Miriam

I teach creative writing.

I specialise in overcoming any blocks children may have to reading and writing, as well as working with children who are already keen writers looking for challenge and stimulation. Though I say it myself, I'm extraordinarily good at seeing what's holding back a child's writing and working with them to overcome it. While also having fun!

I most often work with children aged 8-12 but have also taught younger and older. My work spans children of all ability levels. As an English Literature graduate and keen typo-spotter I'm well-equipped to help with spelling, grammar and punctuation, as well as how to do comprehensions. When it comes to entrance exams and life in general, those things matter too. But my main focus is creative writing.

I'm also a published writer and comedy performer.

Tutoring Experience

I'm a published children's author. My book for 6-7-year-olds 'Mega Merle and the Underground Adventure' was published by Oxford University Press in 2024. Before that I wrote the book 'My Golden Ticket' for Wonderbly (who publish personalised books). I've written children's fiction for various other companies and charities. I've worked with many fellow authors to develop and edit their books. I'm also an experienced improv comedy performer who regularly makes things up on stage in front of people.

I started teaching children's creative writing workshops in 2018. Children left my workshops excited and engaged, and I quickly found I was in demand for one-to-one creative writing tutoring, both for those who struggle with writing stories, and those who are already budding novelists. Since then I've taught pupils all around the UK as well as in Singapore, Trinidad and Tobego, the US and Europe. I absolutely love teaching and I care deeply about giving your child a good experience. I'm excited to show them what you can do with the written word - a sense of power and delight that will hopefully enrich their whole life.

"Miriam has been a fantastic teacher for my granddaughter. She helped her with her writing and vocabulary and encouraged her to read a wide range of books. Her lessons were always fun, so much so that my granddaughter wanted her to continue forever!
My granddaughter wrote a few words that best describe her: 'Miriam is a great teacher. She has helped me improve my English and pass my exams. She makes everything fun and exciting.' We cannot thank you enough Miriam. Best teacher ever."
- Sukhbir, grandmother

"My kids used to hate writing until we started lessons with Miriam. She was quick to understand our needs, finding new ways of making learning fun and creative. She has also catered her approach as they have grown older. I'm very pleased with the lessons."
- Ayesha, parent

"My son has always complained and struggled with creative writing for school, but after a few hours with Miriam, he couldn't stop talking about the worlds he was creating, and how thrilling writing now seemed. She transformed writing from something that was a chore into something that is an art."
- Elizabeth, parent

"Miriam works with our two daughters aged 9 and 10 on their creative writing. She has in a short time helped both our daughters build on their love of reading and writing and made creative writing really exciting and fun for them both. Miriam provides regular feedback, has really got to know both our girls and supports me with ways I can build their confidence and skills in between sessions."
- Aisha, parent

Tutoring Approach

Fun
First and foremost comes enjoyment. It's difficult to think creatively when you're worrying too much about getting things right, or don't feel at ease with your teacher. So breaking the ice and setting up a positive, supportive relationship with the child from the start is really important. And I incorporate humour and games into my activities wherever I can.

Positive
Part of this is showing children that their ideas are good. Schools do an amazing job, but sometimes the education system leaves children with a lot of concern about getting things 'right' - which becomes unhelpful in a creative context. Putting more emphasis on creativity, enjoyment, and a sense of how much fun you can have with the imagination helps redress the balance and can lift the fear of the blank page.

Tailored
A lot of my teaching is made up of activities and exercises I've created myself, so you won't find them anywhere else. When I see an issue in someone's writing, I create an exercise to tackle it in a fun way. The same issues come up again and again, so many of the same exercises come in handy, but the lessons are always tailored to the individual child and their writing. I'll do things in a different order depending on what I think will make most sense to them, or I'll do the same activity but adjust the difficulty level. Every now and then I think of a fun new way to address a common problem, or I come across an issue I haven't seen before in a child's writing and make up a new activity to work on it. I also get to know each child's reading tastes and recommend books I think they'll like, which is a great support to their writing.

Online
In practical terms, I teach online using a video call and a shared doc. I've taught in-person too and both work well in different ways, but online has the advantage that I can watch children as they type, which gives me a lot of insight into their thinking process. For children who can't type I don't get that advantage, but they can hand-write their work and then read it out to me, which works too. If I'm helping prepare someone for entrance exams, I'll get them to do exam practice by hand in order to recreate exam conditions.