I am an experienced public speaker and regularly address groups such as the WI, U3A, Probus, book groups, writers’ circles and conferences on a variety of topics related both to my writing and my former career as a technical consultant. As well as in-person events, I am happy to present my talks via Zoom or Skype.
Some of the topics on which I speak are as follows:
Bringing It All Home: the Coombesford Story
Why I stopped writing about my travels and experiences in exotic places and brought it all home to Devon. The invention of Coombesford, a typical English village in which murder and mayhem are the order of the day. (Think Midsomer Murders in the Haldon Hills.)
A Broad Abroad
Working in Russia and the Former Soviet Union countries; Africa; and Latin America over a twenty five year period. What was it like to work in such different cultures, especially as a woman; and what did both sides learn from the experience? How did these experiences impact on my writing of Counterfeit!, Deception!, and Corruption!, the Jones Sisters thrillers, set in the world of international pharmaceuticals?
A Woman In the Snow
Working in Russia in the 1990s, immediately after the fall of the Soviet Union. What could a woman from Western Europe offer a country in the midst of economic, political and cultural flux; and what did both sides learn from the experience? How did this experience lead to the writing of Gorgito’s Ice Rink?
A Long Time Coming: a Writer’s Journey
After a lifetime as a scientist and thirty years in industry, making the transition to full-time writing, and creative writing at that, was no mean feat. Come with me on my journey from teenage poetry, via my debut novel, Gorgito’s Ice Rink, published in my sixties, to my current life as a crime writer.
Local Journalism
As co-founder and editor for fourteen years of the Chudleigh Phoenix Community Magazine, a monthly electronic newsletter written by, and for, the people of Chudleigh, I learned a lot about local journalism from our first edition in 2009. How did it differ from national and international journalism? How has journalism changed over the years? And what does the future of journalism look like?
The Business of Writing
For many years, I have written about, and lectured on, business skills for writers. What do they need to know to run simple, effective systems as a small business owner? All this material found its way into The Business of Writing Parts 1-3.
Since 2011, I have been an independent publisher, and now have more than 20 titles to my name in a variety of formats. The experiences of being an indie, and the lessons I have learned along the way, helped me write The Business of Writing Part 4 Independent Publishing.
Any or all of this material can be shaped into a talk, a workshop, or a seminar, as appropriate to the audience. If you think this is what you need for your organisation, talk to me and we will put together a plan tailored to your needs.