The Society of Unpublished and Mildly Unhinged Writers (40+)

# The Society of Unpublished and Mildly Unhinged Writers (40+)

Every Tuesday | 12:00 PM Pacific | Online
A playful writing society presented by Phoenix Rising Family Medicine's Midlife Health Clinic and hosted through The Healthy Sensitives.

### This Week's Theme: My People, Not My People, and Other Social Miscalculations

Calling all aspiring writers, recovering perfectionists, ADHD-brained daydreamers, and people with approximately 47 unfinished creative projects!
Have you ever wanted to write something but found yourself paralyzed by the possibility that it might not be good?
Have you ever started writing a story, only to spend three hours researching whether Victorian-era squirrels had regional accents?
Have you ever thought, "Someday I'll write a book," only to realize that someday has apparently been rescheduled for the 14th consecutive year?
Well, congratulations. You may have found your people.
Welcome to The Society of Unpublished and Mildly Unhinged Writers, a weekly gathering for adults 40 and older who want to rediscover the joy of writing without the pressure to publish, produce, perfect, or become the next great American novelist.
We are proudly anti-hustle, anti-perfectionism, and occasionally anti-plot.
Our mission? To make writing fun again.

## This Week: Finding Your People (and Surviving the Others)

This week, we're exploring the wonderful, occasionally horrifying experience of finding people with whom we can truly be ourselves.
You know those people who make you feel safe enough to let your guard down? The ones who can witness your most spectacularly embarrassing moments without immediately filing for a change of friendship?
Those are your people.
And then there are the other people.
The ones who make you wonder whether it's possible to fake your own disappearance during a dinner party.
Both kinds make excellent writing material.
We'll play with prompts like:

• Definitely Not My People: Write about a time you found yourself spectacularly out of place. Perhaps you attended a party, went on a date, or joined a group where you quickly realized you had made a terrible social miscalculation. You survived. Barely. Tell us about it.
• The Moment I Knew You Were My People: Tell the story of an embarrassing, ridiculous, or deeply awkward moment when someone responded with kindness, humor, or acceptance instead of judgment.
• An Open Letter to the People I Tried Way Too Hard to Impress: Because sometimes the greatest comedy is remembering the lengths we went to in order to fit in.
• The Audition for Human Belonging: Imagine that finding your people required a formal interview. What absurd questions would be on the application? What would immediately disqualify someone?

Feel free to write a true story, a wildly exaggerated version of events, or something entirely fictional. Names can be changed to protect the innocent, the guilty, and that one person from your high school reunion.

## What Actually Happens at These Weekly Gatherings?

Very little that could reasonably be described as productive.
And that's the point.
Each Tuesday, we'll gather around a different playful theme, enjoy some ridiculous writing prompts, spend a little time writing, and—if we're feeling brave—share our creations.
You do not have to read your writing aloud. You don't have to finish anything. You don't have to be good at writing. You don't even have to spell correctly.
There will be no critiques, no grades, no publishing advice, and absolutely no one asking about your five-year literary goals.
We're here to play with words, laugh at ourselves, and remember that creativity doesn't have to earn its keep.

## Who Is This For?

Adults 40 and older.
Although we won't be checking IDs. Just think—you finally have an opportunity to lie about your age and round UP!
This group is especially designed with ADHD minds in mind: the wonderfully curious, easily distracted, idea-generating brains that sometimes struggle to get started, stay focused, or finish what they begin.
No formal ADHD diagnosis is required. You don't even have to identify as neurodivergent. If you've ever struggled with perfectionism, procrastination, overthinking, or the suspicious belief that everything you create must have a purpose, you'll probably fit right in.
Experienced writers, aspiring writers, reluctant writers, and people who haven't written anything more creative than a grocery list in 20 years are all welcome.

## A Little About Our Hosts

The Society of Unpublished and Mildly Unhinged Writers is presented by Phoenix Rising Family Medicine's Midlife Health Clinic and hosted within The Healthy Sensitives community.
We believe that healthy aging isn't just about eating vegetables, getting enough sleep, and remembering where we left our reading glasses.
It's also about connection, creativity, laughter, curiosity, and giving ourselves permission to enjoy being alive.
And sometimes that means writing a deeply unnecessary short story about the time you accidentally called your boss "Mom."

## Our One Rule

You are not allowed to turn this into another thing you have to be good at.
Seriously.
Bring a notebook, a laptop, a pen, or whatever you use to capture your occasionally brilliant and frequently questionable thoughts.
Come as you are.
Write something terrible.
Laugh about it.
Find your people.
And leave with absolutely nothing impressive to put on your résumé.
Every Tuesday at noon Pacific.
Welcome to the Society. We have no literary standards, but our standards for kindness are quite high.