Tag: City Writes (page 1 of 7)

City Writes Spring Event 2025: Behind the scenes with our featured tutors series; Introducing Jem Bartholomew

March 13, 2025 / / 0 Comments

Author and Lecturer Jem Bartholomew

By Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone

This is the last in our series of blog posts exploring the writing and teaching of City St George’s short course tutors reading at The City Writes Spring Event on Wednesday 26th March at 6.30pm, Northampton Square. It’s going to be an unprecedented night of storytelling from tutors, students and alumni followed by a Q&A with Goldsmiths’ Prize shortlisted author, Han Smith, and four of our wonderful writing tutors: Jem Bartholomew, Katy Darby, Caroline Green and Martin Ouvry.

This week we are introducing the fantastic narrative nonfiction writer, Jem Bartholomew. Jem teaches Fact-based Storytelling here at City St George’s and as an award-winning freelance reporter has a wealth of experience to share with students and readers alike.

When asked to introduce his work, Jem launched into a description of his current project. ‘I’m currently writing a narrative nonfiction book about UK poverty, called Threading The Needle. The book follows a year in the life of four communities — a food bank in southern England, courier drivers in London, a former coal-mining village in South Yorkshire, and a young MP’s journey to Westminster — as they battle against the rocketing cost of living, push for change, and strive for meaning in an insecure world. The book is nonfiction, but through immersive reporting in these communities it adopts a novelistic lens to capture where our country is, and where it’s going, following in the footsteps of George Orwell’s The Road To Wigan Pier and Down and Out in Paris and London. My shorter-form freelance reporting can be found in the Guardian.’

With such an impressive resume I wanted to find out what Jem found exciting about teaching at City St George’s. He said it was ‘the capacity to be constantly surprised by the writers who take my class. Short courses attract people at all different stages of their lives and writing journeys — I’ve had cohorts in which retired people and teenagers are swapping notes, reading each other’s work. It’s this multiplicity in class that fuels surprise, innovation and freshness on the page. When teaching, as well as outlining some of the techniques I feel are worth knowing, I strive for my classes to resemble a seminar rather than a lecture. Participants have just as much to teach me, and teach each other, than vice versa, and active, constructive discussion is central.’ No wonder former students speak of Jem’s ability to facilitate discussions and grow writers.

So, what one piece of advice would Jem give to aspiring writers? His answer is wonderfully practical: ‘Details are important. The small details are what brings a scene to life, what tells the reader who a character is, what sticks in the audience’s mind after they’ve put your story down. Don’t forget to capture the particulars: What’s the dog’s name? What kind of shoes was that man wearing? Did that person thank the waiter? And people love to read dialogue. Getting your characters talking to each other is a surefire way to inject some energy into your scenes. But above all, don’t wait for someone to ask you to write, or wait until you’re in the right job to start telling stories — you don’t need permission, just make writing a part of your life, start producing quality work, and people will want to read it.’

To hear more of Jem’s advice and listen to a passage of his work-in-progress, don’t forget to register for the The City Writes Spring Event on Wednesday 26th March at 6.30pm, Northampton Square. There will be refreshments, a chance to hear more about the short creative writing courses at City St George’s and a special 10% discount for all attendees who sign up for a creative writing course.

We can’t wait to see you on the 26th of March, in person, with refreshments in hand and mind sparking with new ideas.

 

City Writes Spring Event 2025: 2nd in the ‘Behind the scenes with our featured tutors series’; Introducing Caroline Green

February 21, 2025 / / 0 Comments
By Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone

As the days tick by towards the deadline for submitting to the City Writes Competition (the deadline is Friday 28th February!), we’re delighted to introduce you to another of our tutors reading at the City Writes Spring Event 2025, Wednesday, 26th March, 6.30pm in Northampton Square. Alongside, Goldsmiths’ Prize shortlisted author, Han Smith, there will be readings from four of City St. George’s Short Course tutors: Jem Bartholomew, Katy Darby, Caroline Green and Martin Ouvry. Joining them on stage will be the competition winners. Find out more about the competition here.

Having started this series looking at the work and advice of Martin Ouvry, we’re now turning to Crime and Thriller Writing tutor, Caroline Green. Caroline is a wonderfully prolific writer, charming and unnerving readers from children to adults, and teaching with a care and consideration that has nurtured a number of publications from her students. When I asked her to introduce her work, her enthusiasm was catching.

