Huddersfield Literature Festival PechaKucha & Writing for Radio Workshop

I thought my followers may be interest in the following event and workshop as part of HLF 2014:

If you have never experienced PechaKucha before, you're in for a treat.

If you have experienced PechaKucha before, you're still in for a treat!

On Tuesday 11 March at 7pm, HLF2014 takes over PechaKucha Night

Moving, hilarious, thought provoking – an informal and fun evening of stories on the festival theme of ‘Remembrance’. Each presenter tells their story using a rapid pace presentation format of 20 slides, which automatically move on after 20 seconds.

Café Ollo, Media Centre, 7 Northumberland Street, Huddersfield HD1 1RL

Free, but booking required: http://pknhudds10.eventbrite.co.uk

No age guidance (under 18s should be accompanied by an adult)

Would you like the chance to shine?

We are looking for five more people to take part as presenters. Perhaps you are an aspiring author or simply someone with a story to tell - either way, we'd love to invite you to take part. Email huddlitfest@gmail.com or call our Festival Director Michelle on 01484 430 228 for more information.

Now booking: Writing for Radio workshop with Michael Stewart.

Saturday 15 March, 12-3pm, University of Huddersfield, £10 (£5 conc).

England isn’t the best place to be if you are an aspiring scriptwriter. Television used to be a hotbed of writing talent but these days it rarely ventures from its staple of frocks, cops and docs. There is virtually no film industry now to speak of. But writing for radio offers aspiring scriptwriters real opportunities.

Michael Stewart won the BBC Alfred Bradley Bursary Award in 2003 and has been writing for radio ever since. This is an introductory workshop looking into the art, business and craft of radio writing.

Limited numbers so please book early to avoid disappointment.

Book here

Free on-line writing course starting 28 April

Thanks to my fellow blogger Sally Jenkins for the following information:

A Free Writing Course and Other Things

Do you fancy a free 'Start Writing Fiction' course?
The Open University are running an eight week course, three hours per week starting on the 28th April. It's all on-line and the blurb says, "This practical, hands-on course aims to help you to get started with your own fiction writing, focusing on the central skill of creating characters."

The full details are here. The course is part of the FutureLearn programme which offers lots more free on-line courses in all sorts of subjects.

And talking of courses, a fellow member of Lichfield and District Writers, David Gough, is running a 'Photography for Writers' course at Weetwood Hall in Leeds  from April 11th to 13th, as part of the 'Relax and Write' 2014 programme. We all know how important it is to offer photographs as part of an article submission package and this is the course to help you take those photographs and thus, hopefully, sell more articles (by the way, I stayed at Weetwood Hall last October and the accommodation is lovely).

If you like filling your Kindle with free and discounted e-books, take a look at Debbie Young's Facebook group, Debbie Young's Kindle-loving Friends. If you like what you see, drop her a message to join the group and be notified of the latest offers - or maybe even promote your own Free Days or Countdown Deals.

Ilkley Literature Festival upcoming events

Here is the latest news on the Ilkley Literature Festival:

Registered Charity No: 501801

 

Latest News from Ilkley Literature Festival   2014 is going to be a busy and exciting year for the Festival team. At the start of February we launch our new Saturday morning groups for children, Story Explorers and Story Wizards.  We'll be running another of our popular Young People's Club Nights in February.  Find out what happened in our focus groups in November. Make a note of the dates for our first Poetry in the City weekend. Plus there are some great literature related events in Ilkley that you might be interested in!

 

Thank you   Friends, volunteers and regular Festival attenders joined us in November for a series of focus groups, to tell us what made the Festival special for them and to help us plan new ways of attracting donations and support.   You told us that you loved:   - the variety and breadth of the programme - being surprised and inspired by quirky smaller events - enjoying the intimate and friendly atmosphere - the buzz which the Festival brings to Ilkley   We were astonished to find that many people had no idea that the Festival was a registered charity!   You told us that you would like more opportunities in the rest of the year to come together around a love of books.   Our thanks to all who participated, for the valuable ideas and insights they have contributed. We hope that in the coming weeks and months you will recognise many of your suggestions as we start to put them into practice!

