At a ceremony which took place on 25 June 2024, Laura won one of 15 awards presented by New Writing North.

The Arvon Award is linked to the writers’ retreat from which it takes its name. As part of her award, Laura receives a free writing retreat at one of Arvon’s writing houses where she will benefit from dedicated writing time and tutoring from established authors.

Researching British history and childhood

Laura Tisdall is a Senior Lecturer in Modern British History at Newcastle University. Her research focusses on childhood, adolescence, adulthood and chronological age. She is also currently writing a non-fiction book for Yale University Press London, which will tell the history of Cold War Britain through the voices of children and teenagers.

Laura won the Arvon Award for her current novel-in-progress, New Mothers, which is about a group of teenage girls living in an isolated Wiltshire hamlet in the 1970s who discover that their fathers have murdered their mothers and replaced them with robots. It was partly inspired by her own historical research and teaching on childhood, motherhood and second-wave feminism in modern Britain, especially her third year UG module ‘The Rising Generation: Youth, Age and Protest in Cold War Britain’.

Prior to this, she was also the runner-up in Hodderscape’s SF Debuts Prize in February 2023, shortlisted for the Word Factory Northern Apprentice Award for short fiction in July 2023, and won second place in the Surrey New Writing Prize in May 2024.

She said: “I’m so delighted to have won the Arvon Award! Of course, I can’t wait to have a week of focused writing time at one of Arvon’s beautiful writing houses, but I’m especially overjoyed at this support and validation for my creative work. It means the absolute world.”

About The NUAcT Fellowship scheme

The Newcastle University Academic Track Fellowship scheme aims to find and develop our research leaders of the future.

Those on the Scheme receive an outstanding package of support; with 5 years’ salary, which is fully flexible (full time or part time), up to £50K research expenses and a PhD studentship.

Subject to a successful review, participants move to an open-ended academic contract at the end of the 5 years. Learn more about the NUAcT Scheme and New Writing North.