s heart, is an examination of the tender violence that pools in all our states of wanting; from our intimacies to our uprisings. It searches the grief of our longing, from the eyes of displacement; carrying their experience in foster care, adoption, and as a mixed-heritage daughter of the Arab diaspora.