Shut Up & Write! @ Moxy

Shut Up & Write! is back at Moxy Edinburgh Fountainbridge on Thursday 29 October, and if you've got a project you've been putting off, this is a good way to actually get some words down. It's part of a global network of free writing sessions, and the Edinburgh chapter has become a regular fixture at the Moxy, so it's a familiar spot for the local writing community.

The format is intentionally simple. You turn up with your own project — whatever that happens to be — and get an hour of focused, uninterrupted writing in an informal, supportive atmosphere. It's open to any genre, and there's no pressure to share your work, so it works whether you're halfway through a novel, tinkering with a few poems, or just starting something new. It's not a group for critiquing your writing, either; the whole point is just to get the work done.

The evening runs from 6.30pm, with coffee and a chance to meet other writers, through to 7pm when everyone puts their heads down and writes. It closes at 8pm, when you can either head home or stay and chat about what you're working on, or just life in general. It's a low-stakes way to spend a Thursday night, and the social side is optional — you can come for the writing and leave as soon as the hour is up, or hang around and talk shop with people who get it.

Edinburgh has always been a bit of a beacon for writers across the UK, with literary culture woven into its historic streets and a workshop programme that's said to be outstanding, so it's a city that welcomes this kind of thing. The session is free, it runs from 6.30pm to 8pm at Moxy Edinburgh Fountainbridge, 2 Freer Gait, EH3 9FR.