Your novel. My other passion project. And a giveaway.

Okay, so I can't promise you'll become a Sunday Times bestselling crime author of five novels, nor that you'll be a star on Traitors, like one of our illustrious alumni. But I can promise a year of outstanding teaching and support to develop your novel alongside a group of fellow writers who'll become more important to you than you might expect.

As well as running The Book Edit, I'm the founder and director of the Novel Studio at City St George's, a year-long programme for writers who are serious about their novel and serious about giving it the best possible chance. We have spaces available for our September 2026 start, and I'd love to see some of you there.

Our alumni track record speaks for itself. Alongside bestselling author of five crime novels, Harriet Tyce, Janice Okoh (last year’s Writers’ Prize judge) has just recently won an emerging talent BAFTA for her screenwriting; Deepa Anappara published her second novel, The Last of Earth, to great critical acclaim earlier this year; and Lara Haworth was shortlisted for the Nero Book Award for her debut, Monumenta.

The deadline has been extended, and there's a giveaway

We've extended our application deadline to 30th June, and to celebrate, we're offering something a little extra. The next ten people to apply will receive a free ticket to our end-of-year showcase — online or in person, your choice — where current Novel Studio students will share their work with an audience of invited industry guests. It's a great evening, and a real taste of what the community is all about.

To apply, email me at Emily.Pedder.1@citystgeorges.ac.uk with 2,000 words of your fiction and a CV detailing any writing experience.

Not quite ready to apply? Come and meet us first.

If you'd like to experience the Novel Studio before you commit, we're running a free one-hour taster session on Thursday 18th June, 12.30–1.30pm BST, via Zoom.

Dr Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone will lead a mini session on reading like a writer, while Dr Kiare Ladner will explore the art of endings in fiction. There'll also be an overview of the programme and time for your questions.

It's free and online.

Your novel won't write itself, but this course can very much help.

Look forward to seeing some of you at the taster session!

City Writes Final Call For Submissions

Calling all current students and alumni of City, University of London’s short creative writing courses, the deadline to submit to this term's City Writes is this Friday, 11th June. They’re looking for your best 1,000 words - fiction and narrative non fiction - to share the virtual stage with alumna, Alex Morrall, whose debut Helen and the Grandbees was published to great acclaim by Legend Press last year. Full submission details are here.

Helen and the Grandbees by Alex Morrall

This term's online event with Alex Morrall is on Wednesday 7th July at 7pm. You can register for your ticket here.

City Writes was founded by our very own Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone and is a termly event showcasing the best of City's short courses creative writing talent. Winners of the competition get to share the stage with authors like Kiare Ladner, Imogen Hermes Gowar, Katherine Menon, Harriet Tyce and Deepa Anappara.

Winners of this term's competition will be announced in week 9. Find out how to submit here. Register for the event here. We’ll be going and hope to see some of you there!

5 Reasons why you need to apply for City University's Novel Studio

There are just 20 days left to get your application in to City’s Novel Studio 2021 Programme…

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Here’s why you should apply…

1. The course has a proven track record. Alumni include Award-winning authors Deepa Anappara, Hannah Begbie, and Harriet Tyce, amongst many others.

2. It’s practical. Each module has been designed to support you in writing your novel, from developing your plot to character motivation.

3. The tutors are brilliant: Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone and Kiare Ladner are both professional writers, editors and creative writing teachers who really know their onions and want to help you become better writers.

4. It has great links with the publishing industry. Each year students are trained in rehearsed readings towards an end-of-year show to an invited audience of literary agents.

5. There’s one fully-funded space available for a talented writer from a low-income household via their scholarship scheme.

Apply before 30 April 2021

Winners of City Writes Competition to share stage with author Harriet Tyce

Ben O’Donnell Bourke

Delighted to hear the recent announcement of this term’s City Writes competition.

Ursula Hirschkorn, current student on The Novel Studio

Congratulations to Ursula Hirschkorn for her story 'Summer Time'; Jake Leyland for his non-fiction piece 'Portrait of a Technician in a War Zone'; Ben O'Donnell Bourke for his story 'Negative Habits'; Harriet Pavey for her story 'Dad' and Stephanie Pride for her story 'The best way to a man's mind is through his stomach'.  

City Writes is a termly event that showcases the best of City's Short Courses Creative Writing talent, hosting readings from alumni, students and tutors. Winners share the stage with a published alumni or tutor. This term it’s the turn of Harriet Tyce whose debut psychological thriller, Blood Orange, was published earlier this year to great acclaim.  

For your chance to hear Harriet read from her novel, alongside the five brilliant winners, tickets for the event are available here. 

And for anybody wanting to join City’s flagship Novel Studio programme, the deadline for applications is fast approaching. More details here, including information about their literary agent competition and the Novel Studio scholarship, set up by Harriet Tyce.

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Brand new Novel Studio scholarship announced at City, University of London

 Delighted to be able to share the news that Novel Studio alumna and crime writer, Harriet Tyce, has initiated a fully-funded scholarship for one successful applicant to the course from a low-income household.

Photo by Simson Petrol on Unsplash

 The Novel Studio has been running as part of City’s short courses programme since 2004 and has been instrumental in providing a foundation for emerging writers to go on to successful publishing careers. Taught by professional writers and editors, 15 selected students develop their novels over a year. The course has a very strong publication record, including, most recently, Deepa Anappara, Hannah Begbie, Kiare Ladner, Anna Mazzola, R.K. Salters and Harriet. 

 Professor Andrew Jones, Vice-President (Research and Enterprise) said “City is tremendously proud of the great opportunity The Novel Studio gives to aspiring writers, and the impressive track-record of novelists who have been helped to launch successful careers in fiction. It is one of the jewels of our short-course portfolio and the university is delighted that Harriet has initiated this scholarship.”

 The aim of the scholarship is to support a student of talent and potential who might not otherwise be able to accept an offer of a place on the Novel Studio. Applicants to the scholarship will go through the same process as all other applicants but with the addition of a form demonstrating their financial circumstances. The top three applications will be shortlisted and a final winner chosen by a panel, including the course director, course tutors and Harriet.

 Harriet was a student on the Novel Studio in 2009/10 and went on to gain a place on the MA Crime Fiction at UEA, where she received a distinction. In 2017 Wildfire pre-empted her debut psychological thriller, Blood Orange, which is being published later this month. Rights to the book have been sold in ten territories around the world, including North America (Grand Central), Germany (Random House), Italy (Mondadori) and Spain (Penguin Random House). Set to be a ‘major debut launch’, and widely tipped as one of thedebuts to read in 2019, Wildfire have described the novel as ‘a stunning piece of psychological suspense...’ with a ‘spectacularly dark and satisfying ending.’

Speaking of her time at City, Harriet said “The Novel Studio course was where I had the privilege of starting my writing career.  I’m very excited to work with Emily Pedder in setting up a scholarship to give other writers that same opportunity, and I’m looking forward to seeing the talent that’s going to emerge through it.”

 The Novel Studio 2019/20 opens for applications on the 1st February 2019. Full details of how to apply to the scholarship are available here.  Great opportunity for budding writers, and a wonderfully generous act.