Arachne 10th Anniversary – the Authors – a short series part 5

A reminder that this anniversary festival is all the work of our authors, from making suggestions as to what they would want to attend, to putting together the events. We just promote and host!

I thought it would be useful to give you all a bit more detail about the authors who have put together our amazing, eclectic anniversary events.

For our fourth week we have events on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and  Sunday (two events)

Tuesday Jan 24, 2023 6pm The Business of writing– The Society of Authors This is very kindly being run for us, by two of the coordinators of the  Society of Authors Poetry & Spoken Word group: Johanna Clarke and Mathilde Zeeman

Johanna Clarke has been an advisor at the SoA since October 2021. She advises writers on publishing contracts and issues, and works closely on their outreach programme. Johanna is one of the coordinators of the SoA’s Poetry and Spoken Word Group.

Mathilde Zeeman joined the SoA in 2022. She recently transferred from the Membership team to the Advisory team where she will continue her work advising writers on publishing issues, and is a coordinator of the SoA’s Poetry and Spoken Word Group.

[not part of the festival, but on Wednesday 25th, 7.30pm Jeremy Dixon is reading from his award winning poetry collection, A Voice Coming from Then at Verbatim, at the Poetry Pharmacy in Bishops Castle, Shropshire.]

Thursday Jan 26, 2023 7pm The Empire Writes Back: “Space, place and belonging” is being run by Nikita Aashi Chadha 

Nikita is a writer, poet and social commentator who advocates for an intersectional lens and approach to be utilised – she is committed to spotlighting the ‘other’, those who are chronically unheard and underrepresented within society. Her poetry focuses on the experiences of the South Asian diaspora, mental health and identity. Nikita’s poem Jallianwalla Bagh appears in our anthology Where We Find Ourselves, and she chaired our Writing the Diaspora panel. Nikita is also a patient voice advocate, lead facilitator and speaker for Cysters (a non-profit that specialises in supporting marginalised people with reproductive and mental health problems. Instagram: @nikkaayyy_c @didacticdiaspora @cystersgroup

Friday Jan 27, 2023 6.30pm Using family history/photos as inspiration for poetry with Seni Seneviratne

Seni was born and raised in Leeds, of English and Sri Lankan heritage. Published by Peepal Tree Press – Wild Cinnamon and Winter Skin (2007), The Heart of It (2012), Unknown Soldier (2019). She is a fellow of the Complete Works programme for diversity and quality in British Poetry and has collaborated with film-makers, visual artists, musicians and digital artists. She is one of ten commissioned writers on the Colonial Countryside Project: National Trust Houses Reinterpreted. She is currently co-editing a Bloodaxe anthology of post-independence Tamil, Sinhala and English poetry and working on her fourth collection. She lives in Derbyshire and works as a freelance writer. Arachne published Seni’s poem,Triptychs Without Borders, in our Global Majority anthology, Where We Find Ourselves, and Seni took part in our writing the Diaspora panel.

Sunday Jan 29, 2023 11am  Writing About Mental Health in YA fiction: Cormorants & #cornishgothic with Clare Owen

After working as an actor and arts administrator in London, Clare married a boat builder and moved to Cornwall. She promptly had three children and set up an improvised theatre company, re-enacting the stories of their audiences around the county. More recently she has co-written and performed with the all women ensemble, ‘Riot of the Freelance Mind’ and she regularly reads her short fiction at spoken word events and local festivals. Her first YA novel Zed and the Cormorants, was published by Arachne Press in April 2021 and is the winner of the Holyer An Gof YA prize and the Ann Trevenen Jenkin cup. Clare also had a story in our anthology, An Outbreak of Peace, both the short story and the novel explore various aspects of mental health through the lens of a young adult protaganist, and the way the natural world can help.

Sunday Jan 29, 2023 3pm  Marketing on a Tight Budget for Writers with Saira Aspinall

Saira is our marketing expert. What she can achieve with no budget and in only one day a week is positively miraculous, you really want to hear what she has to say!

Arachne Press at Lambeth Readers and Writers Festival

We’re pleased to announce that we will be at Lambeth Readers and Writers Festival on Tuesday 17 May with a panel event based on Where We Find Ourselves: Poems and Stories of Maps and Mapping from UK Writers of the Global Majority.

Join us at Clapham Library for readings and a Q & A discussion with:

Ngoma Bishop

Marina Sánchez

Nikita Chadha

Farhana Khalique

Rick Dove

Emily Abdeni-Holman

L Kiew

The event is free, but ticketed.  Book your tickets here.

You will be able to buy a copy of Where We Find Ourselves at the event, or you can buy one from our webshop now.

