New writer 2025: Lucy Goodwill

Lucy Goodwill (she/her) is a writer, artist and educator based in Scotland. Lucy has a master's in Creative Writing from the University of Edinburgh and her work has been featured by publications such as 404 Ink, Dear Damsels and Popshot Magazine. Alongside her own practice, Lucy shares her passion for writing as a creative tutor, working with organisations such as Write Like a Grrrl, Super Power Agency and The Literary Consultancy to spark others’ creativity.

She was selected as a virtual writer-in-residence for Melbourne City of Literature in 2024 where she ran a series of virtual workshops in collaboration with a network of libraries. Lucy reads and writes widely but is currently focused on writing Young Adult novels, telling the stories her younger self once needed. As a disabled writer, Lucy will use her award to focus on a novel exploring the experience of becoming chronically ill at a young age and the myriad of challenges that come with it.

Find out more on Lucy's website(this link will open in a new window)

Writing sample

This is always the part where I get nervous, both the imagined me and the real me, hearts beating in tandem, a little nauseous but in the way that only happens when you’re excited as well as scared. I’m swallowing hard and breathing deeply through my nose because there’s a good chance the wrong words will fall out if I part my lips. 

There are a few different directions this dream can go in. The one where I say that I do know what he means and take his hand. The one where I straight up turn and kiss him. The one where I make a wisecrack and we both pretend it never happened; the one that’s closest to the truth. Where Ferdie told me over the phone at the end of year eleven that Dr Jones had agreed to help him to find a work experience placement. Where I made a joke about accidentally asking him to prom. Where Ferdie said he’d been hoping to ask me, and I panicked and made a joke about my legs not being up to dancing. I much prefer the version where I say yes. 

I wonder a lot about what might have happened if it hadn’t all been so complicated and we’d just been walking to the chip shop. I wonder about the precise look that would have played out on his face. If his hand would have tightened around my hand or if he would have responded to my kiss. I wonder what we might have said to one another. I come back to this wondering a lot.

This time, in this version, I make an awkward grab for his hand and exhale deeply as his fingers lace through mine.

Lucy says:

'I am beyond thrilled to have been selected for the New Writers Awards. This is a golden opportunity to develop my writing practice and it means so much to receive such a vote of confidence in my work. I can’t wait to meet the other Awardees and get started!'

Photo credit: ©JohnNeed.co.uk(this link will open in a new window)