Surrey Writers' School

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Staff and Instructors
Instructor Ed Griffin 
 
   Ed Griffin was the founder of the Surrey Creative Writing Diploma Program that taught skills to hundreds of students in the sixteen years before it was suspended in spring 2009. He also established the Surrey International Writer's Conference . 
   He continues to teach creative writing to adults in Surrey and to the inmates of Matsqui Prison in Abbotsford. Ed believes in what he teaches. "Writing has helped me figure out the mystery that is me." As Aristotle said, "art releases unconscious tensions and purges the soul.'"  
    Ed is the author of four novels. For more about him and
his work, check his website.

Fall 2009: Introduction to Creative Writing

2010: Hero's Journey

 

Instructor/ Coordinator Lois Peterson

 

   Lois Peterson was recruited by Ed Griffin to teach in the Surrey Creative Writing Diploma Progam in 1992, and later served as coordinator for eight years.       
  Her short stories, articles and essays were published internationally before she turned to writing for children in 2007. Her first novel Meeting Miss 405 (Orca) was published in 2008, and two more are forthcoming in 2010.
   She's also the author of 101 - and more - Writing Exercises to Get You Started & Keep You Going (Metta Publications
), contributes articles to The Writer magazine and participates in writing conferences, festivals and literary events. Check her website for more information.
 

2010: Words on the Page; Building Character; Story - Art & Craft

 

Administrator/ Communications Doug Brunt

 

   Doug Brunt brings to the Surrey Writers' School more than forty years experience in the publishing industry.

   Doug is an author, editor, publisher and an award-winning playwright. He currently runs Metta Publications, an independant book publishing company. Doug maintains the school's website and takes care of all its communications needs. He also counts the pennies and makes the tea.

 

 

Instructor Julie Ferguson

   

   Julie has guided hundreds of writers on their journey to publishing success. A non-fiction writer for 40 years, she is the author of five books for writers, including Book Magic: Turning Writers into Published Authors and Crafting Irresistible Query Letters that Result in Publication, as well as four non-fiction books on Canadian history (Dundurn). Julie’s latest is a YA biography, James Douglas: Father of British Columbia, due in October 2009. Her many articles have appeared in national and international markets, and online.
   Julie runs Beacon Literary Services and delivers keynotes and breakout sessions at writers' conferences and teachers' pro-d events, and instructs for VCC’s writing program. 
www.beaconlit.com 

2010: Pitching in a Cold Climate

 

Instructor Lorraine Murphy

 

   Lorraine Murphy has been blogging since the dawn of HTML, and her flagship blog, raincoaster.com, is ranked in the top 20,000 blogs in the world. Lorraine is the author of Terminal City: Vancouver’s Missing Women and a former small business columnist at Business in Vancouver newspaper and Occupational Pursuit magazine.

raincoaster.com,

   She is the founder of the Shebeen Club, Vancouver's cross-disciplinary literati group, and a former board member of the Surrey International Writer's Conference and  Lower Mainland representative for the Federation of BC Writers.

   Her professional practice is social media for social and individual change, and she has many years experience teaching social media and blogging to everyone from beginners to world-class professionals.


2010: Writing for the Web

Other SWS instructors in 2010 include:
Joyce Gram, Jan Drabek, Ruth Kozak, Sylvia Taylor, Eileen Reppenhagen, CGA; Nina Munteanu