STORY OF CHANGE: In conversation with award winning poet, John McCullough

Does the thought of change challenge or excite you? Does it make you fearful or full of energy?

In this month’s episode of Right Time Write Now host Nicola McDonald considers how changes big and small impact our growth and how changing her outlook in Australia, led to clarity and freedom.

Nicola talks about shedding her wardrobe, leaving the contents of her suitcase in an Australian charity shop, and the change that came over her after doing so.

We also hear Nicola speak with award-winning poet and lecturer John McCullough. Sat in a Brighton cafe they talk about the change in her work and confidence as she embraced the journey from student to published author.

We also hear ‘Winter Wonderland’, the story that changed how Nicola saw herself and after which she started to call herself a writer.

Follow this month’s writing prompts to explore how change makes you feel and whether you can identify moments of clarity amid shifting situations.

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John McCullough BioJohn McCullough lives in Hove. His third book of poems, Reckless Paper Birds, was published with Penned in the Margins and won the 2020 Hawthornden Prize for Literature as well as being shortlisted for the Costa Poetry Award. His poem ‘Flower of Sulphur’ was shortlisted for the 2021 Forward Prize for Best Single Poem. His fourth collection, Panic Response, was published by Penned in the Margins in 2022 and was a Book of the Year in The Telegraph as well as being included in The Times’ list of Notable New Poetry Books of 2022. John’s other awards include the Polari First Book Prize. He teaches creative writing at the University of Brighton and for organizations including the Arvon Foundation.
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Over six monthly episodes Right Time Write Now encourages you to explore writing to reveal the joy of being human. Write 1250 words after each episode and complete your own novelette by the time the series ends.

Nicola McDonald is a creative coach and author of “Plain Janey” and “In Search of the Christmas Spirit”.

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