Hi,
I've never had a website before, so when I started this one, I wrote it all in the third person e.g 'Julie McGowan is an experienced writer of short stories, newspaper and magazine features, pantomimes, plays, sketches and songs.'
But, although that is what I am, it didn't sound right. So now I'm going to write it as a personal letter, to you, the person who has bothered to look at the site and find out more about me and what I do.
As well as the writer stuff above, I also run a successful children's drama workshop in my home town of Usk, South Wales, along with my elder daughter, Cath. Cath has a degree in theatre,drama, media, and is a talented actress, director and writer and I love working with her. The children who come to our workshop are enormous fun, and some of them have been coming since they were about 6 and are now teenagers. We've watched them grow up and seen their personalities develop as well as their skills, so it really does feel like we're one big family.
Cath and I also run Is It Theatre Company Ltd. which concentrates on touring schools in South Wales with productions which have a health or social message and afterwards we talk to the audience about the issues raised.
There's more information about both these activities on the relevant links. in 2007 I was signed by Sunpenny Publishing and my first novel 'The Mountains Between' was published in November 2007, with a second, 'Just One More Summer' published in April 2008.
My next novel is called 'Don't Pass Me By', which is set in wartime Wales and follows the fortunes of a group of evacuees. It's currently with an agent, in the hope of securing a mainstream publisher. I am now working on a fourth, which is set in London in 1971.
In between the novels, I am still writing short stories and features when I have the time. I've had a first prize, two second prizes and a shortlisted placing for stories that I've sent to Writers' News competitions this year, and a feature in the Times Cymru Educational Supplement. I've also had a feature published in 'The Lady' and another awaiting publication. As I don't get much time to write short stories or features these days, I'm quite pleased that I've only had one submission so far this year that hasn't got anywhere.