Oundle Readers’ Day: A day for book lovers

Northamptonshire Libraries and Information Service and Oundle Festival of Literature have joined forces to produce a Readers’ Day for all of the counties readers. Readers’ Days are a real treat for anyone who loves books and reading.

The day will be hosted by poet John Siddique and there will be the opportunity to meet four authors: Jake Arnott, Stella Duffy, Sophie Hannah, and Jojo Moyes. 20th March 2010, 10.00am – 3.30pm, Great Hall, New Street, Oundle.

Tickets £12. Ticket price includes tea and coffee – please bring a packed lunch. Pre-booking is essential. Please complete the form overleaf to book your place. Booking forms are to be returned to Kettering Library (or Oundle Library by hand). Tickets will be sent in the post.

For further information about the day and to book please contact Kettering Library: Ketlib@northamptonshire.gov.uk or 01536 512315.

Comedy Writing Workshop with Rob Gee – part of Nottinghamshire Loves Learning’s Big Learning Weekend

Monday 15th February, 2-5pm, Nottingham Central Library, Cecil Roberts Room.

Develop your comedy writing skills with acclaimed comic and performance poet Rob Gee. 

About Rob Gee:  Performance poet, comic, workshop leader and reformed psychiatric nurse, Rob combines elements of theatre, comedy and literature in his live act. From diabolical chat up lines to the end of the world, he insists the human tragedy is a gleeful comedy. Fast, furious and very funny, Rob uses inventive wordplay, whiplash couplets and motored rhythm to tap into the world of chaos and adventure that lurks behind the veneer of everyday life.

This FREE workshop will give writers of all levels the chance to explore comedy writing. Participants will be guided through the process of developing their on comedy ideas and will learn tips for developing plot lines and  characters.

This is a FREE workshop but places are limited and must be booked at Nottingham Central Library ground floor helpdesk or call 0115 915 2824. 

For further information contact Kate Wilkinson on kate.wilkinson@nottinghamcity.gov.uk or call 0115 9151170 (Wednesdays and Thursdays). 

Part of Nottinghamshire Loves Learning’s Big Learning Weekend.

In association with the Nottingham Comedy Festival. 

Writer in Residence at Deanhanger Library, Northamptonshire

We are delighted that writer Leo McNeir has agreed to do a short stint as Writer in Residence at Deanshanger Library, the small library that is closest to his home. He will be ‘in residence’ on Wednesday Dec 16th, Thursday Dec 17th and Friday Dec 18th from 2 – 5 pm each day.

Leo McNeir is the author of the series of crime novels with a waterways setting featuring Marnie Walker, her lover Ralph Lombard, her close friend Anne Price and several others. That is until one or other of them gets bumped off! Look out for such titles as No Secrets, Kiss and Tell, Sally Ann’s Summer and, the latest, Smoke and Mirrors. Leo’s books are easy to spot as the covers all feature beautiful artist’s pictures of canals and canal boats.

When not writing novels, Leo is a linguist and lexicographer. He has compiled and edited ten dictionaries in fifteen languages since the first one was published by Cassell in 1993.

Leo will be working on his new novel and welcomes anyone who wants to come and watch him working or talk about the intricacies of plotting and character development.  For further information contact: JMDavies@northamptonshire.gov.uk.  Deanshanger Library location: http://www.northamptonshire.gov.uk/en/councilservices/Leisure/Libraries/publib/Pages/Deanlib.aspx.

NaNoWriMo – Leicester Support Group

National Novel Writing Month starts November 1st 2009

Love novels? Write one! Sign up at NaNoWriMo.org. Here in Leicester we have a month full of NaNoWriMo happenings.

What is NaNoWriMo?
Every November, tens of thousands of people take up NaNoWriMo’s challenge of writing a 50,000-word novel in thirty days. It’s an anti-contest writing contest, one where the judges are missing, the prizes are lousy, and writers and non-writers alike have the time of their lives bashing out surprisingly unhorrible books in an absurdly short amount of time.

—–Kick-off Event—–
Our first event of 2009 is a Meet ‘n’ Greet in central Leicester on Sunday, 25 October at 2.00pm. The location is upstairs at the Coffee Republic at 20-22 Granby Street, Leicester LE1 1DE.

Come along and meet other writers who are attempting the insane challenge of writing 50,000 words in only 30 days! Discuss your plans for your novel, share resources for managing life while scrambling to fill every minute with prose, get ideas for your plot, and find out what other local writers are up to. If you haven’t decided whether to do it or not, or if you want more information, come along and find out more.

—–Weekly Meetings and Write-Ins—–
We will also host a meeting/write-in every Sunday at 2.00pm during November, also upstairs at the Coffee Republic at 20-22 Granby Street, Leicester LE1 1DE.

A write-in is a group meeting where we bring our laptops or notebooks and work on our novels. This is a great way to avoid potential loneliness if you are holed away pouring your heart onto the page.

We all work on our own novels at our own pace. Occasionally we can share a snippet we like or ask for some quick inspiration or a character name. Sometimes we challenge ourselves to include the same element in each of our work, which can result in some extra creativity.

—–Weekly Online Write-Ins—–
All the joy of friendly support, and none of the need to change out of your fuzzy bunny slippers – what could be better? We will be hosting an online write-in every Wednesday evening in November from 7.00pm. The link to the virtual chatroom will be posted on the forum.

—–TGIO Party (Thank Goodness It’s Over)—–
After thirty days of writing, you’ll be saying ‘Thank Goodness It’s Over!’ but you should definitely mark the occasion of surviving the month, whether you’ve reached the 50,000-word goal or not.

