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Come and meet me at one of my forthcoming events.

I was invited by Eton College in Berkshire to judge their annual short story competition and to run a creative writing masterclass for students aged 13-18. Building on this experience, I have developed a masterclass format of between 1-3 hours appropriate to secondary level students. The aim is to develop their appreciation of creative writing and to further their skills in the craft. Please contact me if you would like to discuss the possibility of me visiting your school.

Megan’s Masterclass at Eton really enthused the boys and helped them to get started on their own stories. As an English teacher, I very much valued her emphasis on thinking about the craft of fiction through by examining the nuts and bolts of novels which inspire her: she drew the students’ attention to Ian Fleming’s redrafting of the opening paragraph of Casino Royale, by way of underscoring the importance of editing your work; and her discussion of the way Cormac McCarthy does dialogue was deeply insightful. She had lots of great tips on how to generate ideas and offered wise words of advice in response to the tasks she set the students. I am very grateful to Megan for the care and attention she invested in reading all of the boys’ short story submissions for one of Eton’s major Creative Writing prizes – every boy who entered received a paragraph or two of personalised feedback which was unerringly judicious and constructive.

TOM DAY

Master In College, Eton College