SWWJ WEEKEND CONFERENCE IN CHESTER

SOUTHERN WRITERS MEET NORTH-WEST COLLEAGUES

What a great weekend at Chester University for the Society of Women Writers & Journalists for our biennial Writing Conference. This year we wanted to enjoy the company of our members who live in the north-west. Of course, it’s great to write to them, text, talk on the phone and email, but there’s nothing like meeting colleagues face to face to learn about their work and lives in general. Great food, entertainment, warm and friendly atmosphere – also an opportunity to meet some famous authors, journalists, poets and top people in the media world. Simon Brett, Candy Denman, Freya North, Debby Holt, Alison Chisholm, Chriss McCallum, Nick Corder, Zoe King and Sally Ann Voak among our own members from all over the country.

Chester itself is beautiful and we have Chris High – a top journalist and writer – for providing an (almost)dawn tour around this lovely ancient Roman town.

Frances Clamp and I were particularly thrilled to be there, as Frances had won the Joyce Grenfell Scholarship for children’s writing and yours truly the Sir Harry Brittain Scholarship for journalism – so this is one weekend we shall never forget. Oh – and I took more than 100 photographs of people and places connected with Chester! Will download a few snaps later.