The Story Works is a charity which delivers fun and transformative creative writing workshops to young people across Dorset.
When children have experience of their voice being heard, they develop the self-confidence to seize further opportunities and achieve their true potential. Our mission is to help young people in Dorset do exactly this, through creative writing. We provide them with the guidance, space and tools to tap into their imagination and create something wonderful, in their own unique style. And the aim is that they leave our workshops feeling seen, valued and, maybe, with something they feel proud of to take home.
Our partners, Bournemouth University, kindly offer us the use of their rooms and facilities on the Talbot Campus, near Wallisdown Road, in BH12 5BB. This allows us to provide our workshops in an accessible, well-equipped space, and offer schools and community groups a chance to see and experience a university campus.
We also take our illustration workshops into local schools, so that school children can benefit from our workshops, without the need to travel. It should be noted there is a charge for this and you will need to contact The Story Works to discuss prices and options.
We are a registered charity which, thanks to our partnership with Bournemouth University, and the Arts University of Bournmouth, is able draw from a wide pool of talented and creative students, who volunteer to assist us during our workshops. We are also lucky enough to have a dedicated panel of trustees with years of experience in writing, publishing and education, plus a strong, shared belief in the transformative power of creative writing.
Dee is a Lecturer in Scriptwriting at Bournemouth University and professional scriptwriter with both film and television credits to his name. Dee has a particular interest in education and is presently studying for his Ed Doc. His research is centred on teaching methods with a particular focus on Team Based Learning. He is also the showrunner for a joint staff-student film-making collaboration to be filmed at Bournemouth University.
TOM Ron STONE
Tom works full-time teaching TV and filmmaking at Bournemouth University. Outside of his day job, he writes children’s rhyming stories inspired by the rhythmic styles of Julia Donaldson and Dr. Seuss – a natural evolution from his time spent rapping in his youth!
He is also father to two wonderfully imaginative girls. A curious daydreamer himself, Tom loves to work with creatives and kids; those whose minds are yet to be shackled!
This is why Tom is perfect for The Story Works team!
Laura CamPbell
Laura has been involved in education for over 25 years and currently teaches advertising and brand communication at the University of Southampton. She has a Doctorate in Education and is passionate about social inclusion and making higher education accessible to all.
Laura is a keen hiker, rock climber, kayaker, wakeboarder and all-round outdoors nut. Her love of creativity and storytelling has brought her to the StoryWorks team.
CraiG RicKard
Craig is passionate about writing stories and helping others realise their creative aspirations, and several of his former students have gone on to be published. Presently, Craig is working as a scriptwriter on the Arts Council-funded full motion videogame ‘Cradlemoor,’ a project that contains multiple story pathways and timelines for an independent game developer.
Martina Mohr
Martina was born in Germany but has moved to England after meeting her partner while travelling. She is passionate about giving equal opportunities to all and supporting children in every way possible. She wants to encourage all children to be creative and follow their dreams. As the new Charity Manager, she will be responsible for running the day-to-day operations of The Story Works.
Sebastian “Baz” Lewis
Sebastian “Baz” Lewis is a writer from Dorset; a volunteer Facilitator and Admin Assistant, he has now been appointed as The Story Works’s inaugural Young Poet Laureate for Bournemouth 2025-26. As Young Poet Laureate, he will be working with local secondary schools to help young people find their voices through written and spoken word. His work has been published in Eche, Full House, Spellbinder, and elsewhere. He has also worked in collaboration with Lyra Poetry Festival, The Poetry Society, and the Oxford Poetry Library to help bring funky words to the people who need them.
ELISABETH MOSS
SEAN BARTON
Working behind the scenes in Manchester, Sean looks after the website. As a day job he applies AI to clinical movement analysis.
Emma has worked as a writer and editor for both book and magazine publishers. She was responsible for designing and launching the MA Creative Writing and Publishing at Bournemouth University, as well as BU’s Fresher Publishing, which runs The Bournemouth Writing Prize. For many years she managed the Writing Witches, which delivered free creative writing workshops in primary schools.
She also has a particular interest in writing for wellbeing and personal development and delivers workshops on reflective writing to GPs, in association with the Wessex Deanery.
Emma lives in Highcliffe and can usually be found walking the cliffs or having a quick dip in the sea.
Ali is the author of the Shapeshifter series, Car-Jacked and the Blue Peter Award winning Frozen In Time, among more than fifty other titles for children and young adults. She’s a regular performer at Hay and Edinburgh Festivals as well as in schools all over the world. Starting out as a local newspaper reporter, she spent several years as a BBC broadcast journalist before her first children’s novel was published in 2006. A mum of two implausibly grownup sons, Ali lives in Southampton with her husband and a labradoodle who loves too much…
Christian is the Course Leader for the BA (Hons) Illustration course at AUB. He studied Fine Art at Central Saint Martins and Chelsea College of Art, and work, where he developed a real interest in art theory. Besides writing about art, he has a particular love of abstract comics and visual narratives. He is currently reading In Waves by A J Dungo, a graphic novel about surfing (although he can’t surf!).
Schools Liaison Officer at Bournemouth University. Beth and the Schools Liaison & Partnerships Team support the delivery of workshops by connecting the charity with our brilliant Student Ambassadors. Relatively new to Dorset, Beth enjoys exploring the local area with her collie Ziggy (Stardust).
Building Confidence With Words
Working in partnership with:
