NEWS New Faces

 

 

We are very excited to welcome new members to our editorial team! Please meet our new sub-editors, Wendy Threader and Faye Holt, and our Network News Editor, Stephanie Cotela.

 

 

Wendy Threader

 

Wendy Threader

An avid reader from a small child, Wendy used to sit and make up stories about people passing by – Where were they going? What were they going to do? A lot of these made-up, childhood stories fuelled her desire to write, which she did, although they were only read by close friends.

 

Wendy developed a passion for poetry, beginning writing and even teaching a class at her senior school for her English teachers. Although initially encouraged to become a teacher herself, Wendy decided to go into the theatre where she enjoyed a reasonable career before she embarked on a variety of roles in the workplace.

 

She continued writing her poetry and has written bespoke poems for both friends and family for all occasions. At work, Wendy has always been known as the in-house laureate and provides an animated advent calendar with seasonal ditties!

 

Wendy has experience of providing a fresh pair of eyes through proofreading exam papers and is keen to develop these skills, enrolling on an accredited course.

 

She continues to write and is developing two children’s books which she hopes to complete soon.

 

 

Faye Holt

 

Faye Holt

Faye always loved reading so it seemed inevitable that she would study English Literature at university. She then went on to become a primary school teacher and taught in several Buckinghamshire schools where she was the English and Reading lead – the person responsible for booking author visits.  While the visiting authors were telling the children all about their books, Faye would watch and think, ‘Why aren’t I doing this?’ So, she decided to do something about it. She first enrolled on an Adult Education Creative Writing course and then applied to do the MA in Writing for Young People at Bath Spa University, which was where she first heard about SCBWI. She joined and has never looked back, loving both the support of her local critique group and the opportunities offered by the many events. Now she’s excited to become part of the editorial team.

 

Faye completes her MA this September and is busily trying to finish her WIP, a middle grade mystery. With hard work and a sprinkle of luck, she might even be one of those visiting authors one day.

 

 

Stephanie Cotela

 

 Stephanie Cotela

Stephanie has been creating silly characters and stories since childhood and, for a while, that’s where they stayed. Side-tracked by a career in travel and tourism, a move from Long Island, New York to San Diego, California, a return to university as a mature student, and a Bachelor’s degree in Art History at San Diego State University, she finally settled on a career in the arts.

 

Returning to New York, she immersed herself in the Manhattan art scene, having held positions at the Metropolitan Opera, American Museum of Natural History and Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.

 

Ever the mover and shaker, she then relocated to the UK, where she received her Master’s degree in History of Art from Birkbeck, University of London. However, finding it difficult to secure a job, she took matters into her own hands and embarked on a career as a freelance art historian, taking on a range of projects and roles, including curator, author, writer/editor and an adult education tutor.

 

It was during her career break, after becoming Mom to two highly energetic boys that her love for reading and sharing children’s literature came to the fore. With a background in art, writing picture books seemed a natural place to start as well as a fun way to get the creativity flowing again, although it quickly led to larger word counts for older readers.

 

Now, an art historian at large but, no less a lover of history, research and colourful storytelling, she’s busy writing cosy young adult romance/mysteries, spooky middle grade ghost stories and picture books about polar bears. She’s currently on submission with a few different manuscripts and in search of that dream agent/author relationship. (Aren’t we all?)

 

An enthusiastic SCBWI member since 2019, Stephanie is looking forward to spreading Scoobie news near and far.

 

Header image credit: Tita Berredo