‘I’ve been lucky enough to write thirteen books (so far!) for both young people and adults. My latest book for 7-9 year olds is called There’s A Dog in My Brain, which is about a boy and a dog who swap bodies for the day. But I mainly write dark, gothic thrillers for adults under the names Cass Green and CS Green. My latest series as CS Green is about a branch of the Met Police that solves supernatural crime. I’ve loved writing them and you should be able to find them via the usual booksellers and libraries.’

Writing with such a range of readers in mind, and with a broad knowledge of thriller, crime and comedy, Caroline offers a wealth of experience to students. I asked her what excited her most about her teaching and her answer began with a love of the broad range of students taking her courses at City St. George’s. ‘I really love teaching writing to a broad range of experiences and ages too. It connects me with the aspects of the writing process that I find exciting, such as plotting and crafting a story, but also helps me “up my game” in the parts I find harder, like writing description. Seeing students have a breakthrough moment in their own work is always such a wonderful moment for me. I’ve now had quite a few students from various courses who have gone onto publication (two in the recent Observer Debuts of the Year list) and to have even played a tiny role in that is an absolute privilege.’

Finally I asked Caroline to offer one piece of advice to aspiring writers and her answer was a very delightful one for the bibliophiles among us. ‘My one piece of advice is one you hear a lot, but I think people tell themselves sometimes that it isn’t as important as it really is. You have to find time to read widely within the genre you are trying to write. I think some sort of osmosis can take place, where you absorb some of that good stuff along the way.’

For your chance to absorb some good stuff through listening to readings from Caroline Green, fellow tutors, alumna Han Smith and competition winners, don’t forget to book your tickets for the City Writes Spring Event 2025, Wednesday, 26th March, 6.30pm in Northampton Square. If you’d like to join these wonderful authors on stage, all current students and alumni of City St. George’s Short Creative Writing Courses can enter the City Writes Competition for which the submission details are here. Don’t forget to enter before the deadline of midnight on the 28th February!

 

Looking forward to seeing you at the event and reading your submissions and keep an eye out for the next in the series of posts about the tutors featured at the City Writes Spring Event in March.

City Writes Spring Event 2025: Behind the scenes with our featured tutors

February 12, 2025 / / 0 Comments

By Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone

This is the first in a series of blog posts looking into the writing and teaching lives of the tutors reading at the City Writes Spring Event 2025, Wednesday, 26th March, 6.30pm in Northampton Square. I’ll be asking each featured tutor the same three questions about their work and their teaching, hoping to entice you to sign up for the event and submit your own work to the City Writes Competition and be able to join them, Han Smith, and the other competition winners, on stage in March.

What a joy to start off this series promoting City Writes Spring Event 2025 by introducing Visiting Lecturer and writer, Martin Ouvry who teaches the Novel Writing and Longer Works course here at City St George’s. Not only do the course reviews rave about Martin’s teaching as ‘first rate’ and ‘excellent’, his answers to my questions reveal a teacher and practitioner firmly grounded in his practice as well as diligent and generous in his approach to his own and others’ work.

I began by asking Martin where readers could find his work and what they might expect to read. ‘Expect the unexpected,’ he replied. ‘My novels and short stories are psychological dramas with mysteries at their heart and, often, a touch of the surreal. I’m proud to have been published in a range of anthologies – e.g. New Writing (Picador) and A Little Nest of Pedagogues (British Council) – and magazines including the globally-renowned Esquire and the world’s oldest literary journal, The London Magazine. My article ‘How creative writing courses benefit a writer’ first appeared in the Writers’ & Artists’ Yearbook 2023 and has been reprinted in the 2024 and 2025 editions. My novel The Cost of Loving was completed with the support of a grant from those lovely, lovely people at Arts Council England. More information, and audio extracts, can be found on the Writing page of my website.’

City Novel Writing tutor and author, Martin Ouvry

I went on to ask Martin what excited him most about teaching. ‘I love the sheer diversity of both new and practising writers who beat a path to my door at City St George’s, and the range of their projects, whether already begun when they come to me or existing – at that stage – purely in the realm of ideas. I love witnessing twelve individuals coming together as a group. I’m also excited by the ever growing number of success stories – with agents and publishers, or in writing competitions – from those who have come to Novel Writing and Longer Works – although I’m equally moved by the successes of those who have simply made strong progress and feel proud of the work they have produced.’

