About Me

I am 53 and I live in Leicester. Before becoming a freelance writer and journalist, I was a teacher, an adult education tutor, a community development worker, a publicity and publications officer and a cashier in a betting shop. I have had over 200 articles, short stories and poems published in national newspapers, magazines and anthologies. I have also been placed and short listed in many national writing competitions.

PUBLISHED ARTICLES AND SHORT STORIES:
Aquila, Bella, Business Opportunity World, Dateline Magazine, Executive PA, Executive Secretary, Freelance Writing and Photography, The Guardian, The Lady, The Leicester Mercury, Mature Tymes, My Weekly, The TES, The Times, Woman's Realm, Woman's Weekly, Writers' Forum, Writing Magazine.

PUBLISHED POEMS:
The Coffee House, Funny Poems To Give You The Giggles (OUP), How To Survive School (Macmillan), Iota, The Mammoth Book of Limericks (Constable & Robinson), Mslexia, The New Writer, Obsessed With Pipework, Poetry Digest, Poetry Monthly, Poetry Nottingham International, Quantum Leap, Sky Breakers (Earlyworks Press), The Trying Flapeze (OUP), The Universal Vacuum Cleaner (OUP), Weyfarers.

AWARDS:
Writers' News Freelance Journalist of the Year 1999.

TESTIMONIALS:
"Just a short note to say thank you for all your hard work on the Back To Work supplement. I thought it worked really well. I do hope you will continue to do work for us." Kathy Watson, Woman's Realm.

"I really like the pieces you do for the section. You are always punctual and reliable, unlike some I could mention!" Hannah Pool, The Guardian.

"I'm really glad you're doing these pieces for me. That means I can rest easy that they'll be interesting, informative and well-written." Penny Cottee, Executive PA.

CONTACT DETAILS:
Melissa Lawrence
Email: mel@melissalawrence.co.uk