Simon Plumbe - Specialist Skills

As well as writing, I am able to work in a number of areas. I pride myself on my flexible approach to projects and each one will receive the same degree of dedication and attention to detail. These are just a few of the areas I can dedicate myself to... Event Organisation I have been involved in running events since 1989 ranging from science fiction club meetings to extensive conventions and conferences. I have run over 60 one-day club meetings for various science fiction clubs, assisted with one science fiction convention, been directly responsible for four conventions and through work, I have been involved in a number of consultation events and conferences. The most elaborate of these was a three-day Star Trek convention in 1996, and for work was a two day public disability conference / exhibition. My involvement with these ranged from administrative work, publicity, liaison with venues and guests, collaborating to produce event magazines, budget planning, and on-the-day duties and co-ordination, often involving organising a team of volunteers. Fan Clubs I have had a significant amount of experience running fan organisations. I started in 1989 running a science fiction fan club. In 1996, a Star Trek fan club was launched which had over 500 members at its peak. Finally, I was approached by the Birmingham Bullets basketball club and was asked to run their official supporters club. Forum Administration I have been running a number of online discussion forums, and I have been taking a lead administering these. The duties involved range from publicity for the forum and day-to-day management, as well as monitoring all of the activity to ensure that all members are adhering to the appropriate rules and conditions of usage. This can involve reading, editing, and replying to several hundred posts per day. Interviews I have been involved in conducting a number of interviews for magazines - either in person or via fax/email - covering a range of subjects. The have included television and film personalities, musicians, sports personalities, and technical interviews with people from within the computer games industry. Negotiating This is something where I have taken a lead role in a number of areas. To date, I have been involved in co-ordinating and requesting donations from a large number of organisations and individuals towards charity events, and arranged appearances from celebrities at events. One of the most significant is a service I have been offering through the Infinite Frontiers website, and this has involved being in talks with a number of software companies worldwide (in some cases quite lengthy discussions), with regards to licencing their products for online distribution. I have established a strong reputation in this area, to the extent that I am often asked to negotiate for events with people having total confidence in my ability to deliver, and sometimes achieving the seemingly impossibe.