Anniversary party plans and survey

Still thinking about our 10th Anniversary and how to celebrate…

We are planning a festival-come-party/celebration-come-conference type thing [FUNDING PERMITTING] which will include panel discussions, workshops and OF COURSE, readings from all our books. We’d like our authors, readers and collaborators to contribute ideas on this so there are a rash of surveys below, to help us choose the lineup. Vote for your favourite poem or story in each of the books. There is a prize draw of a selection of books (of your choice!) as well, if you give us an email address to communicate with you.

story/poem mix anthologies survey
Stories only survey
poems only survey

Solstice Shorts Festival survey This one is slightly different, as it will also lead to a ‘best of’ ebook to replace this year’s festival, so you get more than one vote. With the 10th Anniversary festival we can’t manage both, and our ambitious plan for the next Solstice Shorts required a weekend, so 2024 it is! There is also going to be a competition to choose one additional story and poem to add to the ebook.

We will deal with forthcoming books separately, and our YA books will get a separate showcase, probably in the morning.

Julian is disappointed that he does not get a vote.

 

 

 

Dusk Launch video Calling Them In

Poet Kelly Davis reads her poem, Calling Them In at the launch 2017 Solstice Shorts Festival anthology DUSK at Stephen Lawrence Gallery, Greenwich.

Arachne Press does Brockley Max

Brockley Max is coming – and we are getting involved.

2nd June 7pm at the Talbot Pub in Brockley SE4 1QG, Arachne authors Bartle Sawbridge, Rosalind Stopps  and Cherry Potts join other writers from WooA (Writers of Our Age), Neil Lawrence, Anna Somerset and Hilary Dunn for Urban Myths. (the link says 7-7.30 that means 7 for 7.30, we aim to be there at least 2 hours.

You can join in with 100 words of your own urban myth, and get stuck in with the epic writing relay, which is definitely best experienced slightly sozzled.

On Sunday 4th June at 3.30, we join Vocal Chords Choir (who have supported Solstice Shorts Festival a couple of times) at their Songs of Protest gig at St Hilda’s Church SE23 1NL when actors Silas Hawkins and Carrie Cohen will read some of the poems from Liberty Tales to complement the songs.

Vocal Chords Sing Songs of Protest 4th May

© Ben Mueller-Brown benhasphotos.wordpress.com

Our final drop-in session is at Art In The Park Story-telling tent on Hilly Fields, on Saturday 10th June at 2.30, when Arachne stalwart Katy Darby will be reading our forthcoming younger children’s book, The Old Woman From Friuli by Ghillian Potts which is in the shops 6th June – you can buy direct from us NOW post free.

TLW LEXiCON

https://i0.wp.com/tlwlexicon.com/images/banners/topheader.jpg?resize=540%2C60Arachne Press is taking part in TLW LEXiCON in Faversham on 15th & 16th March 2014, with readings from Cherry Potts, Katy Darby and Bartle Sawbridge, and a panel discussion from Katy and Cherry about the collaboration between Arachne Press and Liars’ League. Katy is even doing something about writing historical novels. We will also have a stall so that the good folk of Kent can buy our lovely books!

Local Festivals in June

Arachne Press will be selling (and signing) books on stalls at two local festivals:

Hilly Fields Midsummer Fayre Saturday 22nd June 2013 12-5 pm  Hilly Fields SE4. (We go to this every year – this year is the first time as contributors rather than consumers.)

Crystal Palace Overground Festival Saturday 29th June Westow Park Upper Norwood SE19 11-6 (ish)

Fun days out – come and join us!

Arachne Press at Branching Out LSE Space for Thought Literature Festival 2013

LiteraryFestivalBannerLSE Space for Thought Festival 2013: Branching Out runs from Tuesday 26th until Saturday 2nd March, and everything is FREE (Including a workshop from Katy Darby on Saturday morning)!

On Saturday 2nd March Arachne Press will be providing entertainment in the foyer between the main events in the auditorium. We are going for a Liars’ League style with readings by actors, and have chosen stories from all three books to  fit the themes of the other events. Each section will be introduced by a very brief burst of (equally appropriate) song from our friends Summer All Year Long to draw attention!

Literary-fes12.30-1 (oral tradition/ human rights) Frog (Emily CleaverLondon Lies) read by Will Everett and Speaking in Tongues (Rebecca GouldLovers’ Lies) read by Sophie Morris-Sheppard

2.30-3    (Conflict/poetry/art/politics) Mirror (Cherry PottsLovers’ Lies) read by Will Everett and Rich & Strange –extract (Bartle Sawbridge – Stations) read by Greg Page.

4.30-5 (food fashions/landscape/nature) Monsieur Fromage (Rosalind StoppsLovers’ Lies), read by Jo Widdowson Birdland (Joan Taylor-RowanStations) read by Gloria Sanders

6.30-7 (art curating/ comedy) Girl with Palmettes (Martin PengellyLondon Lies) read by Lisa Rose  Lenny Bolton Changes Trains (Rob WaltonStations) read by Ray Newe