Clapham launch of The Dowry Blade

Recordings of author Cherry Potts reading from The Dowry Blade, a lesbian epic fantasy of the strength and limitations of love and loyalty between friends, lovers, kin, strangers and enemies.

Our main character, Brede, arrives in the city, and finds it a threatening place

The obligatory scene in a tavern, which in the writing, which was done entirely for entertainment, discovered something important about a relatively minor character, and changed the course of the book…

An emotionally tense scene on a roof at night.

Thanks to Clapham Books for hosting. We may post some of the Q&A with a very chatty audience later, it’ll take a bit of editing!

 

Launching The Dowry Blade in Clapham

Our lovely friends at Clapham Books are hosting a publication day event for
The Dowry Blade our first adult novel, by Cherry Potts.

Join us at 

Clapham Books

26 The Pavement, Clapham Common, SW4 0JA

7:30 – 9pm on Thursday 25th February

for reading, signed copies of the book and discussion,

Free!

The Dowry Blade FRONT Cover final

The Dowry Blade is a lesbian epic fantasy of the strength and limitations of love and loyalty in a time of war and danger: between friends, lovers, kin, strangers– and enemies.

 

ArachneFest – the videos

Well we had a riotously good time at Clapham Books last Thursday. here are some edited highlights of the readings and a few photos.

Cherry Potts reads from Mosaic of Air

Nichol Wilmor reads from Weird Lies

Bobbie Darbyshire reads from Lovers’ Lies

Carrie Cohen reads on behalf of Rosalind Stopps from Stations

Phil Mulryne reads on behalf of Martin Pengelly from London Lies

Our next outing is this Saturday at Leeds Cross Cultural Book Fair

IMG_7376 IMG_7380 IMG_7381 IMG_7382

You are Invited to Arachnefest: Arachne Press’ First Birthday Party

We’ve been a bit arbitrary deciding on a date for the anniversary (it took a good six months of planning to get to the point of registering the company, but it was registered at the end of July 2012, and we do have an event planned, so let’s make it a party.

Join us at Clapham Books, 120 Clapham High Street, London SW4 7UH on THURSDAY 18th JULY 7pm, for cake and readings from all our books including the two due out in September.

London Lies: Martin Pengelly‘s Incurable Romantic Seeks Dirty Filthy Whore, read by Phil Mulryne.
Stations: Rosalind StoppsHow to Grow Old In Brockley read by Carrie Cohen.
Lovers’ Lies: Bobbie Darbyshire Something Missing
Mosaic of Air: Cherry Potts, Penelope Is No Longer Waiting
and
Weird Lies: Nichol Wilmor, An Account of Six Poisonings

July events (and the last one for June)

A few events to look forward to and to liven up a dull wet Friday.

lovers lies fish

Tomorrow, Saturday 30th June 11-6 we will have a stall at Crystal Palace Overground Festival, Westow Park SE19. We will be selling books, and signing them if anyone wants us to, and – depending on the ambient noise – maybe an impromptu reading…

BC-IllustratorArachne founder and Author Cherry Potts is reading at Brixton Book Jam on Monday 8th July at the Hootananny, 95 Effra Road, Brixton, SW2 IDF sometime after 7:30 and can also be caught singing in the chorus of Blackheath Halls Community Opera, Verdi’s Macbeth for most of the rest of that week.

Further readings to be had at
Southwark Arts Fair at Hays Galleria 1 Battle Bridge Lane, London SE1 2HP (right on the river)
Saturday 13th July 6-7pm

with readings from
London Lies: The Suitcase Rosalind Stopps
Stations: A Place of Departures Cherry Potts
Lovers’ Lies: For Your Ears Only Bartle Sawbridge
A threat at London Bridge Station … a tour guide who may be more than he seems …
and temporary deafness cured by art.

saf banner a4_2-001On the same day, 13th July, earlier in the afternoon, Arachne author Liam Hogan will be reading at the  OxJam Dalston Takeover launch party. The Party goes from 2pm -7pm but Liam is on at 4-4.15pm (so make sure you are there in plenty of time!) – that’s all happening at the Tipsy Bar 20 Stoke Newington Road N16 7XN

ARACHNEFEST a4 POSTER copyArachnefest at Clapham Books
Thursday 18th July 7pm.

We are celebrating Arachne’s first birthday with a reading at Clapham Books
120 Clapham High Street SW4 7UH

readings from all our books:

London Lies: Martin Pengelly‘s Incurable Romantic Seeks Dirty Filthy Whore read by Phil Mulryne
Stations Rosalind Stopps’ How to Grow Old in Brockley read by Carrie Cohen
Lovers’ Lies Bobbie Darbyshire Something Missing

and from our forthcoming books
Weird Lies Nichol Wilmor An Account of Six Poisonings
Mosaic of Air Cherry Potts Penelope is No Longer Waiting

arachne logo white on black bus card sax2On Saturday 27th July we will be at Leeds Book Fair 
St Johns Shopping Centre, Merrion Street, Leeds, LS2 8LQ
with a stall, and readings (times to be confirmed) from
Lovers’ Lies – This isn’t Heat by Richard Smyth and Mirror by Cherry Potts,
and from Stations – Morning Sunshine by Louise Swingler.

