WIC 2010 – Panel Discussions

Writing Industries Conference 2010
Saturday 6th March 2010, Loughborough University
A Literature Network, Writing East Midlands
and Loughborough University project.
http://writingindustries.com
Twitter #wic2010

The Writing Industries Conference brings together writers from across the East Midlands and beyond with professionals from the writing industries to share knowledge, develop skills and make new contacts. The conference is open to anyone with an interest in writing, from unpublished writers who want to learn more to bestselling novelists.

The full programme for WIC 2010 is available online here:

http://writingindustries.com/programme/

A theme of this year’s conference is the many changes taking place in the writing industries. With new technologies from the internet to ebooks causing revolutionary change in commercial publishing, WIC 2010 discusses how writers are making the most of the opportunities that come with change. Following the tremendous success of Harry Potter, speakers including Bali Rai and Chris d’Lacey talk about the fundamentals of writing for younger readers. With more writers than ever making a living from poetry, Sarah Ellis of spoken word agency Apples & Snakes and a panel of working poets discuss how and why. And with Paranormal Romance such as Twilight and True Blood topping bestseller lists, Romance author Sue Moorcroft asks where next for one of the most traditional genres of fiction.

The Writing Industries Conference also explores the broad range of ways writers make a living, and the new areas opening up for talented writers. New interactive media and video games are now bigger business than Hollywood, Steve Ince (Author of ‘Writing for Video Games’) and Graham Joyce (Writer, Doom 4) talk about the place of writers in this new industry. With screenwriting among the most rewarding and competitive outlet for writers, Peter Leslie Wild (Senior Producer, BBC Radio) and Amanda Whittington (Playwright and Screenwriter) join the discussion on how writers sell scripts and get them produced. And Paul Munden (National Association of Writers in Education) joins professional poets from the region to talk about how writers work in the community.

Just a few of the other speakers at the Writing Industries Conference 2010 include Bernie Corbett (Writers Guild) Bella Pagan (Orbit Books), Alan Mahar (Tindal Street Press), Steve Dearden (National Association for Literature Development),Bea Udeh (Nottingham Playhouse producer and BRIT Regional Director), Mark Gwynne Jones (poet and performer), Nicola Monaghan (novelist), John Coster (Citizens Eye), Mark Charan Newton (fantasy novelist), Mary Nichols (historical romance writer) and Julia Churchill (Greenhouse Literary Agency).

Also on offer are a limited number of 1-2-1 meetings with professional agents and editors representing a range of writing genres:

Lorella Belli (Lorella Belli Literary Agency)
Ollie Munson (Blake Friedmann, Literary TV and Film Agency)
Alan Mahar (Tindal Street Press)
Sarah Ellis (Apples and Snakes)
James Wills (Watson, Little Ltd)
John Berlyne (Zeno Agency Ltd)
Jane Finigan (Lutyens & Rubinstein Literary Agency)
Wayne Burrows (Staple Magazine)

Applications for 1-2-1 meeting close on Monday 8th February 2010.

Buy tickets for the Writing Industries Conference online here.

Find more information about applying for a 1-2-1 meeting here.

If you have any questions regarding WIC2010 or would like further information please contact:

Alyson Stoneman
WIC2010 co-ordinator (part-time)
Email: wic2010eastmidlands@googlemail.com

New year, new writing you?

Helen Jaeger shares her new year writing resolutions. How will you be rejuvenating your writing in the year to come? Read more

Great Literature for Everyone ?

Arts Council England is consulting the arts constituency on the directions it should take and the ways of working it should adopt over the next ten years.

The national Association for Literature Development (NALD) wants you to take part in the ACE process, you can access the documents and take part here. We have also created a space where literature professionals and activists can discuss ACE’s vision, goals and priorities. We will be making our own submission based on the views you express here.

We asked Antonia Byatt, Director of Literature Strategy at Arts Council England, to introduce the process to NALD members …

Antonia writes …

Between now and 14 April we are consulting artists, arts organisations and other key stakeholders on future priorities for the arts. We will ask them about our understanding of the current landscape of the arts and the areas that need developing in the next ten years. The aim is to develop a long term view because that is how the arts develop, over time.

We will then combine what we learn from the consultation with our own research to finalise our thinking, which we will publish later this year. This framework will be a key tool to ensure that we have the best environment for creativity to flourish and for delivering our mission of great art for everyone.

There is a chapter about literature inside the consultation and it is really essential that people working as writers, promoters, educators, editors, librarians, literature entrepreneurs, leaders and many more, comment on the proposals. We have tried to focus arts council support where it can make a difference in a huge sector that includes huge commercial organisations but also big public sector players from broadcasters to libraries to higher education. We have already talked to many of you informally, and our suggestions for future focus have been informed by those conversations, but now we need your feedback and ideas to develop our plan for the future. Are we going in the right direction and what do you think needs to happen more specifically?