Having gleaned Martin’s inclusive approach to the rigours of the writing life, my final question sought one piece of advice he thought most important for aspiring writers. His response was invaluable: ‘Learn from others but be yourself. Individual talent is a precious and often delicate thing. Every writer, whatever their level of experience, has the opportunity to bring something different and valuable into the world.’

For your chance to hear Martin read a passage of his work and engage in debate about writing with the other tutors and Han Smith, do sign up for City Writes Spring Event, 6.30pm on Wednesday 26th March, 2025. This term the event will be in person for the first time in many years and promises to be a bumper celebration of City St George’s literary talent. Book your tickets here.

You can also enter the competition to share the stage with Martin and others. The competition is open to all current students and alumni of City St George’s short creative writing courses. You need only send your best 1,000 words of creative fiction or non-fiction to rebekah.lattin-rawstrone.1@city.ac.uk with details of your name and the short course you took, or are taking, by Friday 28th February. Full details and submission guidelines are here. Whilst we accept YA, we don’t currently accept children’s fiction, poetry or scripts. There will be five competition winning slots available and we can’t wait to read your submissions.

Book tickets here, check out the City Writes Competition submission guidelines here, and watch this space for the next in the series of ‘City Writes Spring Event 2025: Behind the scenes with our featured tutors’.

 

City Writes Springs into 2025 with an Exciting in-person Literary Extravaganza

January 17, 2025 / / 0 Comments

City Writes Springs into 2025 with an exciting in-person literary extravaganza and submissions are open.

City Writes, the showcase for all the creative writing talent coming from the short creative writing courses here at City St. George’s, is back and supercharged for Spring. We will be holding the event in person in Northampton Square, 7pm 26th March, and we have a bumper line up.

Not only do we have the amazing Short Story Writing alumna Han Smith, a 2024 Goldsmiths Prize shortlisted author coming to read from her debut novel, Portraits at the Palace of Creativity and Wrecking, we also have readings from some of our incredibly talented tutors: Jem Bartholomew, Caroline Green, Katy Darby and Martin Ouvry. More details of all four tutors will be forthcoming over the next few weeks, so do keep an eye on your inbox.

Han Smith grew up in Japan, Russia, the UK and elsewhere. A queer writer, translator and adult literacy teacher, Han is the recipient of a 2019/2020 London Writers Award, and has been shortlisted/longlisted for the 2019 Mslexia Novella Award, the Bridport Prize, the Desperate Literature short story prize, and the Brick Lane short story prize. She has also been published by Lunate, Five Dials, Cipher Press, Versopolis, Litro, The Interpreter’s House and the European Poetry Festival. She lives in London. Portraits at the Palace of Creativity and Wrecking is her debut novel and was shortlisted for the 2024 Goldsmiths Prize.

We couldn’t be more delighted by her visit to City Writes. She’ll be reading from Portraits at the Palace of Creativity and Wrecking and taking part in a Q&A with tutor and City Writes host, Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone. We’ll then be asking our tutors to join us on stage for a broader Q&A with the audience.

Joining this stellar line up will be our competition winners. This could be you!

For your chance to read your work on stage, in person, with Han Smith, Jem Bartholomew, Katy Darby, Caroline Green and Martin Ouvry, all you need to do is send the best 1,000 words of creative fiction or non-fiction to rebekah.lattin-rawstrone.1@city.ac.uk with details of your name and the short course you took, or are taking, by Friday 28th February. Full details and submission guidelines are here. Whilst we accept YA, we don’t currently accept children’s fiction, poetry or scripts. There will be five competition winning slots available and we can’t wait to read your submissions.

In the meantime, don’t forget to save the date for the event. It is free and doors open at 6.30pm for drinks and nibbles. Book your place for City Writes Spring 2025 at Northampton Square, 7pm, 26th March. The booking link is here. And as an extra bonus, all attendees get 10% off their next Creative Writing Short Course, as long as you book by 30th March.

City Writes Spring 2025 needs to be in your diary now!

Announcing the City Writes Autumn 2024 Competition Winners!

