Hungry for a literary success

A WOOLSTON teenager has battled a debilitating health condition to be in line to win a national literary award.

Connie Callon, aged 18, of Berkshire Drive, has made the final 10 in the Lancaster Writing Awards which seeks to honour emerging talents.

This year it received more than 250 entries from across the UK.

She said: “It came as a real surprise and I don’t think I understood how big a deal it was until all my tutors started congratulating me.”

Due to illness, Connie left Woolston High School to study at home during the final year of her GSCEs, but still managed to secure five As.

She was suffering from a fast heart rate, chest pains, dizziness, extreme tiredness and had regularly passed out.

Her health issues continued at Priestley College where she has received extra support, but her condition was only diagnosed earlier this year when doctors discovered she had POTS syndrome which means sufferers are unable to adjust to gravity and was also suffering chronic migraines.

Despite her health difficulties Connie’s story means she could win the award, if shortlisted for the final ceremony at Lancaster University’s Sixth Form Conference in July.

It centres on the obsession with body image, shown through a dystopian world where everyone undergoes surgery at the age of 12 to look like one of two ‘models’ for each sex.

Priestley tutor Clare Marshall said: “It is an achievement for anyone to be recognised in this way, but even more impressive for Connie given everything she has had to cope with in the past few years.”

The Hunger Games fan hopes to continue the story further after she finishes her exams this summer and wants to go on to Lancaster University to study English.

All the judges in the Lancaster Writing Awards are members of the university’s eminent teaching staff including Whitbread Prize-winning poet Professor Paul Farley.

“We have been really impressed with the quality of the work received this year,” said Head of Department Professor John Schad.