What we produce will be stronger if it is shared and informed by people working in the literature sector. It will help us develop a louder voice together and be more convincing to local and central government and to potential partners. It will help Arts Council direct its funding where it can be the most useful and most effective. We’ve kept the documents short, and I hope, readable. Please take some time to think and respond – it will be really important for us all.

Access the documents and the ACE process

Review the ACE strategy for literature

Access the NALD discussion

The Dawning by Megan Taylor

Nottingham fiction publisher Weathervane Press announces the forthcoming publication on 23/01/10 of their latest novel:

THE DAWNING – A dark and mysterious domestic thriller set in the Peak District; the stunning second novel by Nottingham writer Megan Taylor.

It is New Year’s Eve, a time for fresh beginnings – but for each member of the fragmenting Haywood family, this night could mark the end. Set against a backdrop of wintry beauty on the edge of a Peak District town, ‘The Dawning’ explores the danger that can arise, even at the heart of a family, over the course of one dark night. ‘The Dawning’ is Megan Taylor’s second novel. ‘How We Were Lost’ was published by Flame Books in 2007. Both novels demonstrate her ability to create characters we believe in and care about, and bring them vibrantly to life on the page.

‘The Dawning’ – Fiction paperback. £7.99 ISBN 978 0 9562193 4 3 Available from: www.weathervanepress.co.uk

Play on Words

The Corby Literacy Festival 2010

Let your imagination grow wild

Play on Words is a Corby Borough festival to celebrate the importance of books and literacy in all our lives. Artists, storytellers, magicians, puppeteers, shows, and workshops have been brought together to provide an exciting programme of FREE activities. Also The Gruffalo, Spot the Dog and Peter Rabbit will be visiting Corby Town Centre.

Download a brochure

Books and Things – January 2010

Books and Things (The newsletter formerly known as EMIT)
News, events and opportunities for readers and writers in the East Midlands

http://literaturenetwork.org

January 2010

Dear subscriber,

Firstly, apologies for the late delivery of this month’s newsletter from the Literature Network. Your friendly, neighbourhood Literature Coordinator was struck down with flu early in the new year and is still recovering. We will be aiming to get the newsletter out at the beginning of each month from now onwards.

Regular readers and keen eyed observers will notice both a change of name and format in this month’s newsletter. The newsletter formerly known as EMIT has now been retitled Books and Things, to better communicate the eclectic range of information it contains. The Literature Network website will also be taking on a new look later in the new year.

NEWS
Two new poetry collections from regional writers have been published recently. Peter De Ville’s second collection Taking the Ph, and Pavilion from Deborah Tyler-Bennet. Deborah is also featured in our creative showcase this month. A new independent bookshop called simply The Bookshop has opened in Kibworth Beauchamp in January, great news especially following the demise of Borders in December. And Nottingham writer Paula Rawsthorne, who received mentoring through the Literature Network last year, has secured representation from agent Jo Unwin at Conville and Walsh for a young adult fiction novel. Well done Paula!

EVENTS
The Writing Industries Conference 2010 (6th March, Loughborough University) will announce it’s full programme later in January. This year the conference will take the changes sweeping through the writing industries as its theme, from ebooks and digital publishing to the growth of spoken word arts. The deadline to apply for an agent or editor 1-2-1 meeting is 5th February. You can find full details of how to apply and purchase tickets for the event at http://writingindustries.com

Mark Goodwin will be making a special reading from Shod, his version of the Gospel in later this month. WORD, the regions longest running spoken word event, features Mik Artistik in February as well as open mic. slots where poets can test their work with an audience. Flying Donkeys unveil their Spring season of storytelling events and if you live or work in Nottingham consider popping into one of the Literary Lunches being held at the central library.

BLOGGERS
Lydia Towsey, coordinator of WORD and Literature Network blogger writes us a letter from Jamaica musing on how far (of near) we need to go to find inspiration as writers. Ross Bradshaw shares his Top Ten books of the last year, including Deer Hunting with Jesus by Joe Bargean. Let us know your own top reads of the last year by leaving a comment. And over the next year the Literature Network will be publicising writing from writer bloggers around the East Midlands, which we start this month with our first linklog. Is revising like curry? Does caffeine aid the creative process? Read on to discover the answers to these questions and more.

If you have any news, events or other information you would like added to the Literature Network website or featured in the Books and Things newsletter, please email: editor@literaturenetwork.org

Many thanks and have a happy literary new year!

Damien Walter
Literature Network Coordinator

http://literaturenetwork.org

Mark Goodwin reads from Shod

Mark Goodwin will be reading from Shod, his version of The Gospel, which will be published by Nine Arches Press in August.

This gig is organised by Nine Arches. It is on Monday 25th January, 7.30 pm, ENTRY IS FREE, it is at:

Looking Glass
68-70 Braunstone Gate
LE3 5LG

There will also be two other poets reading:

Tony Williams: Sheffield poet, his debut collection The Corner of Arundel Lane and Charles Street (Salt) has been highly acclaimed nationally.
“…from all our cultural loam and junk, Williams has made real magic.” – The Guardian

Matt Nunn: Birmingham poet, editor and co-founder of Nine Arches, his latest collection Sounds In The Grass is out now.

