This ten-week programme is designed for emerging writers ready to explore their voice, refine their craft, and engage meaningfully with the written word. Whether you’re working on short stories, novels, or personal essays, this in-person course is designed to look at the writer’s journey from first line to finding an agent.
Course Breakdown
Each week tackles a foundational element of writing and the business of being a writer:
Week One – Beginnings
Finding the right entry point, establishing voice, and setting the tone.
Week Two – Characters
Crafting believable, complex characters that resonate with readers.
Week Three – Dialogue
Writing dialogue that reads real, reveals character, and drives plot.
Week Four – Conflict
Understanding tension as the engine of story.
Week Five – Perfect Sentences
Exploring rhythm, clarity, and impact at the sentence level.
Week Six – Theme
Uncovering and refining the ideas that give your story depth.
Week Seven – Endings
Crafting satisfying, resonant conclusions that echo beyond the page.
Week Eight – Editing
Learning the art of revision—what to cut, what to expand, and why.
Week Nine – The Industry
Demystifying the publishing world, from agents to self-publishing.
Week Ten – One-on-One Feedback Surgery
Individual feedback sessions on a 2,500-word writing sample submitted in advance.
How the course works
Duration | Session Length | Delivery |
| 10 Weeks | 2 hours per week | In-person |
Each session begins with a short creative writing prompt, followed by 10 minutes of focused free writing. This exercise sets the tone: writers write. It's the foundation of progress.
Next, we delve into the week's topic using examples from contemporary fiction, analysing professional techniques and applying them through guided exercises. There are three key writing exercises per session, designed to push boundaries and provoke fresh ideas.
Interactivity is essential - questions are encouraged throughout. The environment is both structured and responsive, aiming to nurture serious writers.
A Note on Tools:
Writers are encouraged to use a notepad and pen or pencil, unless accessibility requires otherwise. This helps slow the process, reduce distractions, and create a tactile connection to the work.
Writers are encouraged to use a notepad and pen or pencil, unless accessibility requires otherwise. This helps slow the process, reduce distractions, and create a tactile connection to the work.
Final Week: The Writer's Surgery
Week Ten is entirely dedicated to one-on-one sessions. Each participant receives personalised feedback on a 2,500-word piece submitted before the session. This is an opportunity to discuss what’s working, what could improve, and strategies for development.
Investment
£300 for the entire ten-week course.
Why this course
• Practical, focused writing every week
• Individual feedback from an experienced writer and teacher
• Exploration of both craft and the business of writing
• A community of motivated peers
• A structured pathway from first idea to polished draft
Whether you're looking to finally start that novel, sharpen your short story skills, or simply make writing a commitment, this programme is designed to move you forward. This course is limited to ten participants.
Your Teacher
CHRIS SIMPSON is an award winning writer of literary fiction dealing with modern working-class society. He grew up in Bracknell and Slough, which explains ninety percent of his choices. To pay the bills he has worked as a waiter, a cinema projectionist, a shoe salesman, an attendant in an amusement arcade, hiring out construction and demolition tools, a pasty seller, a caretaker for a primary school, a teaching assistant, a tutor and a facilities manager. He was a collaborator on a sketch show and has performed as a stand-up comedian.
His story "The Weapon of Memory" was published in AEOS Magazine in 2025. In 2022, he was nominated for a Pushcart Prize for "Equal." In 2021, he was published alongside Kit de Waal, Kerry Hudson, and Philip Ridley in “Mainstream” (Inkandescent Press), and in 2019 he was nominated for the Agora and PFD Lost The Plot Prize. He was an inaugural awardee of the London Writers Awards from Spread the Word in 2018 and a nominee for the Royal Academy and Pin Drop Short Story Award in 2016.
Chris holds a First-Class degree in Creative Writing from Birkbeck University and is completing an MA in the same subject at the University of Kent. He mentors writers from all walks of life, drawing on his broad and eclectic life experience to support new voices from numerous backgrounds. He has inspired writers to take their craft further: from starting an MA to publishing their work. Teaching is incredibly important to him, a place where he is able to help writers believe in their work in challenging times.
He lives in Whitstable with his wife where they read and plan trips away.
