2019 Committee
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Phil Collins
Chairman Phil first came to Swanwick in 2006 having started writing a novel and getting into all sorts of difficulty. With a background in engineering and technical writing the move to fiction proved more challenging than he thought! But Swanwick provided new opportunities to develop other writing directions. He’s been a regular contributor to Page to Stage and the final night’s entertainment over the past four years. Swanwick also provided the inspiration to take up guitar enabling him to join in with Buskers night as well as write song lyrics for the pantos he’s been involved with. He joined the committee in 2015 and is privileged to lead Swanwick into its seventy-first year. Email: chairman@swanwickwritersschool.org.uk |
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Maria Hennings Hunt Vice Chairman Maria is both a successful published writer and a fully qualified dance teacher. She worked in publishing for more than 20 years, spending 13 years with Travel Trade Gazette – the leading travel trade weekly newspaper in the UK. She also did a three month stint on the travel team at the Daily Express and wrote short stories for the women’s fiction market in her spare time. Maria went freelance in 1999, specialising in writing brochures and copy for the travel market whilst at the same time qualifying as a dance teacher. Maria now runs her own SE London based Dance school called Dance Generation and still writes shorts stories in her spare time. Email: vicechair@swanwickwritersschool.org.uk |
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Ingrid Jendrzejewski
Secretary Ingrid Jendrzejewski grew up in Vincennes, Indiana, studied creative writing at the University of Evansville, then physics at the University of Cambridge. She started submitting work for publication in 2014 and has since found homes for around 100 of her pieces, been nominated for a Pushcart Prize, Vestal Review’s VERA Award, and twice for Best Small Fictions, and won her first trip to Swanwick through Writing Magazine's short story competition. In 2017, she gave her first Swanwick workshop on writing for competitions. Ingrid currently lives in Cambridge where she writes, freelances, and occasionally runs writing workshops. Email: secretary@swanwickwritersschool.org.uk |
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Lesley Deschner
Treasurer Lesley has been a keen writer for many years and is part of the group, LiterEight (eight wonderful and mature women from Ayrshire) with whom she has produced three anthologies of poems and short stories. She has written several short plays, sometimes working in tandem with Helena Sheridan, another member of LiterEight and has acted with two local theatre companies showcasing new plays. Lesley is a previous Secretary of the Summer School (2013/2014) and has recently gained a Postgraduate Diploma in Person-Centred Counselling at the University of Strathclyde. Email: treasurer@swanwickwritersschool.org.uk |
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Cathy Grimmer
Committee member Cathy writes to escape the excitement of being a specialist tax consultant in her day job. She lives in Ripon in North Yorkshire, having started life much further South. She enjoys walking in the beautiful Yorkshire countryside, performing with a local AmDram group and cooking. Having started out writing short stories and humorous poetry, she has developed a taste for play-writing after taking part in Swanwick’s Page To Stage. Cathy has been coming to Swanwick since 2008. |
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Lance Greenfield Mitchell
Committee member Lance was born in the St Pancras borough of London in December, 1955. His father is from Yorkshire and his mother is from Scotland. He has spent most of his life trying to work out if he's a Londoner, a Yorkshireman or a Scotsman. He's come to the conclusion that he's half Yorkshire and half Scots. The place of your birth doesn’t really count. He is married to Joy and currently lives in North West Hampshire. His home city is probably Perth, although it could be Sheffield. Lance loves to travel. He has visited about 80 countries in his life and loves to immerse himself in different cultures, languages and cuisines. The greatest passion in his life is the way that people treat people. Witnessing a great act of kindness brings as many tears to his eyes as witnessing horrible cruelty. Hence his personal motto: One World, one people – Care for them all |
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Check out Lance's blog: Write to Inspire
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Jonathan Higgs
Committee member Jonathan first visited Swanwick in 2013, having heard about it during a fantasy writing weekend. Finding that the Writers’ Summer School is at least as surreal and compelling an alternative world as most of those found in speculative fiction, he’s been back each year since. He can usually be found moving at speed between conference rooms, clutching cables and frowning. On the rare and special occasions on which Jonathan completes his jobs list sufficiently fully to reach ‘Writing!’ (triple circled and underlined) he tends to generate either play scripts or the next syllable or two of a novel draft which, at this point, may be slightly older than he is. He also enjoys acting and directing, when he gets the chance. In what we commonly agree to be the real world, Jonathan is a teacher. This is Jonathan’s third year co-ordinating TopWrite and he hopes to see many more aspiring writers leap at the opportunity this year. See the TopWrite page for more details… |
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Simon Hall
Committee member Simon is an author, creative writing and journalism tutor, and former BBC Television News Correspondent. His books - the tvdetective series - are about a television reporter who covers crimes and gets so involved in the cases he helps the police to solve them. Seven have been published. Simon has also contributed short stories to a range of magazines, written plays, and even a pantomime. He teaches writing and journalism at the University of Cambridge, for Writing Schools, in libraries, on cruise ships and overseas. He also regularly contributes articles to publications such as Writing Magazine and Writers’ Forum. Simon is committed to widening participation in higher education, and gives talks in schools encouraging aspiration amongst young people, working with Cambridge University and the Speakers for Schools charity. Amongst his proudest achievements, Simon includes the number of young people he has helped into university and careers in broadcasting, and aspiring writers into publication. For more on Simon, see his website – www.thetvdetective.com |
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email the whole 2019 Committee: committee@swanwickwritersschool.org.uk
"I've had the most wonderful time. I've learned a great deal and have lots of inspiration to take home with me. Next year's dates are already in my diary." Louise Roffey