December 3, 2024 / / 0 Comments

 By Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone

Congratulations to Joanna Bawa, Doug Kessler, Audrey Madden, Tunde Oyebode, Aditi Parekh and Robin Sheeran, this term’s winners of the City Writes competition! From complex family histories, through childhood summer afternoons, airport queues, befriending apps and graveyards all the way to AI envisioned futures, this term’s selection of writing has it all. You can hear these fantastic stories being read by their authors alongside debut crime writer Jo Cunningham, at this term’s City Writes event on the 11th December at 7pm on Zoom. Register here to come along and read on for more information on our wonderful winners.

Joanna Bawa is a professional and creative writer, currently working as a ghostwriter. This complements her work as a cognitive behavioural therapist, combining an appreciation of the power of words and the complexity of human nature. She belongs to a local writing group where her fiction and poetry has won awards, and her first novel was longlisted in the 2019 Mslexia novel competition. She is working on a second novel, and her piece for City Writes, ‘DeathDefy’, may become a third. Joanna is an alumna of the Writing the Memoir course.

Doug Kessler is an expat Yank who’s lived and worked in London for the last 34 years.
He’s a marketing copywriter and agency founder but pretty new to narrative non-fiction, short stories, and poetry. Adam in 20 Snapshots is his first book-length project, of which he will be reading an extract. Doug is a Narrative Non-Fiction alumnus.

Audrey Madden is currently writing her first book while working in the not for profit arts and culture sector. She has a degree in English & Comparative Literature from Goldsmiths University. Her work is inspired by nature and the different environments that exist across the United States and the UK. A Writers’ Workshop alumna, Audrey will be reading an extract from her novel, Matriarchal Lines.

Aditi Parekh is an aspiring writer and student of Writers’ Workshop. She is interested in human psychology, particularly the dark triads and group dynamics. She is currently working on a novel, with the working title The Sabbatical, which describes a woman’s struggle with drug addiction and her descent into madness. She will be reading an extract from the novel.

Tunde Oyebode is a Nigerian-British architect and writer based in East London. Drawing inspiration from everyday life, his fiction explores human relationships and African diaspora experiences. His work has been featured in Stylist Magazine, Obsidian, and Solstice Literary Magazine. A finalist for the 2023 London Independent Story Prize and the 2024 Solstice Literary Magazine Prize, he was also nominated for Best of the Net. Tunde is currently looking to publish a collection of interconnected short stories. Outside writing, he enjoys cycling and photographing architecture. A Writers’ Workshop alumnus, Tunde will be reading ‘To Crazy Shane’.

Robin Sheeran is a native of Belfast. He studied Film and Literature at Warwick University and is a former BBC journalist. Robin is interested in producing stonking characters and crackling dialogue. His work uses dark humour to examine how we relate to each other. Robin is the current holder of the international Piazza Grande Religion Journalism Award for his writing for New Humanist. He ghostwrote Going the Distance, the autobiography of endurance cyclist Joe Barr, published by Gill Books in 2021. A Short Story Writing alumnus, Robin will be reading his story, ‘Summer Job’.

Just from reading their biographies you get a sense of the night of stories that awaits on Wednesday 11th December at 7pm over Zoom. Alongside these wonderful competition winners will be our cosy crime author and Novel Studio alumna, Jo Cunningham, whose novel Death By Numbers came out earlier this year. Register here to listen to all these authors on 11th December at 7pm. Can’t wait to see you there!

Guest alumna Jo Cunningham, author of Death by Numbers

Writing Short Course News Roundup 2024

October 8, 2024 / / 0 Comments

Whether you’re taking a course with us this term or were a student in the past, we want to inspire your writing with the latest news from our short course alumni and tutors.

The Novel Studio 

Alan Gray (also alumnus of WW and SS) has been awarded the Sonny and Gita UK Scholarship to complete his MA in creative writing at UEA.

Kathrine Bancroft has had one of her poems longlisted for the 2024 Aurora Prize. She is also a London Independent Story Prize Poetry Finalist.

Katy Darby’s Writers’ Workshop and Short Story Writing alumna Isabel Blake has been accepted on the Creative Writing MA at UEA, while Erica Buist has just completed her Cambridge MSt in Creative Writing, has been longlisted for the BBC’s annual callout for scripts and is now teaching Creative Writing at City Lit.

