Chalk Circle Writers
A group of Sussex-based writers, including listed and prize-winning authors,
who meet regularly to share individual work and to collaborate on joint writing projects.
Our first anthology of flash fiction, STRATA - Slices through the human landscape, was published in November 2018.
STRATA 2 - Shadows on the Path, an anthology of longer stories illustrated by John Vernon Lord, was published in October 2021.
Our third short story collection, STRATA 3 - Shifting Tides, with cover design and illustration by John Vernon, is published in November 2025
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Stuart Condie
After completing a Sussex University creative writing course, Stuart has written some twenty-five
short stories; three won prizes, two were placed and four published.
The Uganda Sails Wednesday was short listed for the Retreat West
first novel prize in 2018
and published by Red Door in
September 2020.
Elsa Evripidou
​Elsa was born in London to a Greek Cypriot father and a Finnish mother, giving her a unique world view.
She has worked in the film industry as a script writer, script editor and producer.
She has a written several short stories and a general fiction novel, Dying on the Inside. Her current crime novel, The Unmasking, will be completed in early 2026.
J. Reid Graham
James is a former NHS worker. Killer Nashville Claymore Unpublished Novel Award Finalist for 'Androcide in Paradise'. Honourable Mention for 'Volcano Goddess of Amphibe' in the Writers of the Future short story competition.
Yvonne Hennessy
Yvonne has lived in
Ditchling for over 30 years,
formerly with her late husband,
Documentary filmmaker, Luke Holland.
She enjoys writing, pottery,
gardening and European travels.
She's been writing a historical
novel set in Venice for far too long, and is working to complete it soon.
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Samanthi Munasing
Samanthi was born in Sri Lanka and lives in Alfriston East Sussex. She is an avid reader and loves walking in the South Downs. Her short stories have been published in well-known anthologies and she is working on her novel, ‘Milk Rice and Dragonflies.
Danielle Sensier
Danielle has Mauritian roots,
grew up in Yorkshire, and calls Sussex home. Her non-fiction books are published by Wayland and her children's poems are published in well known anthologies. She is seeking an agent for her Mslexia long-listed first novel and working on her second, inspired by Scottish travels and The Wicker Man.
David Stephens
Writer, traveller, and academic, David is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. Now based in East Sussex, after six years living in Peru, David’s most recent novel, The Disappeared (2023), is a political thriller, exploring the legacy of the Shining Path through the story of a father searching for his son. His current novel, The Cottage at the Edge of the Saltmarsh, will be published in 2026
Chalk Circle Alumni
Celia Berggreen
Celia Berggreen lives in Mid Sussex, and loves spending time with her eight grandchildren. A retired teacher she enjoys seeing friends, walking, reading, and travelling. Two of her short stories have been published.
She is seeking an agent for her first novel set in Sussex and Denmark, and is working on her second, a mystery set in the local area.
Judith Bruce
Judith Buce (1936-2020)
worked as a BBC television producer before turning to writing.
Her memoir Funny How Things
Turn Out is published by
Simon & Schuster.
She lived in Eastbourne and
was an enthusiastic blogger.
Read more about Judith's life
and writing here.
Stuart Condie
Justine Johnstone was born in
South Africa, lives in the South Downs and fantasies about running away to Greece, the setting of some of her stories. She has worked in publishing and academia, and is writing a psycho-eco-thriller set in a near-future Sussex where overpopulation is a little worse than at present and
psychopharmacology a little better.
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Celia Berggreen
Celia Berggreen lives in Mid Sussex, and loves spending time with her eight grandchildren. A retired teacher she enjoys seeing friends, walking, reading, and travelling. Two of her short stories have been published.
She is seeking an agent for her first novel set in Sussex and Denmark, and is working on her second, a mystery set in the local area.
Judith Bruce
Judith Buce (1936-2020)
worked as a BBC television producer before turning to writing.
Her memoir Funny How Things
Turn Out is published by
Simon & Schuster.
She lived in Eastbourne and
was an enthusiastic blogger.
Read more about Judith's life
and writing here.
Stuart Condie
Justine Johnstone was born in
South Africa, lives in the South Downs and fantasies about running away to Greece, the setting of some of her stories. She has worked in publishing and academia, and is writing a psycho-eco-thriller set in a near-future Sussex where overpopulation is a little worse than at present and
psychopharmacology a little better.
Margiad Eckstein
Margiad Eckstein was brought
up on the North Wales coast and loves its literature and rugged landscapes.
She has been a teacher, a stand-up comedian and a baker's assistant.
She joined Chalk Circle in 2019
and is currently working on
stories inspired by Welsh history
and folklore.
Justine Johnstone
Justine Johnstone was born in
South Africa, lives in the South Downs and fantasies about running away to Greece, the setting of some of her stories. She has worked in publishing and academia, and is writing a psycho-eco-thriller set in a near-future Sussex where overpopulation is a little worse than at present and
psychopharmacology a little better.
Jill Thomson
Jill Thomson lived in Lancashire, Scotland and Europe
before settling in Hurstpierpoint with her family.
She has worked in the
creative arts and as a teacher and enjoys reading, writing
and observing
the natural world.
Celia lived in Mid Sussex and loved spending time with her children and eight grandchildren. A retired teacher she enjoyed seeing friends, walking, reading, and travelling. A number of her short stories have been published and in 2024, her coming of age novel, Counting in Danish, was published posthumously by Cranthorpe Millner. Copies available from Waterstones.
Judith worked as a BBC television producer before turning to writing. Her memoir Funny How Things
Turn Out is published by
Simon & Schuster.
She lived in Eastbourne and
was an enthusiastic blogger.