Warwick’s bookish societies
Starting university can be daunting, but if you get involved with some clubs and societies, you will quickly meet others with shared interests. For those of you interested in books, there are several literary societies here, organised around reading and writing.
Warwick Literature Society (often called ‘Lit Soc’) is a great place to start when you’re looking for a book-related club. Lit Soc is primarily an academic society – students from all degree backgrounds are welcome.
The club runs academic support events across all three terms, making it a great group to join if your course involves lots of essays. Study sessions are often on campus, or in a café in town, and they offer a focused environment and peer-to-peer motivation! Other events Lit Soc runs include bar crawls, circling in the Copper Rooms, welfare chats, meditation sessions, and open mic nights. It’s not just a book club, but rather a place for all literary enthusiasts to come together and have fun.
If that mention of open mic events piqued your interest, you might be interested in joining Warwick Word Society. This society focuses on spoken word events which offer an opportunity to channel your thoughts into poems or lyrics to express yourself. Their workshop events are a brilliant space to network with other creatives, get some reading inspiration, or work on your writing. I attended a poetry open mic night last year and loved the atmosphere. It truly felt like a safe space for people to come together and share their poetic work with others.
Warwick Anime and Manga Society
In addition to many other events, the Anime and Manga Society holds Manga and Light Novel socials, where members can socialise whilst reading. Even better, members can borrow books from the society’s manga library rather than having to buy personal copies. Their collection is catalogued on the society website.
If you’re into Marvel, or any other media inspired by comic books, then you should try out Comic Soc. They hold weekly meetings to discuss the latest happenings in the comic book world, as well as a reading club, and members can borrow comic books from the society’s library collection.
In addition to being involved with large events like the Warwick Writing Festival, The Writing Society holds weekly meetings where members can discuss technical and thematic aspects of writing. There are also regular workshops where you can receive invaluable comments and encouragement on whatever piece you are currently working on. Workshopping others’ writing might inspire you to try reading a new genre, or whichever books have inspired the writer. Great writers usually do lots of reading, so this society might help you uncover your own hidden talent.
The Writing Society even has its own publication, called Kamena. Whether you are on the Warwick Writing Programme and want to build your publications portfolio, or are simply interested in honing your skills, this society might be the place for you.
Freshblood is a drama society that focuses on student-written theatre, and has produced full-length plays, radio plays, and more. They run weekly workshops called Off the Cuff and organise an annual event called FreshFest, which celebrates student theatre and performance. This festival is often held in the Warwick Arts Centre, right here on campus.
Society memberships can be purchased on the Student’s Union website, and all societies mentioned above have social media accounts where followers can stay up to date with events and socials. Most societies offer taster sessions and socials during Welcome Week, so make sure to give at least one of these societies a go!
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