Peter Forbes’ Narrative Non Fiction alumna Melissa Cornet has had her firstEnglish piece published in July in the London Review of Books, about her work in Afghanistan on Gender apartheid. She is also confirmed to publish a piece in the Guardian this month.

Tutor News

Anna Wilson has two books out this autumn: Be Back Soon is a picture book about swallow migration, illustrated by Jenny Bloomfield and published by Andersen Press and A Story of the Seasons, a large-format non-fiction picture book about seven habitats throughout the seasons, illustrated by Carolina Rabei and published by Nosy Crow and the National Trust. Both books have been translated into other European languages including French, German and Danish.

One-day Courses

There are plenty of options for anyone keen on one-day writing courses: our ever-popular Introduction to Copywriting with Maggie Richards is available monthly; while our Writing the Memoir course is now taught by the brilliant Anna Wilson (see above). And the dynamic duo of Anna Tsekouras and Pete Austin, aka Anon Agency, run our Intro to Branding course. This term we are also introducing a brand new course, Content Writing, taught by the fabulous Tamsin Mackay.

Opportunities

City Writes

City Writes is City, University of London’s termly writing event, showcasing the best of City Short Courses writing talent.

Hosted by longstanding short courses tutor, Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone, and into its seventh year, City Writes provides an opportunity for the best new writers from the City Short Courses community to read an extract of their work, sharing the stage with one of our published alumni or tutors reading from their new or award-winning publication.

This term’s guest alumna will be debut cosy crime author and Novel Studio alumna, Jo Cunningham. Jo’s novel, Death by Numbers, was published by Constable in August this year. This delicious crime has had rave reviews and who could resist a novel about an actuary investigating a spate of deaths in Eastbourne? Hilarious and gripping, this is the perfect novel to see you through the cold winter nights. Buy your copy ahead of the event here.

To join Jo on the virtual stage, all you need to do is submit your best 1,000 words of creative fiction or non-fiction (we do accept young adult fiction but don’t currently accept children’s fiction) on any subject to rebekah.lattin-rawstrone.2@city.ac.uk with details of the City short course you are taking or have taken by midnight on Friday 15th November. Competition and submission guidelines can be found here. 

We can’t wait to read your submissions and if you are keen to secure your place for the night, you can register for the event here. Good luck!

Key Dates:

Our Writing for Social Impact course continues to offer a scholarship for one young student (18-25) from an underrepresented background and/or facing financial difficulty. Please contact the tutor, Ciaran Thapar, for more information on this opportunity.

All current students of Introduction to Copywriting, Writing for Business and Narrative Non-Fiction courses are eligible to submit an idea for a blog post for short courses. If the idea is accepted, and the written piece meets our standards, it will be professionally edited and published on our blog.

The annual Book Edit Writers’ Prize is open for submissions until 15 October 2024. Judged this year by Novel Studio alumna Lara Haworth and run in association with Legend Press, this is a fantastic (and free) opportunity for any unpublished novelist from a community currently underrepresented in UK publishing. What’s up for grabs? Chance to share your work with top agents. A mentoring session with a Legend Press Commissioning Editor. A supportive community of talented writers and tailored advice from industry experts. For more details please click HERE.

Open Evening

And finally, we are running an open evening with taster sessions on 11th December. Details will be available soon but watch this space or check the website for links to registration.

That’s all for now. Keep on writing and keep your stories coming into us. And huge congratulations to all our alumni and tutors.

Interview with Jo Cunningham, author of debut novel Death by Numbers

July 29, 2024 / / 0 Comments

Next week sees the launch of debut cosy crime novel, Death By Numbers, written by City Novel Studio alumna Jo Cunningham. Jo took time out of her busy schedule to answer our questions ahead of publication day. Read on for her answers and for more details about the book.

 

  1. When did you first realise you wanted to be a writer?

Glossing over my dubious childhood poetry and notebooks full of random jottings, I didn’t start writing ‘seriously’ until my early thirties. I went on a beginners Arvon course for a week, with no expectations, and by the end of the course I was hooked. One of the tutors on the course recommended the courses at City University for novice writers and…

 

  1. Who are you currently reading?

I have just finished reading The Misadventures of Margaret Finch by Claire McGlasson which is a beautifully written novel about a young woman in 1930s Blackpool who questions how she observes others, and herself. Next up, is Kala by Colin Walsh – I’m going to hear him speak about the book soon, so that’s exciting. And after that on my TBR pile is Monumenta by Lara Haworth – after hearing Lara’s amazing talk at the recent City Writes event, I had to get her book!

