Thanks for joining this free course. In our work at the National Centre for Writing we have the good fortune of collaborating with writers at all levels - from complete beginners to superstars authors such as Margaret Atwood. Writers at the very beginning of their careers can be easily overwhelmed by the different opportunities available in 21st century publishing, which is why we designed this course to help you navigate through the complex and multi-faceted publishing world.

We've drawn on years of experience in the industry and working with writers to compile this course. Your hosts are Simon Jones, digital specialist at the Centre and a writer of serialised fiction, and Vicki Maitland, a Participation & Learning expert who works closely with tutors and young people.

If you have only just discovered the National Centre for Writing and would like to know more, head over to our website at nationalcentreforwriting.org.uk, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @writerscentre, or like our page on Facebook.

You can also join our online writing community on Discord, simply by clicking here. We hope to see you there!

To move through the course, simply hit the green 'Complete and continue' button at the top of the screen. But, before we get started, here's Vicki to say hello: