Image credit: Steve Dearden
Peter Sansom
Anyone involved in the teaching and publishing of poetry knows Peter Sansom as a shining pioneer of poetry teaching, a poet of warmth and wit, and – perhaps most famously – as the first Writer in Residence for Marks & Spencer. The Guardian has called him “The best writing tutor in the world”. According to Simon Armitage he is “Mr Poetry” and “the UK’s most astute and effective tutor, a guiding light through his deft criticism and the example of his own work.” As editor of Smith/Doorstop Books and The North magazine, Peter has provided intensive editorial support to hundreds of poets – many of whom have gone on to achieve international recognition, earning him a reputation for discovering and nurturing new talent. As a tutor for the Arvon Foundation he has encouraged and inspired many to find routes to publication. Students have benefitted from his skill and insight as Fellow in Creative Writing at Leeds University, and, for the past decade, as leader of the the University of Huddersfield’s Creative Writing MA. Peter’s poetry is published by Carcanet and he was a winner in the 2016 Cholmondeley Awards for Poets. His textbook, Writing Poems, is essential reading and he continues to inspire and develop new writing talent through the advanced Writing School course at The Poetry Business.