Valerie Thornton
Home address:
21 Cleveden Gardens, Glasgow, G12 0PU, ScotlandTelephone:
0141 334 1389BRAW network:
noLL funded:
yesBiography:
I am a poet and short story writer, a creative writing tutor and lecturer, and an editor. I have worked in creative education for more than 25 years. I have just completed my third school text book on creative writing. I am also currently Royal Literary Fund Writing Fellow at the University of Glasgow, working with student teachers on their academic writing.
I trained as an English teacher and have taught in schools, colleges and universities. I am currently an Associate Lecturer with the Open University teaching creative writing online.
I have recently edited four volumes of New Writing Scotland for the Association of Scottish Literary Studies, and three anthologies of children’s writing for Renfrewshire Libraries.
I also wrote a chapter for Writing Matters: the Royal Literary Fund Report on Higher Education, published in February 2006, looking at the link between school education and the writing skills of university students.
About writer's work:
My work falls into three categories.
First, my poetry is inspired by people who move me, by the natural world, by birds and cats and by realisations of unexpected connections between things. I care about the sound of the language, the music, the emotion and I enjoy playing with conceptual and sensual patterns.
Second, my short stories are mostly about outsiders, about those who are different. I care about style and pattern, about poetic prose, rather than straight narrative. Those who inspire me include Tennessee Williams, Iain Crichton Smith, George Mackay Brown and Annie Proulx.
Third, my teaching books try to engage young writers by providing inspiration from many other writers, including their peers. I also try to enlighten them about the tools of the trade at their disposal by explaining about literary techniques and grammar.
In June 2003, I was a prize-winning runner-up in the Asham Short Story Prize with Or Maybe Gold. In 2001, my story, A Bird in the Hand, was short-listed in the same biennial competition for women writers.
In 1996, my first creative-writing text book, Working Words (Hodder & Stoughton Educational, 1995) won joint first prize as the Times Educational Supplement Scotland and Saltire Society Educational Book of the Year.
In 1992, my short story, Changing Hands, was short-listed for the Macallan / Scotland on Sunday Prize.
About writer's events and projects:
I am happy to lead one-off workshops, or a series of workshops or residencies. I can also give adjudications (poetry, short story, article) and readings. I am happy working with pupils from S5 to AH level, or with their teachers, and have provided Continuing Professional Development courses for teachers for the University of Glasgow and for the Scottish Network for Able Pupils on creative writing, poetry and short stories.
Recent work includes the following:
Balfron High School’s Creative Writing Group invited me to lead a series of four poetry workshops for them, in autumn 2007, towards a publication they are compiling and editing themselves.
I have visited Hyndland Secondary School in Glasgow (2007) to work with the Advanced Higher class on their poetry.
I have developed and delivered two series of creative writing workshops during 2005-2007 for the Greenock Writers. The first was on short story writing and the second was on poetry writing: both culminated in group publications.
The Alloa Writers also invited me to run a series of prose and poetry workshops for them in 2005-2006.Language:
EnglishAge groups:
5-8, 9-12, Teens, Adults
