Writer-in-Residence

To inspire our budding writers, we welcomed back published poet and author Frances Leviston for her annual residency.

Each year, for over a decade, Frances has returned to conduct creative writing workshops, tutorials and masterclasses. During her tenure, she has published a second collection of poetry, Disinformation, and more recently a collection of short stories, The Voice in My Ear. Her poem, High Force, published in The New Yorker, can be read here.

All students in Years 7 and 8 enjoy a poetry writing workshop with Frances, who introduces students to a range of contemporary poems to get students thinking philosophically and artistically; the impressive work our students produce in their short time with Frances is always a testament to her power to inspire creativity.

Frances also teaches our Year 10 students a session on the core components of short story writing: character, conflict and context. This serves as a foundation for future creative work, including the story writing they complete for their English Language GCSE. Our English A Level students receive two double lessons of instruction on re-creative writing, developing their ability to analyse and adopt the style and techniques of an author, skills required for one of their coursework options.

In the library, Frances also runs tutorials and small group sessions for students in Year 9 who are eager to develop their craft, as well as for any interested students during lunch. Some of our most committed creative writers also attend an after-school masterclass with Frances during her fortnight here.

Every year, Frances hosts and judges a creative writing competition. This year, students have been invited to submit a short story or a poem, inspired by the theme ‘Switch’. We look forward to announcing the winners of the competition next half term.