LYNN HAMILTON

I am a life scientist with over 30 years' experience of working in healthcare communications. My early years were spent in healthcare public relations, devising and delivering programmes to support pharmaceutical products on a global basis.

Seventeen years ago, I narrowed my focus to writing but continued to develop material for both professional and public audiences. At one end of the spectrum, I simplify the science and use creative ways to deliver health education to patients. At the other end, I work closely with specialists in their field to summarise complex clinical data for presentation at a congress or for submission to peer-reviewed publications.

The space in between is filled with a huge variety of material - videos, case studies, interactive algorithms and flow charts. As part of my growing interest in merging my professional interest in medicine and writing fiction, I have almost completed a part-time research degree looking at how the common stereotypes we see in fiction influence the perception and understanding of illness and drive stigma.