 

Hearts Club Night for age 12 to 17   We are looking for young bands, singer songwriters, comedians and performers to take part in our Hearts Club Night coming up on Friday 14 February at Otley Courthouse.   There will be prizes for the best performances on the night – one will be decided by a guest judge and the other will be voted for by the audience so it is well worth taking part!   Please tell any interested young people to email: info@ilkleyliteraturefestival.org.uk to book a performance slot.    Find out more.

 

Poetry in the City   We can now confirm that our first Poetry in the City weekend will take place in Bradford from Friday 20 to Sunday 22 June 2014.   We'll be bringing a wealth of leading poets to town and we've just welcomed two freelance staff to the team to coordinate the event.   You may remember Glenis Burgess from the Stanza Stones project, where she was Project Manager. And we're delighted to be working with Jane Bradley, editor of For Books' Sake, again. Jane first worked with us as a young graduate in 2006, when she coordinated the Fringe Festival.   We have partnered up with the World Curry Festival for this innovative poetry feast, which will be based in City Park in central Bradford. Make sure you don't miss it!

 

Events in Ilkley you might like...   Don't forget to catch the literature inspired films at Ilkley's first film festival. We're looking forward to the film adaptation of Booker Prize-winning 'The Sea' and of course Ilkley classic 'A Private Function'. Visit the Ilkley Film Festival website.   And don't miss Forward prize shortlisted poet Rebecca Goss who will be visiting the Grove Bookshop and reading from her collection, Her Birth, on Thursday 20 February.  Contact the Grove Bookshop for tickets.

 

Put the 2014 Festival dates in your diary! Friday 3 - Sunday 19 October 2014   More than 250 events across 20 venues, over 17 days! For further information go to www.ilkleyliteraturefestival.org.uk

 

Some Girl I Used To Know Theatre review

My husband and I went to see the 2pm performance of the new Denise Van Outen musical play at the West Yorkshire Playhouse.  Written by Terry Ronald and Denise Van Outen, Van Outen stars as Stephanie Canworth, a beautiful, successful, lingerie entrepreneur and media darling who appears to have it all.  One Facebook poke from Sean, an old flame, brings all the memories flooding back and forces her to confront the problems she is having in her marriage to 'supportive' but baby ready, Paul.

The play features a lovely Steve Anderson remix tape of songs from the 80s and 90s, including Soft Cell, Sonia, Thompson Twins and Culture Club, perfect for nostalgia and the whole play takes place in a Morgan Large posh hotel room (Michael Howcroft's slick production is complete with a ceiling festooned with 80s memorabilia).  For what is essentially a monologue, Van Outen holds the audience well with a mix of emotions and cleverly chosen songs.  Known for her performance on Broadway and the West End, Van Outen can certainly sing and the tunes are altered to bring out more of a musical vibe.

There were some funny lines and the mood lighting helped to 'transport' the audience back to some of her memories, but for me the ending to her relationship with 'shaggable Sean' was trite.  Yes, the plot was light, but enjoyable none-the-less.

#SomeGirlIUsedToKnow      #WestYorkshirePlayhouse    #DeniseVanOuten

Writers and Artists' Short Story competition, deadline 15 February 2014

There is still time to enter the W&A short story competition (deadline 15 February), please find the details below, plus information on other courses and coes:

Calling all short story writers! Midnight on 15 February sees the close of our annual short story competition. To be in with a chance of winning a cash prize of £500 and a place on an Arvon writing course of your choice, all you have to do is enter a short story (for adults) of no more than 2,000 words on the theme of 'the visit'. For more information, view our competition page here.

 

 

Book a residential writing course with Arvon Arvon's 2014 programme of residential creative writing courses is now open for booking, with 99 weeks across a range of genres, such Poetry, Fiction, Playwriting, Non-Fiction and Songwriting, and Starting to Write for new writers. Courses take place in four beautiful countryside locations across the UK, offering a mix of group workshops, individual tutorials, and time and space to write. They are led by two published authors; tutors this year include Mark Haddon, Malorie Blackman, Willy Russell and Sinéad Morrissey. Visit www.arvon.org for full listings and more information on financial grants (which helped more than 90% of writers who applied last year).

 

 

Author interview – Melissa Harrison Read our fantastic interview with Clay author Melissa Harrison, who discusses the benefits of using social media and the struggle of writing the second novel.

