11th September, 2018
Venue: St Alphege, Room 001 7.30pm
University of Winchester, Sparkford Road Winchester SO22 4NR
Speakers: Tracey Corderoy and Barry Timms
The Making of a Picture Book
Teacher, and mother of two, multiple award-winning Tracey has published sixty books, ranging from picture books to those for young adults.
Author Barry Timms is now Editorial Director of Little Tiger Press, an independent publishing house specializing in best-selling picture books and novelty books for children.
Tracey and Barry describe the symbiotic relationship between author and editor.
Special Guest
Brenda Sedgwick, author
Competition
Write a story for under-fives featuring a dinosaur egg, a
football and a tea cup. 300 words.
Adjudicator
Tracey Corderoy
9th October, 2018
Venue: The Stripe, University of Winchester
7.15pm HWS AGM report
Speaker: Ian Thomas
An Introduction To Games Writing
Ian is a writer, programmer, and games developer who has handled interactivity and storytelling for a living for over two decades. Most of his time is spent running Talespinners, a story-for-games company.
Ian will give an introduction to the art of game writing and narrative design, covering those disciplines a game writer needs to be able to master, and how writing for an interactive medium differs from more linear storytelling.
Special Guest
Allison Symes, flash fiction writer
Competition
Write a story outline for a videogame. 300 words.
Adjudicator
Ian Thomas
13th November, 2018
Venue: The Stripe, University of Winchester 7.30pm
Speaker: Heather Holden-Brown
Literary Agent
The Path to Publication
Heather Holden-Brown is a member of Kingston University’s Publishers’ Advisory Board. In 2004 she assessed the food and cookery books for the André Simon
Memorial Fund’s annual awards.
Heather Holden-Brown, a publisher for 20 years at Waterstone’s, BBC Books, and Headline, and a literary agent since 2005, shares her experiences and offers
tips for writers to achieve that final step to publication. Questions welcomed!
Special Guest
Karen Hamilton, thriller writer
Competition
An air crash survivor’s account of the last two minutes in the air. 300 words
Adjudicator
Dr. Gary Farnell, Lecturer in Creative Writing and American Studies
11th December, 2018
Venue: The Stripe
Starts 6pm. Speaker at 7.30pm
HWS Members’ Book Fair, networking, mince pies, wine bar and entertainment from singer, Emily Blackledge.
Speaker: Penny Ingham
Researching, Writing, and Publishing Historical Fiction
Penny is a classics graduate, an ex-BBC production assistant, now an enthusiastic archaeologist and historical novelist with three books published to date.
The benefits of choosing a small, independent publisher (e.g. Cava Books); why you should consider self-publishing as a way of landing a more traditional publishing contract, and how to carry out research for the historical novel.
Special Guests
author Rosie Travers
and poet, Joan McGavin
Competition
Write a diary entry from an archaeologist who finds an interesting object in a field on Christmas day. 300 words
Adjudicator
Joan McGavin, Poet and Lecturer in Creative Writing
8th January, 2019
Venue: The Stripe, University of Winchester, 7.30pm
Speaker: Lucy Courtenay
Get Started in Writing an Illustrated Children’s Book
Lucy has been writing children’s fiction for almost twenty years, is also a freelance editor of children’s books, and literary consultant and editor for Cornerstones Literary Consultancy.
In a highly interactive session, Lucy will focus on busting a few myths, running a short quiz, and discussing the relationship between the words and the pictures.
Special Guest
Madeleine Vaughan, writer for the Young Adult
Competition
Write ten New Year resolutions in the style of a YA character. 300 words
Adjudicator Della Galton, short story writer and novelist
12th February, 2019
Venue: The Stripe, University of Winchester at 7.30pm
Speaker: Edward Docx
How to Write a Novel in 45 Minutes
Edward Docx is half Russian on his mother’s side. Born in the North East, but educated in Manchester and Christ’s College, Cambridge, where he read English Literature, he has worked in London for the last twenty years.
He started writing fiction when he was in his teens and completed three unpublished novels before his debut novel, The Calligrapher, was bought by 4th Estate and published in 2003. Let Go My Hand will be his fourth novel.
Winner of the Geofrey Faber Prize, Edward explains the secret of crafting a plot and the bones of a narrative in a single session. He touches on the life of the modern writer, how creativity works, and describes the quick but essential tips that will help the author of fiction.
Special Guest
Damon Wakes, author
Competition
A last letter from a parent to their child. 300 words
Adjudicator
Claire Fuller
12th March, 2019
Venue: The Stripe, University of Winchester 7.30pm
Speaker: Judy Waite
Creative Curiosity
Judy Waite is an award-winning writer of children’s and Young Adult fiction with over fifty titles. Judy also teaches creative writing at the University of Winchester.
Judy will use her extensive workshop and teaching experience in schools and on residencies to drive an interactive session connecting the writing craft with
innovative creative approaches.
Special Guest
Christine Hamill, author
Competition
Rewrite the opening of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice for the social media age. 300 words
Adjudicator
Judy Waite
9th April, 2019
Venue: The Stripe, University of Winchester 7.30pm
Speaker: Neil Arksey
Going Incognito Finding an agent.
Neil has worked as a screenwriter, script editor, series story producer and head writer on a number of dramas in the UK and abroad. He has also worked as a writer, development executive and co-producer on feature films.
Neil’s midgrade and Young Adult novels are now published by Penguin Random House, but in this talk Neil talks about the challenge of finding an agent under unusual circumstances.
Special Guest
Dr Judith Heneghan, Senior Lecturer, Department of English, Creative Writing and American Studies, University of Winchester
Competition
Write the outline of a plot for a TV drama. 300 words
Adjudicator
Mark Straker, actor known for Channel 4 drama Kiss Me First and Batman Begins
14th May, 2019
Venue: The Stripe, University of Winchester 7.30pm
Speaker: Stevyn Colgan
An Englishman’s Home is his Cackle: Where has all the literary laughter gone?
Stevyn is an author (A Murder to Die For, The Diabolical Club), artist, speaker; and oddly-spelt Cornishman. He has been a chef, a comics publisher; and spent 30 years as a police officer in London.
The British have a long and wonderful tradition of humorous writing, with a wealth of hilarious stories and memorable comic characters. But where has all the humour gone?
In this lively and humorous talk, Stevyn takes an irreverent look at the history of British comic fiction, its current state, and where it could go in the future.
Special Guest
Simon Fairfax, thriller writer
Competition
Write a scene for a farcical murder mystery. 300 words
Adjudicator
Stevyn Colgan
11th June, 2019
Venue: The Stripe, University of Winchester
Starts 6.00pm: Book Fair with stalls displaying books from published HWS members; networking; wine bar, strawberries, nibbles.
Speaker at 7.30pm
Speaker: Simon Hall
Writing Crime, Reporting Crime
Simon has been a BBC TV and radio news correspondent for twenty-five years, covering some of Britain’s biggest ever stories. His seven books comprise the TV Detective series.
Stories, anecdotes, and insights from the life of a crime writer and former BBC television crime correspondent. Includes the poignant, like Simon’s reflections on being sent into London to cover the first suicide bombings on British soil, to the ridiculous, such as what to do when you really need a dead otter. And why there is absolutely no sex in his books.
Special Guest
Professor Joy Carter, DL, Vice Chancellor, University of Winchester
Competition
Write a journalist’s report of a crime involving an unusual criminal. 300 words
Adjudicator
Allie Spencer, novelist
Hampshire Writers' Society 