Here’s some blurb about Shod, from Loughborough’s own inimitable Deborah Tyler-Bennett:

‘Raw, distinctly voiced, and edgy, Shod is a Twenty-First-Century allegory that doesn’t disappoint. Sydney Realer, the Shoe Messiah, and the apocalyptic cast of characters he encounters, stays with the imagination long after the poem has been read. With echoes of popular song, religious tracts, and consumer culture, Shod has overtones of the dissenting art of William Blake. But this is Blakean work which is very much for today, as Sydney moves between the blank-walled supermarket and broken-rural hinterland of a town’s outskirts. This is disturbing, savage, and memorable poetry, with something uncompromisingly human at its heart.’

May your soles last long, and Shod bless you!

Curry and Discipline

From January onwards the Literature Network will be featuring the writing of bloggers around the East Midlands region. Curry, discipline and caffeine may (or may not) be repeating themes.

• M C Rogerson on why revising is like curry. (But is it a nice mild Korma or an extra spicy Vindaloo?)
• Mark Robson on the discipline of writing.
• Harry Riley muses on the task of finding a publisher (or not, as the case may be).
• Does caffeine aid the creative process? Graham Edwards explores.
• Women poets don’t write reviews – allegedly.

To have your blog included please contact: damien@charnwood-arts.org.uk

Looking Ahead at Science Fiction

Damien Walter joins the Guardian Book Podcast to take a look ahead at Sceicne Fiction and Fantasy. Read more

Creative Showcase – Deborah Tyler-Bennett

Deborah Tyler-Bennett is one of the East Midland’s most respected poets, and well known for her excellent workshops and the Rhymes and Wines night held each month in Loughborough. To mark the publication of her new collection Pavillion the Literature Network presents a small selection of Deborah’s poetry.

Pavillion is a celebration of the world of the English dandy, its gorgeous peacock feathers and fading glamour. Her cast of eccentric and complicated characters entertain their listeners at the bar, flashy and flamboyant as Brighton’s fantasy Pavilion, revealing the sad truths and disturbing secrets behind their cheap make-up.

Deborah Tyler-Bennett’s previous publications include Clark Gable in Mansfield (King’s England, 2003), and selected poems in Take Five (Shoestring, 2003). In 2001 her poem ‘Kirk Alloway’ won the Hugh MacDiarmid Trophy.

Flaneur

Kagool sheathed, they rush, avoiding rain,
crushing past awnings’ gushing waterfalls
and there he’s cloistered. Elegance calls
attention (world’s washed down a drain).
Dove-grey suit, with silver-headed cane,
exotic plant against Plain Jane pub walls
and, for an instant, sodden summer stalls,
pub front transformed to sudden picture-frame.

Could be imagining yellow rose,
tonal handkerchief, glossed ballroom shoes,
my nocturne formed of brushstrokes and regret,
torch song from a vanquished Pierrot Show.

He’s real enough. Discussing current news.
Blue smoke furling from his cigarette.

West Pier Serenade

There’s a dance going on in the dark above our heads,
men pressing women against laundered suits,
a girl’s surprised to find her older partner dances
better than boys, a woman leaves imprinted lips
staining the bar-tender’s milky cheek.

Above us, the burned-out Pier against evening’s
Guinness-black curtain, where feet shuffle in rhythm
(a few toes getting stepped on), and maybe this
close stepping’s what we’re made for,
hands tight against gabardine or georgette clad backs.
It may be the sea, or the dancers’ suggestive whispering:
‘At last, at last, at last …’

Above our heads, pier-bones lost to night,
where phantoms clutch each other.
Only the sea? Or a woman breathing to her partner,
before kissing him: ‘I wish tonight would last,
would last … would last …’

Artist

Around him waltz rouged women and louche
men, or Spivs and Good Time Girls push by his chair,
lobby filling with slit gowns and rented-suits.

He’s better dressed than them, Versace handkerchief,
gilt 1940s watch, strap fragile as sunglasses
kept on indoors.

Flamed tie (shapely as a red sheath-dress),
face set, hands manicured, walk sloped, as if emerging
from one of the pictures he copies for a living.

Dark glasses making eyes unreadable, he could be
film-noir villain, or victim, delicate fingers
made for circling wine-glass.

Stepping between scarlet and jet
he holds out photographs of favoured images
like Tarot Cards:

Competition dancer, number at his back, gazing
from a balcony … Girl in titanium chiffon
mauling roses … Well-heeled couples paddling.

‘Which do you like?’ He asks, I point to
the numbered man. Signs the photo’s back
hands it to me, fingers trembling.

His voice is full of cases being packed, of clasps snapped shut,
petals dropping, dance-number taken off,
and cast bin-wards,
full of wine-glasses in undetected corners,
of Flash Harrys and satin-clad honeys, leaning out
from repeating canvases of black, white, crimson.

Pavilion, published by Smokestack, price £7.95, ISBN 0780956034151. www.smokestack-books.co.uk

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