Ashley Hickson-Lovence

What are you doing now?

I am the published author of two novels (The 392 and Your Show), currently finishing my third (Wild East) and working on my fourth (About to Fall Apart). I am soon to hopefully complete my PhD in Creative Writing and I work as a part-time Lecturer in this field. I also do regular work on TV and radio and appearances at festivals too.

Why creative writing?

I didn’t really start reading until I was around 14 or 15 years old and from there the passion for writing subsequently developed. I’ve always liked words and been fascinated by narratives that centre on people’s lives, where they’ve come from and their journey has always been an interesting dynamic to me. However, it took me a few years to build the confidence to turn that passion into words on the page.

I come from a single-parent home and a very modest background. Becoming a creative writer wasn’t really a vocation that many members of my family took that seriously when I was growing up. They almost certainly wanted me to become a doctor, lawyer or an engineer instead. But I think my very humble background informs what I like to write, how I like to write and the voices that I create.

I like to write about places and people who are often disenfranchised in society, the so-called underdogs who are not given enough love or attention in society. I like to give them a platform and a voice on the page to share their stories. When I finished my first book, seeing it in print meant that these voices, and my own, were no longer forgotten, which was a really special moment for me.

What were you doing before pursuing postgraduate study?

At the end of my undergraduate degree in English, I started my career as a secondary school English teacher. However, I wanted to carry on my educational journey to acquire new skills and keep on developing and growing. I wanted to focus on writing as well as reading other people’s stories. I wanted to write stories that I felt were missing in the books I was reading.

I love writing about black lives, particularly black men, because there aren’t enough books that do that. Starting my degree at City allowed me the space and time to dedicate to my ambitions of doing that. My master’s gave me the confidence to say to people “actually these stories really matter”, so I owe a lot to the course, my tutors and my fellow peers for allowing me to experiment with telling people’s stories as well as my own.

Why did you choose to study at City?

I wanted to go to a very good institute, in a very good location, with a very good reputation, and City ticked all these boxes for me. Also, its location, right in the heart of London, so close to members in the industry can be really helpful to you in your career, which is also a fantastic and beneficial aspect of studying here.

What did you enjoy most about your course?

Before I started at City, I hadn’t really shared my work with anybody. However, upon starting the course, despite the expected anxiety and trepidation of sharing rough ideas and early drafts, doing so incrementally helped me become a better writer.

Workshopping, which is a process of sharing an extract of your work with a group of peers for feedback, is such an important part of the process; it allows you to get an idea of what the consensus is about your work from readers.

The tutors who read my work also provided tracked comments, plenty of feedback and sometimes lengthy reports about my work which were significant in the process to become a better writer. The combination of these aspects was crucial as they enabled me to identify where I needed to improve as well as where I was flourishing.

The magic happened not only in the classroom, but also just by bouncing off each other at social events or being in the general university environment at City; there are a number of opportunities to talk about your craft, words and literature, and all of those things are fantastic for making you a better writer and creative generally.

Then there’s all the long-lasting relationships that I forged, which are fantastic and add to the buzz, energy and hubbub amongst all of us creatives on my course who have also gone on to do great things.

What is your highlight from your time at City?

Shortly after the course, I got a literary agent, mainly off the back of the anthology created at the end of the course that showcased the first couple of chapters of work, and that was sent out to agents, publishers and editors who can choose to contact you if they like your work. I cherish this anthology very deeply as it was the first time I had seen my words in print in some kind of book and that was a really special and quite seminal moment for me.

I was pleasantly surprised when I started to receive emails from quite a few agents within three or four months of finishing the course. At that point, I had only written about a third of my first novel, The 392 and, with the literary agent, it took me a couple of years to finish the book and get it published.

I owe the publication of my debut The 392 all to City because I wrote a lot of it on my phone after class on the bus back home, so plenty of the book is inspired by my commuting to and from the University. I used all the material, enthusiasm and energy that I got from workshops, lectures or tutorials straight away on my journey home from class.

How has City helped you get to where you are today?

The course has really helped my career, I’m now a published novelist with experience lecturing in Creative Writing in several universities across the country, which is amazing. The whole experience at City has given me the confidence, the belief and courage to apply for certain positions, experiment with my craft and just generally try new things.

The course equipped me with all the tools I need in the big wide world, such as the connections and contacts which are so useful when you’re trying to make yourself heard as a working-class black man.

Before studying at City, I didn't think I would ever have the opportunity of doing what I loved and getting paid for it as well and it being a fully-fledged career.  Writing has gone from being something that I did surreptitiously, furtively, sort of hidden to something now that I'm very proud of and showcase regularly across the country in various institutes, schools, colleges, prisons, universities.