New Year, New Pup, New Salons

I hope you had a lovely festive season or at least manage to survive it! There’s been no time for New Year resolutions here at Words Away Central as life has been turned upside down by the arrival of our new golden retriever puppy, Alfie. I’m going to be hunkering down for the next few weeks while Alfie settles in.

Read more

Everyday Magic: The Four Elements of Creativity Workshop & Other Adventures

I’m really looking forward to Monday 4th December, and our salon at the Tea House Theatre, Poetry for Prose Writers with Maura Dooley - it’s going to be a lovely way to finish the year as we gallop toward Christmas and 2018. Before we part ways for the festive season, I wanted to cast a glance back over the last month with a mini-roundup of what’s been happening - if only to figure out where on earth the last few weeks have gone.

Read more

Short Or Long? Form In Fiction with Tessa Hadley

‘Short or Long? That is the question,’ tweeted a member of the audience as we gathered at the Tea House last Monday night for a salon with the acclaimed novelist and short story writer, Tessa Hadley. Outside, Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens was shrouded in the autumn dark but inside the cafe there was a seasonal sparkle and cosy atmosphere as the last of the audience arrived. 

Read more

Everyday Magic: The Four Elements of Creativity

I am really excited to be embarking on a new collaboration with book doctor and writing teacher, Andrew Wille. On the 18th November we have a workshop planned: Everyday Magic: The Four Elements of Creativity, We've found a great venue too, London Bridge Hive, right in the heart of SE1, two minutes walk from London Bridge Station. With a date and a venue arranged, I decided to interview Andrew about the workshop and how to add a spark of magic to your writing.

Read more

New Salons: Autumn 2017

I'm writing this in Devon. The sun is shining, today anyhow, and the sea is a glittering backdrop. Sailing boats are arriving for a regatta and we are surrounded by friends. I'm the last person to wish away August but I'm very excited about our new Autumn salons, now live on the website and taking bookings. Over the next few months Emma and I will be chatting about a variety of writing topics with Monica Ali, Jill Dawson, Tessa Hadley and Maura Dooley.

Read more

A Word Factory Masterclass with Louise Doughty

How do you work out if your idea is a short story or a novel? You begin writing in one form only to discover that your work has mutated into something else entirely. I attended an excellent masterclass recently, Where The Narrative Leads, with Louise Doughty, run by the Word Factory. Who better to help you work out if your idea can go the distance or is destined to crystallise into a short story than with an award-winning novelist, screenwriter and short story writer? 

Read more

World Building: Bringing Characters and Places Alive with Claire Scobie

Last Monday was one of those days...Worried about being on time for our salon with Claire Scobie, I'd barrelled home after a drawn out appointment, gathered up my stuff and slapped on some lipstick without the aid of a mirror (always a mistake). Rain coat on, I cantered to the bus stop and flagged down a bus just as the heavens cracked open. Half way to Vauxhall I realised I'd left behind my laptop, brolly and current read...

Read more

Writing For Children and Young Adults with Sara Grant

I always feel a little nervous and excited before a Words Away salon. Striding through Vauxhall Gardens the other night, en route to our recent event with Sara Grant, I saw a group of men with big muscles engaged in a tug-o-war. They even had a coach shouting instructions on the sidelines. I stopped to watch for a minute and wondered if I could wrangle a useful metaphor out of the encounter for the blog. A few minutes later I arrived at our venue, the Tea House Cafe, to find a Cornish Crabber beached beside the outdoor furniture. Metaphors were popping up all over the place! Or perhaps they were omens. Would tonight be a struggle or smooth sailing?

Read more

Writing Historical Fiction with Essie Fox

I had a moment of confusion last Monday night, wondering if it’s too soon to ditch my heavy winter jacket and scarf. So what a pleasure it was, to step out in the early evening with the sun shining. I cut through Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens to find Tea House customers once again enjoying afternoon tea outside. What difference a month makes! Maybe I imagined it, but I’m sure everyone arrived smiling for our Writing Historical Fiction salon. Then again, maybe that was all down to our guest writer, Essie Fox.

Read more

Under A Different Sun

I followed the ghost of myself all around town, pointing out places and telling stories about the long last past to my increasingly disinterested family. There was something elemental and poignant about revisiting the haunts of my childhood - swimming in the same ocean, listening to the boom of the surf from bed at night.

Read more