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Welcome to my web page, which gives details of some aspects of my varied and enjoyable professional life.<\/p>\nWelcome to my web page, which gives details of some aspects of my varied and enjoyable professional life.<\/p>\n
At present I am working as a poet, lecturer and writer. I am a Research Fellow in the School of English and Languages of the University of Surrey and was, until recently, Managing Editor of the publishing house,\u00a0Oversteps Books<\/a>.<\/p>\n I am the author or editor of eighteen\u00a0books, which include a number of poetry collections, a couple of non-fiction books, and two novels: Rapeseed<\/em> and The Elder Race.<\/em> Three recent poetry collections are Pandora\u2019s Pandemic,<\/em>\u00a0Possibly a pomegranate<\/em> and Travelling Light<\/em> – which won the Hedgehog Prize for a full collection in 2025. My most recent publication is a collection of the 25 ekphrastic poems I was commissioned to write for a major exhibition of modern art in early 2026. (See Poetry<\/a> and Books<\/a> pages).<\/p>\n My poetry, articles and reviews are published widely in newspapers, magazines, journals and on-line. I give poetry readings all over Britain and abroad, accept commissions and am available for workshops and residencies. Extracts, examples and reviews of my work can be found on the following pages; and some of my books, and back copies of Christian Journal, can be purchased here.<\/a><\/p>\n My past career includes being a university Philosophy lecturer, Editor of a journal, and Chief Executive of two international literacy and literature NGOs.<\/p>\n I give numerous guest lectures on a wide range of topics, have preached in cathedrals, churches and college chapels in Britain and abroad, have conducted retreats and led dance days.<\/p>\n I am a member of the Poetry and Spoken Word Group committee of the Society of Authors. Previous freelance consultancies have included being Environmental consultant for the Energy Saving Trust and Guildford Borough Council on reducing CO2<\/sub> emissions; and Project Consultant for Marriage and Relationship Support Project (MARS) by Roehampton Social Research Unit, University of Surrey, funded by the Lord Chancellor\u2019s Department.<\/p>\n My PhD is in Aesthetics and my MSc in Environmental Architecture and Advanced Energy Studies. I was awarded an international Rockefeller scholarship for The People of God<\/a>, undertook research for the ESRC on Ethnic Dance in Britain, and have been Chairperson or trustee of a number of different organisations, a few of which are listed\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Welcome to my web page, which gives details of some aspects of my varied and enjoyable professional life. At present I am working as a poet, lecturer and writer. I am a Research Fellow in the School of English and Languages of the University of Surrey and was, until recently,…<\/p>\n