Fforest Nature Writing Retreat 20th-24th March 2019

It’s very exciting to be able to announce that I’ll be one of the tutors on this cracking-looking retreat in March next year. The other tutors and guests are Richard King, Melissa Harrison and Abi Andrews, all equally brilliant. And the location here is seriously great, a very special place.

Check them out here…

https://www.coldatnight.co.uk/

And the writing retreat info is all here…

https://www.coldatnight.co.uk/writers-retreat/

Hopefully see a few of you there for walking, birds, rivers, poems, stories and songs.

New Poem on Five Dials

I'm very happy to have a new poem in the latest issue of Five Dials magazine which, should you want to, you can read here.

If you don't subscribe to this cracking magazine yet, you seriously should.

Events

A couple of forthcoming events below. Two killer line-ups...

Where Are We Now?

I can't wait to be part of this contribution to the celebration of Hull's summer as UK City of Culture, put together by the good people behind Neu! Reekie! with the aid of Caught by the River. It's a wonderful bill, and I'm honoured to be involved.

Full details here.

Havergey by John Burnside

I wrote a short review of one of John Burnside's many new books (all no doubt brilliant, the poems certainly are) for Caught by the River, should anyone fancy reading it...

http://www.caughtbytheriver.net/2017/04/19/havergey-john-burnside-little-toller-will-burns-review/

Ty Newydd poetry course with Hollie McNish and Luke Wright

I'm well pleased to be teaching alongside the wonderful Hollie McNish on this residential course at the Ty Newedd Writing Centre in November. The course will be aimed at encouraging enjoyment of both writing and reading your poems. We will also have a guest reading from Luke Wright on one of the evenings. This will be a week spent in fine surroundings and fine company, with lots to learn and enjoy as we go.

Full details of the course here.

Battle of Ideas

I'll be appearing on a panel at The Barbican, as part of 2016's Battle of Ideas, to discuss various notions of independent and counter culture, the impact of Rough Trade on our sense of these things and, hopefully making a few contentious statements regarding the commodification of all this, using our seemingly insatiable thirst for nostalgia. Or something.

Anyway, check out the rest of the panel... there will be some seriously good stuff discussed, I'm sure. 

http://www.battleofideas.org.uk/2016/session/12112#.V_4LnvArLct

Crossing Border

Well pleased to be appearing at this festival in November.

That's a seriously good line-up, can't wait...

http://crossingborder.nl/programma/

Ticket info here.

No Map Could Show Them review

Another good book I had the privilege of being asked to review for Caught by the River, this time Helen Mort's latest.

Read the review here.

Living in the World as If It Were Home review

I reviewed this wonderful, strange book, now published over here for the first time by the equally wonderful Corbel Stone Press, for Caught by the River, and you can read it here.