Have you ever been on a writing holiday, or thought of going on one? Variously referred to as writing holidays, writing breaks, writing getaways, or even writing safaris, they all have a common theme: an opportunity to work on your writing while someone else worries about the boring stuff like cooking and cleaning.
Archive for September, 2009
I’m chuffed to see that Enemy Lines is going to be one of the films shown in the ‘LONDON’ exhibition at the Branchage International Film Festival in Jersey. LONDON is a selection of films which were previously shown at the Rushes Soho Shorts Festival. In the words of festival director Joe Bateman:
LONDON will showcase an engaging variety of creative short films (from this year’s Festival Shortlist) about, for or made by Londoners. The work includes factual accounts, fictional settings and animated adventures that will be sure to transport the audience into the many different worlds of London.
We have all looked at cards and thought ‘I could do that!’ It is only when you decide to have a go yourself that you come to appreciate that, somewhere along the line, talent and skill actually come into it and being able to reel out a rhyme just isn’t enough. I’ve just come across a website chock full of advice on how to go about accessing this potentially lucrative market. Visit The Greeting Card Association for more information.
This Autumn I’ve got a variety of courses and workshops lined up. I’ll be:
- running a 5-week course on travel writing plus be giving talks on non-fiction writing style at the North East Centre for Lifelong Learning. This is part of the centre’s Explore Membership scheme. You pay an annual membership fee and can enjoy as many courses, workshops and one-off lectures as you like on a variety of subjects from family history to glass sculpture! Other writing courses include children’s writing and general creative writing. Contact the centre through the website to enrol.
- running a 10-week introduction to creative writing course at Crisis Skylight Trust. This is a charity geared towards helping people in crisis. The course will start in early October, date and time to be confirmed. Enroment through Skylight.
- hosting a monthly meeting for Christian writers at Heaton Baptist Church. The next Write Life meeting is this Friday, 7.30 – 9. All are welcome and attendance is free.
- lecturing a module in dramatic writing at Northumbria University.
- lecturing a series of modules on writing for the media at Newcastle University.
In addition I’m proud to announce the first meeting of the Northern Non-Fiction Writers group. It has been started by a group of writers who attended my non-fiction writing course at the Centre for Lifelong Learning. Their first meeting is this evening and all are welcome. Check out their website for further details.
For those of you not in the Newcastle area, feel free to work through the online courses on creative writing and non-fiction writing.
