Huge news!
My work-in-progress comic St Brigid & Me won the First Graphic Novel Award 2025!!!
It’s been TWO MONTHS TO THE DAY since the award ceremony and I’m only now sitting down to write about it on here. There is so much to recount.
I’ve been full time in a school doing repro and display work for the past year, moved house twice in the past year-and-a-half, and moved in with my boyf Joe, so keeping the old blog up-to-date was not my number one priority in 2025. (Thinking about it, I haven’t really had a working computer to write at since 2022.) But now, here I am, tapping away on a wireless keyboard connected to my brand new computer, ready to share my good news!!!
The ceremony was held at Waterstones Piccadilly. I was able to get two hours off work so that I could dash into town, meet Joe at the station and get the train down in time for the ceremony at 6pm. I was, of course, fairly shitting myself.
I have had terrible anxiety problems in my life and haven’t been able to cope with events like this (formal, everyone facing forward, being under the spotlight, being trapped-kind of scenarios) in the past. This was why I didn’t actually join my fellow short-listers in reading out our submissions at Thought Bubble in November 2025. I do feel a bit regretful about this now, but I am ever grateful to the amazing artist Zara Slattery for reading on my behalf, and to Corinne and the whole FGNA team for making that allowance for me.
In preparation for the winner announcement, I was frantically searching the web for any indicators of what the past events have been like. I have to extend enormous thanks to Alex Taylor (winner of FGNA2023) for making this excellent video of his experience. It did confirm some of my worst fears (OH GOD THERE’S GONNA BE TALL STOOLS!!!) but also really helped me in a human compassion and connection kind of way. Thanks Alex <3 I was so grateful to Joe too, for repeatedly reassuring me that it would be fine, and perhaps even enjoyable! How right he was! One of the key things that I was truly looking forward to was meeting the other Short Listers properly as I was too in my own scardey world to talk to them at Thought Bubble.
Left to right we have: Lizz Lunney, Yu-Ching Chiu, Calico NM, myself, Lois de Silva, and Lauren O’Farrell. Please if you are not already following these amazing artists, go and feast your eyes and minds on their wonderful work. I drew this image before the event to try to have a laugh at myself and get my fears out onto the page. It was a true honour to be ensconced in this team of wicked comics makers. I cannot wait to see their finished books.
It is hard to describe what a surprise it was to win. But one thing that struck me very much in the immediate aftermath, it was a lot like End of Evangelion.
I don’t have anything more intelligent to say about it all right now. I just wanted to write something to mark the day! I’m set up now with part-time at my day job, a new computer, and amazing help from Corinne Pearlman who is my mentor & editor for the book. I will try to keep my progress fairly well documented on here. For now, here’s a couple of snaps from the evening. I had to get the train back to Leeds by myself afterwards (as Joe was heading down south with his lovely mum who came to the award ceremony too), so I drank a couple of celebratory cans, texted and did a small instagram stories post, listened to music really loud on my headphones, and took awkward selfies with the incredible mini comic prize that Lauren had made for each of us – what a FLIPPIN’ SWEETHEART!!!