 

 

In case you missed it… How much money do you think you can make as a ‘proper published author’? How many copies do you think you’d sell if you were a bestselling poet? Try Cressida Downing’s quick sales figures quiz for some eye-opening answers.

 

And here’s another competition that might be of interest, too! The Manchester Writing for Children Prize 2014, judged by Mandy Coe (pictured here), Imtiaz Dharker and Philip Gross, invites the submission of a portfolio of poetry to be read by children within the age group of 5 to 12. For more information on prizes and entry deadlines click here.

New Writing North events 12 Feb - 27 Feb 2014

Here are a few extra events detailed in the New Writing North Newsletter:

The Listening Post

Ian McMillan and Tony Husband: The Tale of Walter the Pencil Man

Lit & Phil, Newcastle: Wednesday 12 February, Time TBC

Ian McMillan and Tony Husband have worked together for many years and their latest collaboration tells the sombre story of a young lad from a Yorkshire pit village caught up in the horrors of the First World War who records what he sees with a pencil and paper. Ian McMillan presents The Verb on Radio 3, and appears regularly on BBC Breakfast. Cartoonist Tony Husband draws The Yobs in Private Eye and has worked for the Times, the Spectator and Punch. Tickets: £5/£3. For more information, see www.litandphil.org.uk/events.shtml.

Polari: The Lost Language of Gay Men

City Library, Newcastle: 15 February, 2.30pm-4pm

Polari was a secret language used mainly by gay men, female impersonators and others from the 1930s to the 1970s, mostly (but not exclusively) in London. Today the need for a secret language has all but disappeared. Join Professor Paul Baker and find out why Polari has become the lost language of gay men. Tickets: free. To register go to the Newcastle City Library Eventbrite page.

Tol-Con: North East Tolkien Convention

Gateshead Central Library: Tuesday 18 February, 6pm-9pm (screening) & Saturday 22 February, 10am-4pm (convention)

A convention dedicated to all things related to Middle Earth. Enjoy a screening of The Hobbit on Tuesday evening and then join them to celebrate Middle Earth on Saturday. Learn to write runes or speak Elvish, take part in quizzes and competitions, listen to a Tolkien storyteller and take part in a cosplay contest. Tickets: £3.50. For more information, see www.asaplive.com/whats-on/events/tol-con-tolkien-convention.

Crime Writers in Conversation

Northern Stage, Newcastle: 20 February, 7.15pm

Three women writers of crime fiction come together to discuss the tools of their trade. Val McDermid, who has sold over 10 million copies of her 26 crime novels, will be talking to Scottish crime writer Denise Mina (Gods and Beasts) and Creasey Dagger winner Louise Welsh (The Cutting Room). Tickets: £6 (£4 concs/ £2 for Newcastle University students). Book tickets at the NCLA webstore. For further details contact Melanie Birch at Melanie.Birch@ncl.ac.uk or 0191 208 7619.

Valerie Laws: The Operator

The Lit and Phil, Newcastle: Monday 24 February, 7pm

Valerie Laws’ debut crime novel The Rotting Spot won a Northern Promise Award and was a Read Regional choice. Now the author launches the sequel, The Operator, a medical-themed thriller, published by Red Squirrel Press. For more information, see www.litandphil.org.uk/events.shtml.

Tyne by Michael Chaplin

Customs House, South Shields: 26 February-1 March, 2.30pm (Thurs and Sat) & 7.45pm

Journeying in time and space along the banks of the river, Tyne maps the epic history, atmosphere and soul of this mighty river in story, music and images. Originally commissioned as part of Live Theatre’s 40th birthday celebrations, the play dramatises extracts from Michael Chaplin’s book Tyne View, woven together with stories from Tom Hadaway, Julia Darling, Alan Plater and Sid Chaplin. Tickets: £13.50/£12.50. To book go to www.customshouse.co.uk/whats-on/Theatre/1377/tyne.

Frank Cottrell Boyce: What’s in Your Head?


Curtis Auditorium, Newcastle University: 27 February, 5.30pm

This year’s Fickling Lecture is delivered by novelist and screenwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce, who also wrote the 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony. Find out what’s in the head of this Carnegie Medal-winning author. Tickets: free, allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, see www.ncl.ac.uk/ncla/.