Our Creative Workshop Leaders
Our workshops are led by renowned Authors, Poets and Illustrators including; Lou Abercrombie, Martin Brown, Joe Coelho, Vashti Hardy, Gill Lewis, Zohra Nabi, Tom Palmer, Joshua Seigal, Maia Walczak, Anna Wilson
Anna Wilson
“Thank you so much for a wonderful festival. You really are the Dream Team! Amazing organization, making us writers feel so well looked after and welcome. I loved the workshops – some brilliant story ideas that moved me, scared me and made me laugh out loud!”
Zohra Nabi
“Thank you so much for having me at the festival on Monday! It was such a lovely experience – the kids were all so engaged and attentive, and it was a joy to work with them.”
Maia Walczak
“The Exploding Words team are such a warm, wonderful and friendly bunch of people, doing such a great and important thing for these children. What a pleasure it was to be part of something so special. And the children were just great! I was thrilled with how engaged they were with the creative writing workshop I’d created for them. It honestly made my heart sing. Seeing the impact stories and creativity can have on children is a highlight of the otherwise isolated work I do. I’m certain that the children will have felt incredibly inspired after spending such a creative day with authors, illustrators, and such a skilled Exploding Words team.”
Martin Brown
“I had a brilliant time with you at the Eden Project on Friday. I knew it was going to be fun – and it very much was. The kids were great audiences, and the setting was, of course, fabulous. Please pass on my sincere thanks to the whole team. And the fact that Tim Smit – who Pippa had to tell me about – said such good things about the day was just the icing on the cake. I hope you all had a big glass of wine and put your feet up afterwards”
Vashti Hardy
“Thank you so much for inviting me – the schools and teachers were great and I’m sure they all got loads out of the day, so thank you for all the fabulous organisation you and the team did.”
Gill Lewis
“I just wanted to thank you for the wonderful opportunity to speak at the Exploding Words Festival. It was such a pleasure to be part of the event, and I had an amazing time. The pupils were wonderful – engaged and fun. The variety of authors and artists provided a varied and fun day. It’s so important that children have access to meeting authors and illustrators to hopefully inspire them to read books and be creative themselves. Too often, peninsula communities miss out on these opportunities, and the exploding Words Festival was a perfect way to engage children in West Cornwall with authors.”
Lou Abercrombie
“School days are simply the best! Not only are they a chance for students to be inspired to read, write, or be something they’ve never imagined, but as an author it’s such a pleasure to be the springboard for that inspiration. Not to mention the chance to revel in our shared passion for books! I always come away from these days brimming with exciting ideas. Imagine then how these young people must feel…”
Our sponsors, supporters and partners
Exploding Words never runs a festival without the help and support of local organisations. From local schools and academies, book festivals, book shops, businesses and other educational charities we believe projects always work better where there is collaboration.
Eden Project
“Many thanks to you and your team of volunteers and authors for an absolutely great day on Friday. Tim Smit captured it perfectly… ‘utterly engrossing and life affirming’. He loved watching Martin’s session.”
Penwith College
“I am so glad that everything went well. As always it is a pleasure to welcome you to Penwith College, and we look forward to seeing you again next year. I will pass on your thanks to Andy, who I always refer to as my right hand!! My granddaughter had a lovely day, as I am sure, did all of the other children.”
Schools
Tregolls Academy & Nursery
“A group of children from Years 4 and 5 have attended the ‘Exploding Words’ author event at Eden Project today. So far, they’ve taken part in workshops with Martin Brown (illustrator of Horrible Histories) and Anna Wilson (author of Paddington in Peru)! What a brilliant opportunity and they’ve been amazing representatives of Tregolls!“
Sandy Hill Academy & Nursery
“Some of our Year 5 & 6 children were lucky enough to attend the Exploding Words Festival at Eden Project today! They were treated to workshops by authors Anna Wilson, Lou Abercrombie and author and illustrator Martin Brown.“
Biscovey Academy
“On Friday, children from LKS2 attended the Exploding Words Festival at the Eden Project. They have had a fantastic day meeting authors and illustrators and taking part in some workshops!“
Beacon ACE Academy
“What an incredible day our children had meeting famous authors and illustrators. They took part in some incredible workshops, learning from these inspirational writers and even received a free, signed copy of their favourite author’s book.“