"Caroline is an inspiring tutor and mentor. She has the rare ability of being able to assess exactly where you are, and to bring you on to the next stage. She is unfailingly respectful, kind and encouraging - whilst at the same time applying just the right amount of critical force to one's writing. Her sessions are illuminating, gritty and transforming."
Rachel Hannyngton, artist, radio presenter and journalist
"I have just written 'The End' at the bottom of my first full length novel! I absolutely could not have done it with Caroline's help. I was struggling with it, not with ideas – they were coming thick and fast – but with the craft of writing, putting them down, shaping the story. Working with Caroline I have been on the steepest and most enjoyable learning curve. Caroline encourages you through the dark moments of doubt, and rejoices when you finally find your way. Positive and gentle criticism, guaranteed not to hurt the most fragile of egos. A font of knowledge and skill regarding writing techniques and the craft of writing. Thank you Caroline."
Dawn Voice
Are you looking for a mentor who’ll encourage you to find your own voice? Who’ll help you to write with confidence? Who’ll teach you skills and enable you to complete projects you’ve wanted to do for years? If so, I can help you.
I know what it’s like to start a novel with the best of intentions, then run out of steam after the first 50 pages. I know what it’s like to look at a poem, know it’s not quite right, yet not know how to develop it. I know what it’s like to wish you had someone to talk to – really talk to – about your writing. Friends and family mean well, but can be unhelpful or even crushing if they say something tactless. And they can’t usually discuss point of view, plot or imagery.
I can help you to make huge steps forward very quickly. Believe me: I’ve seen it happen.
My charges are reasonable: £38 for up to 40 lines of poetry or 4000 words of prose. I’ll return my report and my comments on your text within a week – often sooner. As a writer and teacher of both fiction and poetry, I can work with both forms. I usually work via email. Writers send me some work, and I reply with a report, and their work, with my extensive comments. But I can also work face-to-face, or on the telephone. It’s up to you.
If you’d like to work with me, please email me on Caroline.Gilfillan@btinternet.com
I first worked as a mentor for the British Council, under the Crossing Borders programme, from 2002 to 2005. This brilliant project, initiated and run from Lancaster University, paired British writers with emerging African writers. Every six weeks a story or a group of poems would arrive by email from Ghana, Uganda, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, or one of the other African countries involved in the project. I would then write a report, annotate the work, and return it. It was hugely interesting to read what was sent, and satisfying to see the way the writers developed.
At around the same time I began working with British writers, some of whom had attended my courses as students, and wanted to continue to work with me. I met some writers face to face, and worked with others via email. In every case the relationship has been fruitful.
I’ve taught Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia, Lancaster University, Edge Hill, the Open University, and Cambridge University. I’ve run workshops for children of four, and people in their nineties. I’ve worked with writers who have doctorates, and those who are writing their first poems or stories. I can adjust my response to suit your experience, so please don’t worry if you’re entirely new to all this. You’ll be in safe hands.
"Caroline’s skills combine an in-depth knowledge of her craft with solidly based teaching skills all delivered with professional care and kindness. The annotated script and summary report that follows each piece of work is detailed, informative and instructional. The result of Caroline’s hard work is my growing understanding of the craft of writing and a realistic determination to finish a novel."
Mary Horowitz