#292 Win a 121 critique of up to 5,000 words of your work from Creative Writing Tutor and mentor Umi Sinha

About Umi:

Umi Sinha is the author of Belonging. She is a creative writing tutor (she has taught creative writing at universities of Brighton & Sussex and on the Creative Writing Programme at New Writing South) and mentor specialising in historical, colonial and post-colonial prose writing. Umi is especially interested in working with the Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic community.

Testimonials:

“Umi has mentored me for two years & is helping me write the third draft of my novel.  Despite doing an MA in Creative Writing & many workshops & courses over the years, I have to say that I have learnt more with Umi over 2 years of mentoring than I did on my MA in Creative Writing. The ‘on the job’ coaching she offers has been invaluable for me. I have learnt so much about the craft, become aware of my strengths & weaknesses & learnt how to edit myself.
I have been writing for 20 years and  I can honestly say that this ‘on the job’ training has been the most effective & enjoyable.”
 
Melanie Melvin

“I learnt so much in your classes - point of view, tone of voice, brevity, trusting instinct. But most of all the importance of story telling. Thank you for all your help, your curiosity and your wisdom. You teach writers how to be free.”  

Grant Fulton

"Umi, thanks so much for meeting with me on Tuesday. I came away so encouraged with my writing and my ability to go for it and complete this novel. I’ve never felt this before. I am so very pleased to say I have written 2000 words since Wednesday and really broken through that total paralysis, plot wise. There is much still to do of course, but I have been following your advice to trust my instinct and believe my story is there in my subconscious. I have been quite surprised by what has come out so far!"

Katherine Steer

About Belonging:

Set during the years of the British Raj, Umi Sinha's unforgettable debut novel is a compelling and finely wrought epic of love and loss, race and ethnicity, homeland - and belonging.

Lila Langdon is twelve years old when she witnesses a family tragedy after her mother unveils her father's surprise birthday present - a tragedy that ends her childhood in India and precipitates a new life in Sussex with her Great-aunt Wilhelmina.

From the darkest days of the British Raj through to the aftermath of the First World War, BELONGING tells the interwoven story of three generations and their struggles to understand and free themselves from a troubled history steeped in colonial violence. It is a novel of secrets that unwind through Lila's story, through her grandmother's letters home from India and the diaries kept by her father, Henry, as he puzzles over the enigma of his birth and his stormy marriage to the mysterious Rebecca.

BELONGING has been longlisted for the Historical Writers Association Goldbsoro Debut Crown 2016 and shortlisted for the Authors Club Best First Novel Award 2016.