sensuous reading & study
a monthly ritual for creative writers to practice reading and studying with our whole bodies
JUNE - NOVEMBER 2026
Second Sunday of the month | 1:00-3:00PM EST
6 monthly rituals, 6 sensuous embodiment practices
Options to register for the full six months or pay per gathering
where sensation and feltness guide the way we
read, study, and access knowledge.
the lineages
Sensuous Reading & Study emerged from the intuitive ways my bodymindspirit moved through the
Mako Study Hall co-facilitated by cultural workers Amber J. Phillips (also known as Amber Abundance) and Tia Oso. Rooted in my embodied, experimental concept
“felt futures” I slowly—and sensuously—studied the interiorities and intersections of Black disabled life, productivity culture, and trying to remain well as a published author. My source material was the “three-day wellness diary” by Akwaeke Emezi.
What came through is a remembering of what’s possible when we invite our bodies to connect with the essence of literary expressions and media through feeling. The notes, dreams, and sensuous embodiment practices being created from my studies have shaped this offering.
the people
This is for writers who desire more moments to slow down and fully feel within their creative practice.
Who want to explore what it’s like to read and study in sensuous, whole-bodied ways.
Who want to access knowledge through the senses, art, embodiment, dreams, and spirit.¹
Who desire a liberatory, care-filled space to connect with fellow creative writers, wordweavers, and storytellers.
Who are genuinely curious about building new reading and studying methods that begin with feeling.
the cadence
We will gather on the Second Sundays of each month, June - November 2026, from 1-3PM EST in Zoomland.
You can commit to all six Sundays or join on specific dates.
The monthly dates are:
June 14
July 12
August 9
September 13
October 11
November 8
“Take a moment to get curious about what you’re experiencing at the level of sensation,
beginning to explore gently what it might be like to read and think with your whole body. Most of us have learned to disconnect from our emotions—all of which begin at the level of sensation—in order to learn, especially when reading and writing are the primary modes of study."
— Alta Starr, Cultivating the Self: Embodied Transformation for Artists
Centering curiosity and gentle
exploration, you’re invited to:
Bring your own material to begin a multisensory reading and studying experience.
This could be an essay, poem, song, podcast interview, video — any media you’ve been longing to share more time with. You can read and study the same material for the full six months or bring something new each month.(Re)connect with fellow creative writers, wordweavers, and storytellers who are also genuinely curious about building new reading and studying methods that begin with feeling.
Experiment with a collection of sensuous embodiment practices while engaging with your desired material.
Six practices from my “Sensuous Reading & Study Practice Guide” will be introduced in the gathering and space will be made for everyone to choose one practice for that month as you experiment in communal solitude, at your own pace.Share what was felt and learned from connecting more deeply and sensuously with the material and ways you can commit to continue being in your practice throughout the rest of the month.
This will be lightly facilitated with an opening introduction, self-guided middle space and break, and a reflective closing.
“Sensuousness transcends the instincts. When something is sensuous, it affects not only your senses but your entire being — your mind, body, and soul.”
— Minna Salami, Sensuous Knowledge: A Black Feminist Approach for Everyone
what if we let the materials, media, and texts we love transform and touch our entire being?
the energy exchange
nourish
$
For those who aren’t attending but still want to pour resources into my life’s work, I welcome your generous contributions as we move through sensuous reading and study.
You can contribute any amount. Thank you so much for your care.
Venmo: @Denise-Shante
CashApp: $DeniseShanteBrown
PayPal: http://paypal.me/deniseshante88
Substack Subscription: https://feelingourfutures.substack.com/subscribe
full package
$125/185/250
If you’re joining all six monthly rituals and want to commit to the full reading and study practice, this package option is for you.
$125 — for Black, disabled, and strategically marginalized folks
$185 — for folks who are making ends meet
$250 — for folks who have stable financial flow and comfortably making ends meet
per gathering
$22/33/44
If you want to join one or a few but not the entire six-month experience, this pay-per-gathering option is for you.
$22 — for Black, disabled, and strategically marginalized folks
$33 — for folks who are making ends meet
$44 — for folks who have stable financial flow and comfortably making ends meet
join sensuous reading & study
". . . knowledge comes to be embodied and made manifest through the flesh, an embodiment of Spirit."
— M. Jacqui Alexander, Pedagogies of Crossing: Meditations on Feminism, Sexual Politics, Memory, and the Sacred
meet the
space-holder
There are many ways I could’ve moved through studying Akwaeke Emezi’s “three-day wellness diary” but my intuition and the material’s spirit were giving clear instructions:
1. Let each encounter with the page be a pleasurable refusal to leave your body behind in the process.
2. Witness what’s possible when sensation and feltness guide the way you read, study, and access knowledge.
I listened.
That listening led to me creating a list of study practices focused on sensuousness and embodiment; experiments I could explore each week so Emezi’s wellness diary could affect my entire being. I’m sharing these practices and hope you’ll allow your spirit to join me in the ritual of reading and studying with our whole bodies.
denise shanté brown
MULTIDIMENSIONAL DESIGNER
CREATIVE CO-CONSPIRATOR
INTUITIVE WRITER
Frequently Asked Questions
What access supports will be available?
Every gathering will have a self-guided middle space that includes your break. Auto-captioning via Zoom will be available and you’re welcome to have camera on/off as desired. You can participate through voice and/or chatbox, showing up in ways that honor your body and capacities.
Are sessions recorded?
Protecting the intimacy and privacy of our shares, sessions will not be recorded.
How do I pay?
Payment is made through the registration and ticket platform.
How can I prepare?
To support your presence and practice time, you’re encouraged to prepare a ritual space that can hold your study. This could involve being in a specific place, having aromas you enjoy, water, tea, soft things, your favorite notebooks and pens, etc. You may also want to have creative making supplies nearby for some of the practices — markers, collage materials, scissors, glue, etc.
Do you offer refunds?
There are no refunds for this experience.
What if I still have clarifying questions?
I’d love to hear from you! Send me an email at design@deniseshantebrown.com
what if the act of reading and studying could be a ritual rooted in our sensuousness, an embodied practice that becomes a part of who we are², a feeling that carries us to freedom?
notes
¹ In the Emerge interview, Minna Salami describes Sensuous Knowledge as “a spiritual, combined approach to knowledge. It is knowledge that involves not only the mind and the intellect, but also feeling, the senses, and art, dreams, embodiment, spirit, and the idea of oneself as part of a larger whole.”
² Tracee Stanley describes what it means to embody a practice, “A sense of carrying the wisdom of the practice in your cells—you are in such a deep relationship with the practice that it becomes a part of you,” in Radiant Rest: Yoga Nidra for Deep Relaxation & Awakened Clarity.