Season Butler is a former creative writing student who attended one of Joanna Pocock’s amazing and inspiring writing courses at CSM. Author of novel, Cygnet, winner of the Writer's Guild First Novel Award 2020 and listed in Elle's Ones To Watch 2019; we caught up with Season to find out more about her time at CSM.
Season Butler
Where are you from and what's your favourite thing about it?
I was born in Washington, D.C. and it has a fantastic food culture.
What is your occupation?
I am a writer, artist, dramaturg and lecturer.
What short course did you to study upon at Central Saint Martins (CSM), and what was your journey to the course?
I took one of Joanna Pocock's creative writing courses as I was looking for the confidence and a supportive structure to start writing fiction.
What did you enjoy most about your short course?
Joanna's teaching style is encouraging and stimulating - critical in the best possible way. The course helped me become a better reader as well as a better writer.
How has your short course benefited your career, education and/or personal development? What are you going to do next with your new skills?
This course was really the beginning of my journey to becoming a published novelist. I learned how to give and - most importantly - to receive feedback and integrate it into the drafting and redrafting process.
I use the skills I learned on this course almost every day.
What would you say to someone who is thinking about taking a short course at CSM? Why should they study there?
Give it a whirl. I met some incredible people, gained confidence through the techniques I learned and found a joyful approach to writing, which can sometimes feel like a lonely pursuit.
What three words best describe your CSM Short Course experience?
Inspiring, challenging and fun.
Cygnet book cover
Start your creative writing journey on one of Joanna Pocock’s upcoming courses today. Season’s debut novel, Cygnet, is also available now and has been described as, “An imaginative, atmospheric and original novel that lingers in the memory long after reading.” by Bernadine Evaristo, and “Cygnet is both very funny and convincingly tragic, its young narrator memorably charismatic and self-aware.” by Lamorna Ash, Times Literary Supplement.