Uccello's painting of George and the dragon appears to depict a male hero coming to the rescue of a maiden in distress. But does the composition of the painting belie this reading? Is the maiden taming the dragon successfully herself, without the need for St George to intervene? Writers including the poet...
Writers seeking a sense of historical authenticity in their work have to consider both style and content. At the height of the popularity of historical fiction after the Second World War, writers such as Josephine Tey and Anya Seton, combined narrative dialogue and period detail in a manner which by the 1960s had...
At the beginning of March 2012, 15 OCA creative writing students spent six days at The Arvon Foundation's Lumb Bank in West Yorkshire, the former home of poet Ted Hughes. There, they found the time, space and inspiration to write. Arvon and OCA are both keen to continue their partnership so that...
The essay has evolved since its beginning in France and England more than 400 years ago from a pithy work of flawless logic to a prose form adopted by schools, think tanks and broadcasters, as well as by writers categorised as essayists. It's time for the essay to reassert itself and for essayists...
OCA has broken with convention by appointing a religious studies scholar as its new curriculum lead for creative writing. Northern Irish essayist and poet Chris Arthur has a background in religious studies, first as an undergraduate and postgraduate at Edinburgh University and subsequently at Lampeter University, where he taught for more than 20...
The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) has just announced that submissions for the thirteenth V.S. Pritchett Memorial Prize are now open. There is a prize of £1,000, and the winning entry will be published in Prospect and the RSL Review. In addition to this, there will be an opportunity to appear at an RSL...
Last week's Wikipedia blackout and journalist Johann Hari's decision not to return to 'The Independent' put plagiarism in the news. But plagiarism, imitation, forgery, flattery, call it what you will, the discipline of writing in the voice of another writer is a good way to find your own voice.
In the competitive and fast moving world of art exhibitions and artistic reputations, it is easy to get ignored or forgotten. A number of belated biographies were published last year that bring to the public’s attention some of these artists: Alasdair Grey (b.1934) is a Scottish artist who along with John Byrne (b.1940) made...
OCA creative writing tutors pick their literary highlights for 2011, reflecting on what the writers they choose have to teach students of creative writing. The range is wide: this year's Man Booker winner, performance poetry in Wales, short fiction, the Poet Laureate's new collection, poems from the Outback....
OCA creative writing student Mary Webster, who was awarded a first in her Creative Arts BA honours degree, has just published her first volume of poetry, 'Tread softly', in celebration of her achievement. Drawing together the work she completed when studying with the OCA, her poems record her relationship with the natural world...
We are pleased to announce the launch of an enhanced Learner Support Scheme. Trustees have set aside a budget of up to £15,000 in each financial year to underpin this important development. The new scheme will ensure the continuation of the existing bursary scheme but add four new components. These are: help with attending...
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