Ahead of her six-week course, From First Draft to Polished Manuscript, we spoke to longtime publisher and editor Linda Funnell about perfecting a manuscript and getting your work out there.

‘When you have to work within expected frameworks, it takes a lot of skill to make a story feel fresh. I also think that commercial authors know their audience very, very well, and that gives them an advantage.’

”If you are professional, reliable, easy to work with and make your editor’s life easier, you can make a very good living doing what you love from home and in the hours that suit you. I wouldn’t trade it for any in-house job.’

”I think all essays are ‘personal’ to the extent that an essay is, among other things, a reflection of the writer’s mode of thinking and an enquiry into their interests. ‘

Ahead of her two courses at the centre, we spoke to Aleesah Darlison about writing children’s books and promoting your work as an author.

You’ve got your first draft finished, but what next? We spoke to editor Pamela Hewitt about the best things to bear in mind when revising your work.

Ahead of his one-day workshop, we sat down with Mark O’Flynn, author of The Last Days of Ava Langdon and The Forgotten World, to chat about how he finds inspiration when writing.

‘Know yourself and your podcast- if you can’t define it, then how are others supposed to?’

‘Whether you are writing a memoir or fiction grounded in real events, the reader needs to trust that you are dealing with the nonfiction elements as honestly as you can.’