Clapham Books Host Lovers’ Lies Reading

Our Friends at Clapham Books have invited us back to read for them again, Lovers’ Lies this time.

lovers lies fishCome and hear tales of love in all its complexities and excitement and buy something more original than that red rose for your beloved for Valentine’s day!

Stories of love suppressed, love hoped for and love well lived – and what went wrong in the Garden of Eden.

Wednesday 6th February 7.30-9.30

Clapham Books 120 Clapham High Street SW4 7UH

Readings from stories by Cherry Potts, Peter Higgins, Nathan Good, and Bobbie Darbyshire

Last Week’s Readings

Last week marked the start of a busy time for Arachne Press, with the Launch of Stations only days away, we did a pre-publication reading at Clapham books on Wednesday.

Peter Cooper in full flow as Inspector Bucket copyright Cherry Potts 2012

This was my first chance to hear these stories read aloud by their authors and it was an interesting experience. I got so engrossed in Rosalind Stopps’ How to Grow Old in Brockley how to grow old in brockley snippet

I forgot to take any pictures – sorry Rosalind!

Peter Cooper‘s Inspector Bucket (stolen from Dickens but taking on an afterlife of his own) foiled thieves on a train, with Peter very much getting into it and doing multiple voices.

Peter Cooper Inspector Bucket snippet

Wendy Gill‘s Moving Mike also got multiple voices care of the eponymous Mike turning up to lend a hand. Moving Mike snippet

Wendy Gill (and Mike) reading ‘Moving Mike’ copyright Cherry Potts 2012

Jacqueline Downs held us spellbound with her eerie tale of cinephiles in Crystal Palace She Didn’t Believe in Ghosts,

She Didn’t Believe in Ghosts snippet

and I read Anna Fodorova’s No Prob at Canada Water, pronouncing Kochanie about eight different ways, (it should be Ko’han’ye) she says she’ll do it herself next time!

No Prob at Canada Water snippet

Jacqueline Downs reading at Clapham copyright Cherry Potts 2012

Then Thursday it was up to Waterstones on Oxford Street for a showcasing of London Lies.

A number of our authors couldn’t be with us, so we had a mix of actors and authors.

Emily Pedder‘s Are We Nearly There Yet? (Set in Selfridges – just across the road – in the run up to Christmas) read for us once again by the multi-talented Danielle Fenemore. (Her loud-drunk-in-a-shop-just-before-Christmas was extremely convincing!).

Still in the reading-on-behalf-of vein we had Katy Darby reading an extract from the excellent East End cautionary tale Thieves We Were from Simon Hodgson (who is based in San Francisco so unable to join us) and me reading a section of the delightful and witty portmanteau love story Made for Each Other by Nichol Wilmor (who was stuck the wrong side of a flood in Somerset).

Reading their own work we had Joan Taylor-Rowan with Renewal, a touching story of death on the railways and realising there’s more to life than playing safe, David Bausor exploring the British love of sausages and Royals with O Happy Day, and Liam Hogan giving us a single sentence from the hilarious Rat, followed by an extended and dramatic segment of Palio, in which some bankers are played at their own game.

Thanks to everyone who came along to make both evenings a success (and bought books!), and to the staff at Clapham Books and Waterstones for making us so welcome (and in the case of Waterstones running to the pub for more wine glasses!).

Waterstones have a small stock of signed copies of London Lies at the front of the shop, so pick one up for a loved one for Christmas!

Stations is now in the shops, and you can come and get a signed copy from us at either of this week’s readings: Canvas & Cream (nearest Overground Forest Hill) on Wednesday at 7pm, or Deptford Lounge (nearest Overground New Cross) on Thursday at 7pm.

Or you can come to the Launch! Brunel Museum, Sunday 2nd December, 12:30-14:30

© Arachne Press 2012

Reading tonight – Stations

Aside

The first of our pre-publication readings of Stations 7.30 tonight @ClaphamBooks.

Stations reading at Clapham Books

Stations is settling into a rhythm of readings with the latest booking at
Clapham Books
120 Clapham High Street
London, SW4 7UH
on Wednesday 21st November 2012. 7.30

Featured writers

Peter Cooper (Highbury & Islington)
Anna Fodorova (Canada Water) read by Cherry Potts
Rosalind Stopps  (Norwood Junction)
Wendy Gill (Dalston)
Jacqueline Downs (Crystal Palace)

Stories from many writers linked by the Overground line. Retired Policemen investigate train based crime, mothers cut the apron-strings, Students play hookey, oppressed workers fight back against bullying, and your local museum holds more than meets the eye…

Clapham Books: Arachne Authors Read from London Lies

Clapham Books Window display

We had a very respectable crowd for Clapham Books (a lovely bookshop) last Thursday – not sure how much this was down to the draw of Katy Darby’s promised cakes, which were delicious! A few clips of the readings below, plus some photos.

Alan McCormick The Runner clip

Cherry Potts Leaving clip

Joan Taylor-Rowan Renewal clip

Katy Darby Keep Calm and Carry On clip

Joan Taylor-Rowan reading Renewal, from London Lies