I won!

I am now the very, (very, very), proud holder of The Aine Marie Chadwick Trophy. The National Association of Writers’ Groups Awards for Creative Writing 2016, Ghost Story – winner!

I genuinely wasn’t expecting to win, and had such a burst of adrenaline when Gervase Phinn said my name that I couldn’t sleep until gone 1 am. I couldn’t be more surprised and pleased.

Three of my colleagues from York Writers had their own successes; Joanne Tyrell and Sally Mitcham were both runners-up for The Sir Alan Ayckbourn Trophy for their 10 minute plays, and Andy Humphrey won The David Nobbs Memorial Trophy, for comedy writing. I’m so proud of all of them, they are each very talented writers and deserve the recognition of that.

The meal was wonderful, as was the company. I was sat between Science Fiction, Fantasy and Crime Author P.R. Ellis and Steve Bowkett, an author of fiction and educational books (and Editor for NAWG) and I enjoyed the evening tremendously. Gervase was a wonderful speaker, and the atmosphere was warm and supportive; I hope to return to NAWGFest and take part more fully at some point in the future.

My family are due to pick me up in under an hour, so I am enjoying the quiet and a cup of fruit tea before it’s back to reality; into the car to return to York. I’m returning home a very, (very, very), happy writer.