 

  1. You’ve studied creative writing and also worked hard at the craft of writing on your own. What’s been the most useful thing you’ve learned about writing a novel?

Yikes – just one thing? At the moment, I’m in an editing phase, and as I re-read each scene, I ask myself ‘Does this scene earn its keep?’ – is there enough happening to keep it – does it push the story and the characters forward? If the answer is ‘No’ then I either need to rework the scene or ditch it.

 

  1. What kind of qualities does a writer need?

Persistence and resilience.  It took me many years from starting to write novels to reach the publication stage. The main thing you must do is finish the novel. I know that sounds glib, but not everyone does. The next thing is dealing with rejection. I wish had some words of wisdom on that. Rejection hurts, but you somehow have to get over it and keep going. Even now I’m at the publication stage, I know there will be more of that to face in the future but… you only need that one person to say ‘yes’!

 

  1. What made you write a cosy crime novel? What is it about the genre that appeals to you?

Back in 2017, I’d just put another novel in the ‘bottom drawer’ and wanted to start something new. I’d been reading Douglas Adam’s Dirk Gently detective novels and was inspired to start on a humorous detective book. I read and watch a lot of cosy crime – there’s something oddly comforting about knowing everything will be resolved and usually there’s a good dose of humour included.

Author Jo Cunningham

  1. Can you tell us about your path to publication?

I’d describe it more as an obstacle course where I created some of the obstacles. For my first three novels, I didn’t bother with looking for an agent or publisher – I didn’t think they were of a good enough standard and perhaps I was trying to put off being rejected… they went straight in the bottom drawer. But the fourth novel I did send round to five or six agents. I got a couple of personal replies in amongst standard rejections and tumbleweed. I think I should have been a bit more persistent at this stage – please see my own advice about writer qualities above. Anyhow… when it came to the fifth novel, Death by Numbers, I decided I would really go for it. I sent the novel out in small batches to agents. I started to get full-read requests which boosted my confidence – this is when the agent has enjoyed the excerpt that you’ve sent and now wants to read the whole manuscript. Eventually I got an offer from my amazing agent Marina de Pass at The Soho Agency – from sending in a submission to the ‘slushpile’ – so yes, it can happen.

 

  1. What advice would you have for someone starting out writing a novel?

I’ve benefitted enormously from taking courses, getting feedback at workshops, and reading books to help improve different writing skills – structure, character, productivity. But there were times when I had step back and work out what was going to work for me. I guess my advice is that you have figure it out so that you create your own advice for yourself.

 

  1. What are you working on now?

I’m currently finishing off a batch of edits on the second book in the cosy crime series featuring Una, an actuary and a detective. It’s called Pet Hates and is due to come out in August 2025. Writing the next book in series has been a learning curve, as it has to be standalone but still have some touches that make it feel there’s some continuity for anyone who’s read the first one.

Thanks so much, Jo! We can’t wait to read the novel!

Death by Numbers will be published on 1 August and you can order a copy here.

Jo will also be our guest at next term’s City Writes. Full information on how to enter the competition or how to come along and listen to Jo read from her novel will be available on the website soon.

For more information about our writing short courses, visit our website here, or come along to the virtual open evening in September. Full information on the free taster sessions available and how to register can be found here.

City Writes Summer 2024: A Monumental Event

July 12, 2024 / / 0 Comments

By Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone

While half the country were on the edges of their seats watching football, us lucky few were treated to a night of storytelling, imagination and the excitement of hearing the inner world of consciousness burst out from the page.

 

City Writes is a termly event set up to showcase the best talent from City’s creative writing Short Courses. It’s a game of two halves (I couldn’t resist): readings from competition winners, students and alumni of City’s creative writing short courses who enter their best 1,000 words of fiction or creative non-fiction into the termly competition; and a visit from a published alumni or tutor and this term we managed to score the wonderful Lara Haworth, whose debut Monumenta came out with Canongate on the 4th July.

