Writer and Creative Writing Tutor, Open Learning Dept. Queen’s University, Belfast
I took The Writing Coach’s mentoring package in 2010-2011. I had a collection of short stories (some unfinished), three ‘not-quite there’ novels and a vague idea that I wanted to teach creative writing, after working in the media for many years.
Jacqui focused on the marketing aspect of my work. She taught me how to write a succinct covering letter and biography, a good synopsis and I still use this ‘template’ when I wish to send work out to agents, editors and publishers.
We extended this marketing into teaching applications and Jacqui taught me that ‘selling yourself’ is simply about taking a professional approach to your writing career.
Perhaps the most important thing to come out of the mentoring process was learning how to focus on one project at a time.
I found the mentoring process with Jacqui enormously helpful and nearly, five years on, I am still using Jacqui’s tips in my writing life.
I now teach creative writing, write regularly for a woman’s magazine and thanks to Jacqui, have learnt how to ‘fit writing around the edges’ of the rest of my life.
Thank you, Jacqui.
Find out more about Louise McIvor:
Louise McIvor is a writer and teacher of creative writing in the Open Learning Dept. of Queen’s University, Belfast. She worked for many years as a sub-editor at The News Letter, a daily newspaper in Northern Ireland.
She has been writing fiction since 2009. Her short stories have been published in a variety of publications including in the arts magazine Verbal and regularly in The People’s Friend.
She blogs about her writing life at Working Writer.