Intro
I am a writer, sometime producer and always an avid consumer of stories. Originally from the picture postcard Cotswolds in England, I am now based in the equally picturesque West coast of Scotland, having lived in Glasgow for enough years to consider myself at least half a Weegie.
My body of work is pretty broad, ranging from poetry about fruit in Waitrose’s supermarkets to satirical jokes on BBC Radio Scotland’s Breaking the News, to a short film about the power of human connection for Cotswold TV; but running deep through all of it is my heart to make a difference with my writing.
Mission
There are three things I want to achieve with my writing work:
1. Unite…
..because we live in a very divisive world, and the power of storytelling in opening the door to others is huge
2. Thrill…
..because even in the darkest times, human beings have always needed stories to help us process and practise strong emotions, whether it be wonder, fear or shock; catharsis is very real and very healing
3. Inspire hope…
..because where there is hope, there is something we can do and where there is inspiration there is action and innovation to solve real world problems.
Curious to know more? Want to join me in my mission?
Approach
To put this mission into practise, I am always looking to collaborate with like-minded creatives and problem solvers who understand the immense power of storytelling. This is because, given my own experience of starting out writing in isolation, as contrasted with my subsequent wealth of collaborative and supported work during my Masters course in TV Fiction Writing, I understand how vital it is to work in a diverse team to make sure projects reach their full potential.
I am also a firm believer in the learning mindset. I took several years after graduating from my MA course to learn the fundamentals of storytelling across a broad range of mediums, in order to ensure I will always be medium-agnostic when it comes to determining the right way to go with a story. And with each new project that I take on, I delight in temporarily becoming an expert on the most wide-ranging and esoteric of subjects, from what will get you kicked off a Scottish netball team to which animal and plant species would or would not survive 3 degrees of global warming. Writing is definitely not a one size fits all occupation and part of the joy in it for me is that every project teaches me something.
Last, but not least, attention to detail is a big part of my method and something that I find is often missing from productions that don’t resonate with their target audiences. Highly respected story consultant and producer John Yorke once told me that viewers can only connect to your hugely poignant universal theme if you give them concrete and (often weirdly or mundanely) specific examples that work as a symbol for the bigger meaning behind it.
For instance, a lost hairbrush becomes a symbol of an unravelling sense of order in the world, in the right context.
And this doesn’t just apply to objects. It’s the little things, the micro expressions and tiny body language giveaways, that often tell us a good chunk of the story in real life, and I believe this should be reflected accurately in fiction, all the better to tug at the heartstrings, which is in many ways what it’s all about. Attention to detail is essential to effective storytelling and it’s something on which I never skimp.
Experience
On the producing side, I have produced one short film, co-produced another, and have gained valuable insight into the inner workings of film and TV development and production from my mentorship at Tiger Aspect, my role as the Team Assistant for the Senior Producers on BBC Studios’ CDS, River City, and more recently my work as Head of K Studios at K Enterprises. During my time at K Enterprises, I recruited and worked with an elite team of creative talents to develop and pitch TV and film projects aligned to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals for the K Studios development slate, and collaborated with a large team of highly experienced consultants from around the world to pitch our services to UN branches, NGOs and international governmental departments.
I have written with a variety of groups and producers, including feminist theatre comedy collective Witsherface, BBC Radio Scotland (on Breaking the News) and local film production company Cotswold TV. I have further honed my writing skills and explored different storytelling methods via talent schemes such as the BBC Writersroom’s Scottish Voices 2020-21, the Scottish Musical Theatre Writers’ Lab 2020-21 and the Tron Theatre’s Playwrights’ Collective (2019), as well as numerous training workshops facilitated by the likes of BAFTA, BECTU, the NFTS, the National Theatre of Scotland and Tron Theatre.
In Development
Currently, I am focusing on writing for TV and film, and have several projects at various stages of development. Meanwhile, my part-time subtitling work at Red Bee Media helps me keep one finger permanently on the pulse of British TV and current affairs around the world, as well as providing excellent inspiration for projects and a useful insight into accessibility concerns.
If you wish to know more about my work, check out my CV or head over to the Projects pages, where you will find examples of my previous work. Alternatively, get in touch with me.
Recent Blog Posts
- Top 5 Techniques To Playing At Life May 1, 2020
- The Playground of Life April 1, 2020
- Top 5 Techniques To Make Failure Work For You March 1, 2020