Other Creative Writers

We were interviewing yesterday at the university for another full-time creative writing lecturer. I wasn’t on the interview panel, but we are all invited to watch the candidates make presentations about modules they might introduce. We saw six altogether, so that meant three hours of watching.

It wasn’t at all boring. These were six really busy, really creative people. There are so many exciting projects going on at the moment. It also showed how writers do have to be versatile these days. Goodness, we have to run ourselves as businesses. A little paid employment here and there is handy in the extreme.

What a variety we had there – playwrights, a poet who is turning to prose, people involved in radio, theatre, film and new media. It was good to be able to talk, though, to people who are involved in similar issues to myself.

It’s made me think about my own interview. I remember that day so well. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I came away feeling that I’d be delighted if I got the post, but also that I could quite understand if one of the others got it. I hope our candidates yesterday felt the same way. I do believe that our interviews are very friendly, though no less rigorous for that.