Abbey Woolgar
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From Bournemouth to the page
When I started my MA in Creative Writing and Publishing at Bournemouth University in September 2019, I had no idea how much the experience would shape me—not just as a writer, but as a person. As an international student from the Czech Republic, moving to the UK felt like stepping into a new chapter of…
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Long Day’s Journey
At a university interview for my bachelor’s English degree, still aged seventeen, I declared, ‘I want to write a book’. ‘Everyone says that’ one of the profs scoffed. I was dismayed. I’d been writing since I was eight. Eventually, I went into journalism and wrote news stories instead. It took thirty years to finally achieve…
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My experience of producing short films as part of my MA Creative Writing and Publishing
‘No one cares what you went through,’ the internationally renowned filmmaker Imruh Bakari says. ‘All that matters is what is on the screen. I have been on a crash course in filmmaking over the last few months, and this is one of Imruh’s key messages at the film showcase. I realised he is right. When…
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Rising Voices
I attended a transformative event called Rising Voices that took place with the aim of creating visibility for Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) writers in the Dorset area. This event was co-funded by Bournemouth University and the Arts University Bournemouth, and it was hosted at the Lees Lecture Theatre on BU’s Talbot campus.…
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Memory Markers
As a carer for my elderly mother, I thought I’d had a bellyful of old people. However, Bournemouth University’s outreach project Memory Markers revealed to me a world of unexpected creative writing opportunities, inspired by working with elderly people living with memory loss. “It was my mum’s idea,” Dr Brad Gyori, the project’s leader told…
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Creative Writing Master’s student receives prestigious Vice-Chancellor’s Prize
Susan L. Edser completed the MA in Creative Writing and Publishing at BU in 2024 and received the prestigious Vice-Chancellor’s Prize for her academic ability, creative writing, and personal achievements. Susan believed in making the most of all the opportunities on offer to receive the most rounded experience from the course. She honed her writing…
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Writing in the Community
Small faces look towards me as we begin our last writing session of the year. They are all wearing Christmas-themed attire, from the ball-ball antlers headband I brought along to Rudolph’s flashing nose. Ali Sparkes, internationally published children’s author and lead facilitator, has devised a session involving crackers, chocolates, and our favourite writing games. Everyone…
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Turning chaos into books
Twenty-odd years ago, when my twins were first diagnosed as being on the autistic spectrum, I began giving presentations to parents just starting their own journeys. Sharing the funny, heartfelt, and chaotic moments of our lives felt so natural that professionals in education, health, and social care soon encouraged me to write a book. What…
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From Terrified to Thriving: How Heard Word Transformed My Writing
When I joined Heard Word, I was terrified to read my work aloud. It brought me back to my days at Kimbolton School, where I once had to perform a poem in a grand hall in the Castle—filled with very important people, including a soon-to-be prime minister. Standing there, I was petrified that I’d mess up the timing…