I write for children and young adults and I'm a performance storyteller. I also help create and illustrate wordless books for teens and adults with learning disabilities (Books Beyond Words). I've been running creative writing workshops for everyone from KS2 to U3A, providing teaching for beginners to university level students. I've taught or run seminars for the Open College of the Arts, Bath Spa University, The British Council with the University of Lancaster, and the University of Yaonde (Cameroon). I've been a literary consultant for TLC, and taught at Kilve Court Residential Education Centre for 21 years, teaching creative writing to gifted and talented youngsters. I occasionally work for free in selected libraries, making sure kids from less affluent families can access writing courses and storytelling. My workshops cover all aspects of creative writing, storytelling, as well as basic performance skills to enable people to present their work beautifully. I love taking challenging concepts and creating something new to suit a school or a festival. I also really enjoy working with other creatives (including scientists) to magic up dynamic new ideas. I've also been a BBC 500 Words judge. My fees are in line with the Society of Authors recommended pay scale. I have current enhanced Avon and Somerset DBS, current child and vulnerable people protection training, as well as NAWE public liability insurance.

My talks and workshops are suitable for KS2 to U3A, and everyone in between.

My basic creative writing workshops cover: Structure and planning - especially thinking about how to end a story effectively. How to find and hold onto ideas. How to build confidence in story-making.

My advanced courses and workshops cover: Most genres Advanced structure and plot design The relationship between plot and character Using setting creatively Chaos theory and structure Advanced editing

I'm always open to new ideas

Workshops in various genres: For KS2, I do fantasy, fairy tales (traditional and updated), mild scary stories, world-building, exploring life's problems through story-metaphor (eg, making up stories to help a child think about / cope with bullying). For teens / YA I do workshops in almost every genre, especially historical or historical fantasy, crime, sci-fi, horror etc.

For people with learning / communication difficulties, I do basic story making on any subject with illustrations, without or written words.

For adults - I'll teach anything except erotica.

I also run storytelling workshops as starting points for creative writing - or to aid self-expression for people who find writing difficult, eg students with dyslexia, language or confidence problems.