Dr Anna Beer

Anna’s first book, type-written when she was 12, was ‘Wuthering Claudia’, written for, featuring, and strongly influenced by her classmates at Chiswick Community School. Now, several decades on, she continues to write about what interests her – and hopes will interest others. Her latest book, ‘Sounds and Sweet Airs: the Forgotten Women of Classical Music’ (2016) tells the fascinating and inspiring stories of eight female composers and Anna is keen to share her insights into these women’s lives, and talk about what it means to be creative – against the odds. She is currently working on a new biography of Sir Walter Raleigh, and is very happy to talk about the history and literature of the Tudor and Stuart eras – including Shakespeare and Milton – and its relevance now. Anna teaches Creative Writing at the University of Oxford, and would welcome the opportunity to explore with younger audiences what it means to be a writer – from the lyrics for your band to getting your first novel published.