Our TGIO Party is scheduled for Sunday, 6 December, with final details to be confirmed. Be assured there will be plenty to celebrate.

http://www.leicestercasuals.org.uk/

HE BATES PRIZE GIVING EVENING: with author Martin Davies

Join us for a celebration of new writing talent as the winners of the 2009 H.E. Bates Short Story Competition are announced by head judge Martin Davies.

Martin Davies is the author of Richard and Judy favourite The Conjuror’s Bird. Join Martin at this special evening to hear him read extracts from the best competition entries and talk about his work including his new book The Unicorn Road.

FREE ENTRY – book early to avoid disappointment. Thursday 26th November 2009, 7pm at Northamptonshire Central Library, Abington Street, Northampton.

For further details and to reserve your place contact Kate Wilkinson on 01604 824155 or kwilkinson@northamptonshire.gov.uk.

POSTPONED: LINES FOR THE CITY

Sadly, this project is having to be postponed as the books have been lost at sea! The Post Office, in their infinite wisdom, have sent the books back to the publisher in Minneapolis (without actually leaving a delivery note or attempting to contact us).

So, all in all, we thought it was best to postpone the reading groups rather than attempt to fudge it without the books!

Apologies for the inconvenience – new dates will be posted as soon as we can rearrange them.

———————————————————————————————–

Lines for the City is a joint project of Nottingham City Libraries and the Nottingham Poetry Series, with the collaboration of Milkweed Editions (US). Between August and October 2009, Melissa Kwasny’s book of poems Reading Novalis in Montana will be available to loan from every Nottingham City Library, as well as Beeston and West Bridgford libraries, along with a list of suggestions, questions, and ideas for guided reading. During the last week of August three reading groups will meet to discuss the book in an informal but guided setting.

Who can participate?
Anyone! If you’re a student, teacher, reader, writer, thinker, or just someone who’d like to find out more about poetry, Lines for the City is for you. The book we’ve chosen, Reading Novalis in Montana, is probably best suited to readers over age 16.

How can I get involved?
Just borrow the book from your local library, pick it up from our official bookseller or order it online (http://www.milkweed.org or on Amazon). Then read it, think about it, maybe even re-read it, and come along to one (or all) of the reading groups and enjoy a discussion with other interesting and interested readers. The official Lines for the City bookseller is The Bookcase, Lowdham (0115 966 4143, www.thebookcase.co.uk).

But I’ve never read poetry before
Reading Novalis in Montana is poetry-that’s true-but the ideas and themes it deals with are ones you’re probably familiar with already: love, death, nature, aging. It also incorporates stories and myths that pervade our culture, seeing them in new ways and asking us to do the same.

Come along to a reading group
• Clifton Library: Monday 24th August, 2pm
• Wollaton Library: Tuesday 25th August, 7pm
• Nottingham Central Library: Thursday 27th August, 7pm

For further details …
Contact Kate Wilkinson, Literature Development Officer, on kate.wilkinson@nottinghamcity.gov.uk or 0115 9151170 (Wednesdays and Thursdays).

Leicester Casuals – April Fools

For anyone who wishes to take part in April Fools, we’re going to have weekly meetings on Sundays except on Easter Day, the second Sunday, which is when we’d normally have the meeting. As such, anyone who doesn’t want to come every week, but does want to come to the monthly meeting, we’ll have it on April 19th.

Sunday April 5th (April Fools meeting)
Sunday April 19th (Main meeting)
Sunday April 26th (April Fools meeting)

All at 2pm – 3:30pm

Coffee Republic
20-22 Granby Street
Leicester LE1 1DE
(upstairs round on the left)

The month’s challenge for April is this: There is an encounter between two people of different religions, or between someone who is religious and someone who is not. Write what happens, and their attitudes to each other. What do they say to each other? What to they keep to themselves?

If you’ve written something for the challenge, please feel free to bring it along and read it out, though of course you don’t have to if you don’t want to.

Leicester Casuals – March

Sunday, 8 March at 2.00pm
Coffee Republic,
20-22 Granby St,
Leicester LE1 1DE
 
The challenge for March is: Your character wants something very much. Write a scene in which they are trying to convince another character that they don’t want it. Bring along your scene for the challenge, or anything else you want to share. I bet there will also be some fun word games and discussions of hot chocolate.
 
Don’t forget to visit the website and join in the fun on the forum: www.leicestercasuals.org.uk

Advanced Creative Writing

Fridays 24th April – 3rd July (exc. Half-term) 10-12 noon at Hunsbury Library, Northampton. £100 for 10 sessions
This course will involve responding to stimuli material drawn from the arts and science, writing in class and sharing work and critique. There will be opportunities to share short extracts from longer pieces for those who are developing novels or poetry collections as work in progress. This class would suit those who have prior experience of attending writing classes or writers’ groups. For further information and booking please contact Judith Allnatt judithallnatt@btopenworld.com

Leicester Casuals – February Meeting

Sunday, 8 February at 2.00pm

Coffee Republic,
20-22 Granby St,
Leicester LE1 1DE

Leicester Casuals is a diverse group of writers of various ages and ability. We meet regularly in central Leicester – usually on the second Sunday of the month. Our writers participate in worldwide writing events, encourage each other, and intend to have fun with our writing.

If you are doing April Fools or NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), we usually have weekly write-ins during April and November.

We always welcome new members. Come along to a meeting or introduce yourself on the forum!

http://www.leicestercasuals.org.uk