Engaging with the Publishing Industry: agents, editors and unions (NCWID24)

At the 10-year anniversary of the National Creative Writing Industry Day, three veterans of the event return to discuss their careers and advice for aspiring and emerging writers. Sarah Jasmon, Greg Thorpe and Theo Jones consider the different ways of engaging with the industry - whether through editors, agents or unions - and share their own experiences. This panel is hosted by Manchester-based writer Lara Williams.

Sarah Jasmon lived on a canal boat in Lancashire for nearly two decades before moving to Donegal in 2023. She is the author of two novels, The Summer of Secrets (2015) and You Never Told Me (2020), and is currently working on a practice-led PhD in creative non-fiction. Her work has been published a range of journals, magazines and anthologies, and she has been shortlisted for the Harper’s Bazaar short story competition and the Quiet Man Dave flash non-fiction prize. From 2021, she was a Royal Literary Fund Fellow, based at Manchester University.

Greg Thorpe is a writer, curator and creative producer. His art writing has appeared in On Curating, FRUIT, Feast, Double Negative, Artist Newsletter and The Fourdrinier. He has written about art for the Whitworth Gallery, Manchester Art Gallery, HOME Manchester, and Salford Museum & Art Gallery. His fiction has appeared in Best British Short Stories, Foglifter and Ellipsis. He works for Islington Mill, an independent artist community in Salford, and is currently Festival Director for GAZE International LGBTQ+ Film Festival. He divides his time between Dublin and Todmorden.

Theo Jones is a Senior Contracts Advisor at the Society of Authors, the UK’s trade union for writers, where he works to support that organisation’s mission to further the interests and protect the rights of writers everywhere and at all stages of their career. His specialisms include supporting members working across TV, film, and stage. Theo co-presents and co-produces the SoA Advisory Clinic podcast, discussing key industry topics, issues and challenges affecting authors today with recent episodes covering copyright in literary characters, life writing and the wonderful world of audio drama in celebration of 100 years of audio drama on the BBC.

This panel discussion was part of Comma Press' National Creative Writing Industry Day 2024. The event takes place every year in November. See the Comma Press website for more details.