People

In 2016 Melissa was the Lever Hulme Trust’s Writer in Residence and spent her time in the BIPC. She wrote two business books, developed two mini pop-up exhibitions and ran multiple workshops, which focused on authors being more entrepreneurial and entrepreneurs telling their stories better. Melissa now runs workshops at the British Library, still focusing on those two strands. 
Before becoming an author, she spent 15 years in business. Since then she’s written and self-published 13 books and completed a Creative Writing PhD.

What can people expect from your workshops?

“I enjoy welcoming both authors and entrepreneurs to my sessions. Most of my workshops focus on a blend of creativity/storytelling and entrepreneurial/business skills. If you’re an author, these sessions will help you earn a living. 
New additions to the programme are sessions on applying for grants and productivity for authors, both of which can really make a difference to building a successful writing career. 
Meanwhile entrepreneurs can benefit from writing non-fiction if they want to develop a book as a communication tool for their business. I also run my most popular session, on self-publishing, which benefits both authors and entrepreneurs wanting to write a book, as well as a session on blogging for beginners, which again benefits both groups. Creativity + Business = a winning formula!"