Poetry workshop

From Julia Bird: "The Poetry School's Autumn term is drawing to a close -- but there's still one Nottingham workshop left to bring a bit of poetic sparkle to the season's dark nights and short days. In one last booking boost for the year, we're offering a 20% discount on Neil Rollinson's workshop for people who enroll over the phone -- just call Juliette in the office on 0207 582 1679 and we'll book you all in."

Poetry & Home: inspiration for your writing with Neil Rollinson

Venue: Nottingham Writers' Studio, Sutton Place Business Centre, 49 Stoney Street, The Lacemarket, Nottingham NG1 1LX

Date: Saturday 4 December, 10.30am-4.30pm

Price: £53 (£41 60+) £35 concs - 20% off if you book by phone

Level: open to all

Unspoken Water -- new market

"An old Scottish custom, unspoken water was a charm against the Evil Eye and used for healing the sick. It was obtained by collecting running water from under a bridge that the living had crossed and the dead had been carried over. Whatever was used to collect the water should not touch the ground. It was then carried in silence at dawn or at twilight and brought to the house of the sick or bewitched person who was given three sips of "silvered water" from a wooden ladle which had a silver coin placed at the bottom. The rest of the water was sprinkled around the person or poured into a corner stone of the house or behind the fire-flag. If the stone split, then the illness or curse would be fatal, and they could not be cured or saved.

Now, Unspoken Water is looking for poetry and short fiction of the strange, the weird, and the uncanny. We are a market for the supernatural, not fantasy or science fiction. The first few issues will be chapbook size with the intention to grow to perfect-bound copies. Publication will be twice yearly, and occasionally some issues might be devoted to a particular theme, for which submissions will be sought." Details here.

Piers Anthony on publishing

Piers Anthony, he of Xanth fame (and if you've not read A Spell for Chameleon, published way back in the 1970s, well, you should) writes about the publishing business on his website. He says: "I've had a good deal of experience in the publishing school of hard knocks, hence my interest in making it easier for others." Check it out.

Playwriting course in Leicester

The Writing School Leicester is running a Playwriting Course from 12 January to 16 March 2011. The course fee is £90. This is a “course to support emerging writers in creating and developing the first draft of a one act play. Creative exercises in class are combined with practical advice to move scripts from early drafts to professional productions.”

The Festival of Writing, 2011

The 2011 Festival of Writing “brings together a host of literary agents, mainstream and independent publishers, bestselling authors, frighteningly insightful book doctors and much more besides. Because you will be staying on campus, you'll have countless opportunities to talk one on one with these people: make contacts, ask questions, share a glass of wine and network.

Our hope is that you'll learn masses about how to write better, what kind of books the industry is looking for, and how best to approach agents and publishers. We also hope that you'll have fun, make friends and leave the event buzzing with a sense of possibility.”

The event takes place in York over the weekend 25-27 March.

Short Story America

They say that the mission of Short Story America is to "bring the short story back into the mainstream of American culture, to bring the short-story author back to prominence in literature..." It's a pity that short stories do suffer alongside novels, so anything to highlight shorter fiction is to be applauded. Check out the website for their stories --  added weekly.

Christmas meeting

On Wednesday 22nd December we will celebrate the Winter Soltice and Christmas with a Season's Special. Instead of our usual programme, bring Christmas and Soltice related material (poems, prose, etc). We'll read these out in anticipation of the holiday season. Each reading to last no more than five minutes -- but you can bring along several pieces. You can read out your own work, or poems and extracts from anyone else.

And importantly, bring some mince pies or similar offerings.

Forthcoming meetings over Christmas and the New Year

We meet every Wednesday at 7.30pm in the Jolly Potters, Hartshill, Stoke-on-Trent.

Our next meetings are on 17th and 24th November, 1st, 8th, 15th and 22nd December. There is no meeting on Wednesday 29th December. We then start again in 2011 on Wednesday 5th and 12th January.

On Monday 17th January the pub closes for five weeks for refurbishment. I was told that the individual rooms will remain and that we can resume our writers' meetings after the Jolly Potters reopens. Keep and eye on this blog -- and on FaceBook -- for dates.

Deadfall by Shaun Jeffrey

Renegade member Shaun Jeffrey's latest novel Deadfall is out about now (Leucrota Press $11.95).

"A team of mercenaries race to an abandoned mining village to rescue two children held hostage. But the kidnappers are a ruse. The real threat is more terrifying than any of them could imagine... As the body count rises, so do the stakes, and when the dead won't stay dead there's going to be hell to pay."

Meanwhile, Jeffrey's previous book, The Kult, is currently being filmed.

Cancellation

This week's meeting (3 November) is cancelled due to problems with the room at the pub. We meet again on Wednesday 10 November. See you then!