Samuel Hollins | EPOCH Coordinating Editor
On the 28th March 2022, EPOCH History Magazine hosted its first event – the Writing Summit. Bringing experts and postgraduates (PGs) together from across the British Isles, the Summit provided a series of workshops, a panel, and a conversation with an eminent historian to provide stimulating writing training to PGs. Attended by more than forty PGs, the event was a resounding success, and we received plenty of great feedback. In the following short article, we will run through the Writing Summit, recounting an exceptional day of learning and networking.
We kicked off the event with two-morning workshops. In Lecture Theatre 9 of Lancaster University’s Management School, Dr Alexander Wragge-Morley, Lancaster University lecturer and historian, used his vast career experience to help attendees think about how they might sell their ideas to the scariest audience of them all – the people reading your job, postdoc, and grant applications. Simultaneously, in Lecture Theatre 11, Dr Emma Gallon, Books Manager for the University of London Press, brought her expert knowledge to the table giving attendees a publishers eye view.
Next up, EPOCH hosted the panel, The Public Face of History, bringing together experts from across media, heritage, and academia to generate a discussion on the dissemination of historical knowledge to a wide public audience. We invited Emma Heslewood, Senior Museum Manager at Lancashire County Council and Museum Association, Sophie Merrix, PhD Candidate and Historical Consultant, and Sophie Parker, BBC Radio Wiltshire Journalist, to sit on our panel and their discussion was absolutely fascinating. They engaged with topics including voices within history, the commercialisation of heritage, and representation. We had some excellent audience participation too!
After returning from lunch, we jumped straight into our afternoon workshops led by EPOCH Editors. Back in Lecture Theatre 9, Amy Louise Smith and Samuel Hollins discussed the process of submitting and writing for a magazine. In Lecture Theatre 11, Meredith Guthrie and Dabeoc Stanley unpicked the rules of writing and explored the things that might be holding the attendees’ writing back. Both workshops were very productive, with EPOCH Editors and attendees alike learning plenty from the discussions.
Bringing the day to a close, we welcomed Marc Morris, the best-selling author and historian of The Anglo-Saxons. Meredith Guthrie, EPOCH’s Medieval Editor, had a fantastic and insightful conversation with Marc covering his experiences of writing histories and publishing to critical acclaim and commercial success. As with the panel and all four workshops, the audience contributed tremendously to the discussion with Marc.
All in all, the day went exceptionally well. As the EPOCH Team, we want to take the time to thank our guest speakers for their contributions to the Writing Summit. Thank you, Marc Morris, Emma Heslewood, Sophie Parker, Emma Gallon, and Alexander Wragge-Morley. As the Coordinating Editor for EPOCH, I want to personally thank my Editorial Team, Meredith Guthrie, Karianne Robinson, Amy Louise Smith, Sophie Merrix, Amy Stanning, Ed Moore, Dabeoc Stanley, and Gareth Johnstone.
You can see details from the Writing Summit on our Events page, and stay up to date about upcoming events run by EPOCH and the postgraduate community at Lancaster.