Simone Greenwood grew up in Cumbria, but has lived in the Sirhowy Valley, south Wales for the last two decades, raising her family, teaching, and fostering. More recently, she has worked for Arts Council of Wales’ Arts and Education Network, and with children’s publishers Burst and Firefly Press. In 2021, she co-founded Ymaginosity, an organisation devoted to nurturing young storytellers. Simone writes children’s fiction and short films. She won Best Film and Best Script at It’s My Shout Awards 2019, and her short film, Tabard aired on BBC Wales. Her Christmas romcom, Jangle was selected for the Pride Online Film Festival and has been widely viewed internationally.
How do you envisage this programme will help you in terms of your development as a writer?
“I think the Representing Wales programme will help me reach the next level, in terms of skill development and what I will gain from mentoring. It will also give me a personal and public sense of legitimacy – I am a writer. That’s such a confidence boost, to be selected. I wish I could go back to sixteen-year-old me, standing in line for a free school meal token, devouring books as a form of escape and discovery, and tell her, ‘You are a writer’.”
What are you most looking forward to as part of this programme and what are you hoping to achieve by taking part?
“I’m looking forward to meeting the cohort, as well as the tutors and mentors. I find interacting with new people, and trying out new things, a motivating combination of terrifying and thrilling. I definitely need to be pushed out of my comfort zone and pushed towards the writing career I’m ambitious for. “