 

We began the night with the competition winners and Dee Miller, recent Novel Studio alumna, kicked things off with an extract from her Middle Grade novel, Between Wind and Water. We were enthralled as Geal, guardian of Spring, discovers all the people and animals of their local village are gone, leaving only footprints, paw marks and hoof prints behind. It was easy to imagine a young audience being gripped by this fantastical and energetic tale.

 

We heard from An Approach to Creative Writing alumna, Emily Edwards next as she read her multi-perspective story, ‘Laurie’. Who was this rather wild woman and what happened that night? A story that leaves the central character absent but all over the text, it was a thrilling and eerie listen. The audience were left wanting more in all the right ways.

 

Moving from one dark scenario to another, Flora Tonking read her story, ‘The Playing Field’ next. Another recent Novel Studio graduate, Flora’s story was inspired by events in her mystery novel, Chosen Family, and certainly proved her expert turn of phrase and her ability to leave bodies bleeding in the dark. A very haunting and moving story. Bring on the novel!

 

From fiction to creative non-fiction, we were treated to a wonderful portrait of Constance Markiewicz next as Fact-Based Storytelling alumna, Pamela Welsh, read her piece, ‘A Countess in Combat’. Constance’s life from riches to revolution was inspiring and a wonderful advertisement for Pamela’s book project on women in conflict. That’s a book I think we’ll all be eager to pick up.

 

Another Novel Studio alumna and City Writes veteran, Jill Craig read next. Her story, ‘Estrangement’, took us onto a boat ride with her main character, on her way to see her estranged mother with a new boyfriend, desperate to reach out to her sister, the one who remained her touchstone of safety. So full of emotional turmoil and laced with lyrical writing, the audience were putty in Jill’s hands.

 

Next, we heard from Margaret Rogerson, our final competition winner and another recent Novel Studio graduate. Margaret read an extract from her novel, I Was, Once. She transported us into those delicate teenage years, fourteen and eager to find excitement in life. Her character found herself on holiday in a campsite surrounded by an aunt preoccupied with ‘that stupid baby’ and a whole host of men hungry to watch her cartwheel. Let’s hope Margaret publishes soon so that we can read the rest of this story with such a compelling and funny voice at its heart.

 

After such a stellar set of competition winning readers, it was a good thing we had multi-talented artist, filmmaker and now writer, Lara Haworth as our guest speaker. A Novel Studio alumna who read an early extract from Monumenta at City Writes back in 2021, Lara is a phenomenal writer dear to our hearts. Her debut, Monumenta is a book that examines how we remember collectively and in private. The Guardian says it  ‘fizzes with ideas’ and Bookmunch say it ‘Deserves a place on awards shortlists’ and the City Writes audience couldn’t agree more. Over the next half an hour or so Lara introduced us to the book through her answers to my questions and some wonderful short readings from a small novel that really packs a punch.

Author and City alumna Lara Haworth

Set in Belgrade, the novel opens with Olga Pavić receiving a letter from the government. It tells her that her house is being requisitioned in order to turn it into a monument for a massacre. But which one? No one seems to know. It’s a novel that explores memory in all its present, personal and civic interpretations. It was such a delight to speak with Lara and you can hear her readings, our conversation and all of the competition winners by clicking on this link to the video of the night. It really was a monumental night. Buy your copy of Monumenta here.

 

Thank you, Lara, thank you competition winners, thank you audience members and Emily Pedder for supporting this event. It truly is a showcase for the talent coming from the short creative writing courses at City and what talent there is. Next term, City Writes returns with alumna Jo Cunningham as our guest. Jo’s debut, Death by Numbers comes out with Hachette this August. It’s a seaside comedy crime that will have us burning on our beach towels. Listen to the event HERE and watch this space for details of City Writes Autumn 2024.

Winners of 2024 City Writes Summer Event Announced

July 3, 2024 / / 0 Comments
By Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone

We’re delighted to announce the six winning authors of our City Writes Summer 2024 competition who are now due to join Novel Studio alumna and published author, Lara Haworth on the 10th July at 7pm over Zoom. Read on to find out more about these wonderful winners.

Jill Craig for her story ‘Estrangement’.

