Rather than change, I always get off at Leicester Square and walk down Villiers Street, through Embankment station, and over the new(ish) pedestrian bridge to the Royal Festival Hall on the South Bank. Yesterday, as I crossed the Thames it was low tide.  I had an appointment at 11am with Patience Agbabi for my third tutorial... Continue Reading →

Just received my contributor's copy for Lighthouse. Stunning aesthetica from the East of England. Only its second issue but this magazine has already established itself (to me) as a high-quality, beautifully produced and meticulously edited journal, a welcome new addition to compensate for the end of Smiths Knolll and 14 Magazine. The typeface used is IM Fell... Continue Reading →

A chance to meet up last night with some of the Jerwood/Arvon mentees who turned out for the London performance - gearing up for Edinburgh - of the short play by German Munoz 'Hopelessly Devoted to You'. Four short plays, all in an hour. The four writers were given a simple task: to write a... Continue Reading →

Must say, I'm missing virtual Totleigh Barton. I think we all are: Darren, Rose, Jean and Nancy. The last few weeks me and three of the other Jerwood/Arvon mentees (a.k.a novelists and playwrights Jessica, Sarah and Yvonne) have been experimenting with Google Drive to see what we could create through a collaborative exercise. It has... Continue Reading →