I've just compiled the feedback from the two Stroll, Chat, Scribble events I ran for this year's Brighter Living Fair in Wandsworth, and I'm feeling a rather chuffed. It's very gratifying to realise that what I set out to deliver pretty much hit the mark. Each session began with a stroll around nearby streets for …
Tag: poetry workshop
three magical workshops
I had the pleasure of leading three magical poetry workshops for young adults earlier this month, as part of the Heritage Open Days Festival. These were held at 575 Wandsworth Road, a beautiful and unusual National Trust property. The building is a Georgian terraced house, which was bought by Khadambi Asalache, a Kenyan-born poet, novelist …
looking ahead to September… and feeling more positive
After the low of no one turning up for my first flying-solo Nine Elms walk earlier this month, I had the pleasure of leading a lovely group around the route on Sunday. I really enjoy sharing information about the area's rich history, and I'll often also pick up an interesting new nugget or two from …
Continue reading looking ahead to September… and feeling more positive
workflow
Just a few weeks ago I met up with my fellow 2021 Manchester Fiction Prize judges Nicholas Royle and Simon Okotie to decide on the overall winner from our shortlist of six stories. Over the previous months we'd read hundreds of stories, and then gradually whittled our unofficial longlist down to six via email. It's …
Poetry taster workshops – TICK
On Tuesday, I led the last of five poetry taster workshops at Battersea Park Library. Considering I first started planning these with the library staff nearly two years ago, this feels like quite an achievement. We'd aimed to start in early spring 2020, but we all know what happened. Personally, it's also an achievement, as …
writing local / local writing
I'm happy to have a poem included in a new anthology, Words of Wandsworth, edited by Emily Zinkin, and supported by Wandsworth Libraries and Heritage Service and Moishe House. The anthology includes poems, short stories, art and photography by Wandsworth residents, with each contribution featuring an aspect of the borough of Wandsworth in some way. …