Making Write Move With Book Business
17 February 2010
Sex, lies and death - it's not what you would call your normal student business venture.
The University of Derby's Enterprise Inc scheme gives financial help, training and mentoring to students and graduates looking to develop a business idea. Its latest venture is far from mainstream - a publication looking at the stranger side of life.
What We Wrote is a poetry and prose anthology by 12 Derby students and graduates, with themes including lies, unusual encounters and a man with a moon fixation. But it has two very down-to-earth aims.
The book has its own website at www.whatwewrote.wordpress.com, where a preview of one article can be read. Audio readings from the book will also shortly be available online.
Printed copies can be ordered through a web link to publisher Author House, price £5.99. Once costs have been covered, the remaining profits will go to the National Literacy Trust.
The book will also serve the business purpose of getting literary exposure for a dozen up-and-coming writers, looking to be published.
Laura Williams, 22, of Wirksworth, Derbyshire - a second year student on Derby's Joint Honours Creative Writing and Media Writing degree course - established the What We Wrote business project.
She said: "I wanted to launch a book because of the difficulty Creative Writing students and graduates have in breaking new ground and achieving commercial success.
"Often, new writers find themselves in the 'Catch 22' situation of being told they cannot be published unless they have been published before. After the launch of What We Wrote, 12 people will be able to call themselves published authors."
She added: "Zadie Smith (multi-award winning author of White Teeth) was discovered through her university anthology."
What We Wrote features six poems and six short stories. Authors include:
- Simon Brace - a Creative Writing graduate who is also a singer/ songwriter on Derby's open mic scene;
- Nathan Fidler - graduate in Film and Television Studies, and Creative Writing. His novel All the Ways Grow Dark won the East Midlands Free Read Scheme;
- Laura Williams - Creative Writing and Media Writing undergraduate, and studied at the London School of Journalism. Writes online blog www.mynameislaurajanewilliams.blogspot.com .
As well as the written contributions University of Derby students from a range of courses were involved in the cover design, and selecting and editing materials.
Maggie Morley, Programme Development Manager in the University's Centre For Entrepreneurial Management, said: "Laura's idea was one of the more unusual business concepts supported by the Enterprise Inc programme.
"She impressed us not only with her passion to succeed but also her determination to gain as much as possible from the training and mentoring programme.
"We are delighted that her business vision has now become a reality and wish her continued success."
Before starting her degree Laura helped run her family's business. While at the University of Derby she has been on the winning team for its first student Entrepreneur contest last year (2009), which pitted two teams of student business brains against each other.
For further media information please contact Press and PR Officer Sean Kirby on 01332 591891 or 07876 476103, or email s.kirby@derby.ac.uk.
