Students and alumni from Edinburgh Napier's MA Creative Writing programme are breaking new ground in the literary world. A new arrival has just won a national contest, while a recent graduate has been selected for a prestigious mentoring scheme.
Catherine Simpson only graduated from the course in
September, but has certainly been keeping busy. She's among 39 writers
shortlisted from more than 700 for the Asham Award, a short story contest that publishes the top twelve entries alongside established authors in an anthology.
It's just been announced that Catherine is one of ten people receiving a New Writers Award from the Scottish Book Trust [SBT]. She will get a grant of £2000, mentoring with an experienced author and much more. Catherine's the first graduate from our course to receive this much-prized award.
"I feel like Cinderella after her fairy godmother turned up," Catherine told the SBT website. "It's wonderful to know I'll be supported for the next year and the writing life will be a less lonely place."
Anni Telford only joined the course in September as a first-year part-timer but her writing is already gaining plaudits. Her flash fiction, The Pauli Exclusion Principle, won the Stork Press Mini Short Story Competition. You can read her winning entry here.
The abstract Christmas story was Anni's first contest submission since starting the MA. "It's only wee, but fingers crossed may be the first of many," she said on course Facebook page. "Huge thanks to Sam [Kelly, the MA programme leader], her advice on the edit was superb."
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