Course and Grant Report 2006

I started up the hill from Hebdon Bridge Station with my petrified heart in my boots…
…A week later, heading down the hill towards (the eventual) London smog, I felt lighter, confident and supported in my writing - with my heart back where it belonged.

The course was incredible. The intensity of talking about our own and other writers' work was one thing, but the way the course was set up - living cheek by jowl in a big mill house (Ted Hughes' former abode) and sharing our cooking and washing-up rotas - created a family like atmosphere that made it possible for me to do something I've found extremely difficult up till now - talk about writing as if it was a normal activity - as well as accept criticism from other people!

The tutors, Adam Roberts and Justina Robson, are fantastic at their job. The feedback; the ideas and suggestions - and the feeling that there was someone you could show the piece you were working on (who actually understood science fiction!) …And who would give you a professional, helpful and objective view, has helped me immensely.

Since the course I've written stacks more of my novel - over 1,000 words - and redrafted three chapters and have at last written an outline.
Now I'm writing six days out of seven, in between other commitments like study and getting a part-time job to pay the bills.

On that note, the grant was immeasurably helpful to me and I hope other writers needing support for a crucial step in their careers will benefit from it in future.

Martin Turay