Margaret Bradshaw (writing as Martha Ashwell)

	Celia’s Secret: A Journey towards Reconciliation (2015)
	Something About Home: New Writing on Migration and Belonging Ed. Liam Harte (2017)
Competition Winner 2019	Theatre of War Garrick Theatre Poetry Competition 2019 linked with Nick Dear’s play The Dark Earth and the Light Sky

Born in Manchester, I write under the pseudonym Martha Ashwell and have recently become a member of the South Manchester Writers’ Workshop. I joined seeking shared experiences, constructive criticism and support, all of which I have received.

I began writing seriously after my retirement and chose to write my memoir because that was the subject I knew most about. Since its publication in 2015, I have written several pieces of prose and poetry on subjects such as war, migration, reconciliation and peace, and have contributed to a number of Manchester Irish Writers’ public performances at the Irish World Heritage Centre in Manchester. My short story Sights and Sounds was included in the anthology: Something About Home: New Writing on Migration and Belonging published in 2017.

I’m currently working on a novel, set at the turn of the twentieth century in Northern Ireland and on a series of children’s books in collaboration with my daughter, Clare. I am a member of the Historical Novel Society and The Manchester Irish Writers and have recently joined my local U3A writing group close to home.

The Manchester Irish Writers blog is here

Martha Ashwell's Facebook page is here

Martha Ashwell's own website is here