Originally from Northern Ireland, Jill now lives and works as a secondary school teacher in the North-West. Before that, she lived and worked in London, Paris and a tiny town in Greece. She has had stories published on LiterallyStories, Egg + Frog, Freckle Ltd. and this is her second reading at CityWrites. Fresh from the Novel Studio, she is currently working on a novel about how climate change affects a couple’s plans to have a family.

Emily Edwards, An Approach to Creative Writing alumna, for her story, ‘Laurie’.

Emily Edwards is from North Wales but now resides in London after spending seven years living in Paris. She currently works in finance but also has a background in voluntary work in Asia. She has been an avid reader from an early age, when she started many stories that all remained unfinished. She had to drop out of her course in 2015 due to emergency surgery but picked up her pen again this year. This is the first short story that she has ever completed.

Dee Miller for an extract from her novel, Between Wind and Water.

Dee Miller is a recent graduate of the Novel Studio. Originally from the enchanting Highlands of Scotland, she now calls Hertfordshire her home, where she works as a consultant. A keen storyteller and a reader of maps, Dee’s heart beats for children’s literature. Her imaginative world will win the hearts of young readers, and she is now engrossed in the creation of her second novel.

Margaret Rogerson, Novel Studio alumna, for her extract from her novel, I Was, Once.

Margaret is originally from Leeds and now lives with three time thieves in South East London. A feature film she co wrote and directed is currently playing on Amazon Prime (Soundproof – shameless plug) and she intends to turn her first book ‘I Was, Once’ into a screenplay. She is interested in fiction that is unafraid to tackle thorny subjects.

Flora Tonking, Novel Studio alumna, for her story, ‘The Playing Field’.

Originally from the U.K., Flora now lives in Paris, where she manages the English-language bookshop, Shakespeare and Company. A bookseller by trade, she is passionate about introducing readers to powerful stories that have the possibility to transport, delight and remind us of our shared human experience. Mystery and crime novels are her lifelong love, and she is currently working on her own first book (a mystery, of course) having just completed the Novel Studio.

Pamela Welsh, Fact-Based Storytelling alumna, for her non-fiction piece, ‘A Countess in Combat’.

Pamela Welsh is a recovering journalist who used to work for the Manchester Evening News. She now works in marketing and communications for a national education charity. Originally from Northern Ireland, Pamela’s now made Manchester her home, and was heavily involved in the response to the 2017 Manchester Arena terrorist attack. Pamela has long been fascinated by women’s history, and is working on a book project on women in conflict.

With a diverse range of stories from activists to accounts of accidental murder all the way through to the complexities of intimate family reconnections, the prize-winners alone promise a wonderful night on Wednesday 10th July. To top off their fantastic pieces, we will hear from debut novelist, Lara Haworth, barely a week after the publication of her novel, Monumenta, already bringing in fantastic reviews. The Observer called it ‘a deeply political work’ that ‘fizzes with ideas’. Sign up to hear from Lara and our competition winners here. We’ll see you there on Wednesday 10th July at 7pm on Zoom. We can’t wait!

City Writes Creative Writing Spring 2024 Showcase Event Opens for Submissions

May 8, 2024 / / 0 Comments

City Writes guest and Novel Studio alumna, Lara Haworth.

This term’s City Writes showcase for all the wonderful writing coming from City’s short creative writing courses will feature the fantastically talented artist, debut author and Novel Studio alumna, Lara Haworth, on the 10th July at 7pm over Zoom.

Lara’s novel, Monumenta, will be published by Canongate on the 4th July, less than a week before City Writes. Set in Belgrade, Monumenta follows the fortunes of Olga Pavic and her family as her home is requisitioned for demolition. In place of the house, there will be a monument to a massacre, but with three possible horrors to commemorate, which will be memorialised and what secrets is Olga hiding from her children? You can pre-order your copy here.

To join Lara on the virtual stage, all you need to do is submit your best 1,000 words of creative fiction or non-fiction (we do accept young adult fiction but don’t currently accept children’s fiction) on any subject to rebekah.lattin-rawstrone.2@city.ac.uk with details of the City short course you are taking or have taken by midnight on Friday 14th June. Competition and submission guidelines can be found here.

We can’t wait to read your submissions and if you are keen to secure your place for the night, you can register for the event here. Good luck!

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