Hiatus winners

We’ve counted the votes, disqualified the people voting for their own work (tsk, tsk, did you think we wouldn’t check??) and can now announce that (subject to contract) the folowing poems and stories that will join this year’s winners,  in the Solstice Shorts 2022 ‘best of’ ebook Hiatus, are:

After Before by Mandy Macdonald
After Sun, Before the Stars by Jane Aldous
Against Daylight Saving by Gabriel Noel (This year’s competition winner)
At the Hotel de la Lune by Sarah James
Beach Clean by Ness Owen
Fire at Midday by Susan Cartwright-Smith
Fisherman’s Daughter by Claire Booker
In Between Dog by Pippa Gladhill
Jackdaw by Elaine Hughes
Mock Posh & Tatters by Moira Quinn
Pause by Karen Pierce (This year’s competition winner)
Rewilding by Jackie Taylor
Sir Thomas Wyatt’s Catby Elinor Brooks
Stone Baby by Sarah Evans
The Surgeon’s Mate by Maria Kyle
Volunteer by Jane McLaughlin
Wednesday Afternoon by David Mathews
What He Doesn’t Know by Frances Gapper
Yes, Twilight by Math Jones

Where there was a dead heat (which happened several times) I’ve included both. We’ll announce the winner of the prize draw shortly – going to experiment with the cat doing the draw…

Elinor Brooks: Sir Thomas Wyatt’s Cat

Poet Elinor Brooks introduces her poem Sir Thomas Wyatt’s Cat written especially for Solstice Shorts Festival, Tymes goe by Turnes.The festival is online this year, 21st December 2020 8pm BST Tickets are on sale now (donation: suggestion £5) on eventbrite

you can pre-order the book direct from our webshop and get a free ticket, or ticket holders paying at least £5, get the book half price if ordered by 8am the morning after the festival.

Arachneversary – Vindication

Vindication is an anthology with a difference, only six poets, with between six and ten poems each. In this video, celebrating eight years of Arachne Press, all but one of the poets get together to talk poetry, women and many other things. Complete with readings. We enjoyed outselves so much we are thinking of doing this regularly!

 

You can buy Vindication from our Webshop. If you want the august discount be quick! add ARACHNEVERSARY at the checkout.

Arachneversary – Noon

A flash of inspiration in the winter dark… the 5th Solstice Shorts Festival, Noon, took place at noon, on 21st December 2018 in 5 towns across England Wales and Scotland.
Cherry Potts (and briefly, Jane Aldous) talk about the idea, the organisation and the stories poems and songs that sparked up the day.

You can buy the book from our Webshop

And throughout August, to celebrate our Eighth anniversary, if you add the code ARACHNEVERSARY at the checkout you’ll get a discount – or you can bulk buy the series with a bigger saving – check the special offers tag.

 

Solstice Shorts line up: Aberdeen

Aberdeen

Friday 21 December 2018 • 12 noon
Blackwell’s University Bookshop • 99 High Street • ABERDEEN • AB24 3EN

Admission free

Moon Jellyfish
Poem by Ness Owen read by Marka Rifat

On the First Calculation of the Circumference of the Earth
Poem by Alison Gerhard read by Haworth Hodgkinson

Pocket Watch
Poem written and read by Catriona Yule

High Noon
Story written and read by Marka Rifat

Noon Talk
Poem by Graham Burchell read by Haworth Hodgkinson

Sun Beats over New Orleans
Poem by Natalie Gasper read by Catriona Yule

Arthur Streeton Advises his Students
Poem by Mandy Macdonald read by Marka Rifat

Mother Hand
Story by Karen Ankers read by Catriona Yule

Unleashed
Poem by Paul Foy read by Marka Rifat

An Autumn Noon
Poem by Ian Grosz read by Haworth Hodgkinson

I am not Beautiful at Noon
Poem by Elinor Brooks read by Catriona Yule

The poems and stories will be interspersed with intuitive music in response to the Solstice Mode from Dundee Ambient, Part 1: Winter Solstice by Haworth Hodgkinson, played by the ensemble Intuitive Music Aberdeen.

Performers

Readers

Marka Rifat
Catriona Yule
Haworth Hodgkinson

Musicians

Mandy Macdonald (melodica)
Colin Edwards (bowed psaltery)
Haworth Hodgkinson (melodica, recorder, percussion and fixed media)

 

Solstice Shorts Line up for Carlisle

Carlisle

NOON – Carlisle The Old Firestation

Poems
After Hours, Stuart McKenzie
An Autumn Noon, Ian Grosz
Arthur Streeton Advises his Students, Mandy Macdonald
By the Obelisk Sundial Drummond Castle, Jane Aldous
Farewell My Father, Anne Elizabeth Bevan
Fire at Midday, Susan Cartwright-Smith
I am not Beautiful at Noon, Elinor Brooks
Mad Dogs and Englishmen, Laila Sumpton
Moon Jellyfish, Ness Owen
Noon Son, Alison Lock
Noon Talk, Graham Burchell
Still No Name, Marika Josef
Sun Beats over New Orleans, Natalie Gasper
Unleashed, Paul Foy

Stories

#Noon, Su Yin Yap
Mother And Child, Barbara Renel
Noon Child Unknown, Diana Powell
On Kings And Falling, Roppotucha Greenberg
Up On The Roof, Lily Peters

Performers

Barbara Renel and Susan Cartwright-Smith will read their own work and Alex Morrison, Becca Roberts, Esther Ridgway and Owain Lewis will read the work of writers who can’t get there.

 

 

Solstice Shorts line up for London

Our London line up:

 Stories

A Vampire at Noon, Patience Mackarness
High Noon, Marka Rifat
Toast Crumbs, Karen Boissonneault-Gauthier
Under the L, Liam Hogan

Poems
An Autumn Noon, Ian Grosz
Arthur Streeton Advises his Students, Mandy Macdonald
I am not Beautiful at Noon, Elinor Brooks
Mad Dogs and English Men, Laila Sumpton
Noon Son, Alison Lock
Precarious, Michelle Penn
Still No Name, Marika Josef

FREE TICKETS from Eventbrite

Performers Marika Josef and Michelle Penn will read their  own poems, and the excellent Carrie Cohen and Grace Cookey-Gam will be helping us out with work by authors who can’t be there in person.

Music will be provided by regular Solstice collaborators Ian Kennedy and Sarah Lloyd.

Happy National Poetry Day 2018!

To celebrate National Poetry Day, here are some more poems from the Vindication Launch on September 26th.

(you can buy the book direct from us, or from your favourite bookshop

Carrie Cohen reading Sarah Lawson‘s Driving up to Renfrew

 

Anne Macaulay reading the title poem, Vindication

 

Carrie Cohen reading Sarah JamesWaking Woman

 

Elinor Brooks reads Consulto et Audacter

 

Adrienne Silcock reads Bees

More from Vindication Launch

Elinor Brooks reads Mathew Trewella and the Mermaid of Zennor

Anne Macaulay reads part of Identification

Happy Publication Day, Vindication

It’s publication day, and here are some of the readings from  last night’s launch at the Poetry Cafe

 

 

Adrienne Silcock reading Drought, Winter 1929

 

Carrie Cohen reading Sarah Lawson’s Leda

 

Anne Macaulay reading two flamenco inspired poems, Traje de Lunares and Palmas Return

 

Carrie Cohen reading Sarah James’ Ye Olde Tavern

 

Elinor Brooks What Country, Friends…