Conversations with Writers

Andrew Button is from Market Bosworth and has had poems published in various magazines including Orbis , Staple , The Interpreter’s House , Iota and Ink, Sweat and Tears . His pamphlet, Dry Days in Wet Towns , was published in 2016 and a first full collection, Melted Cheese on the Cosmic Pizza in 2017 by erbacce press . In this interview, Andrew talks about his writing: When did you start writing? From the age of fourteen I always wanted to be a writer. The late Liverpool poet, Adrian Henri, was an early inspiration. He was invited to my school to encourage pupils to write and perform their poetry. From the ensuing workshop sessions, an anthology of our poems was published and presented at a performance evening for parents. I suppose I started writing seriously for magazine publication in my early twenties. Adrian Henri and a very supportive English teacher convinced me that I had a talent for writing poetry and it progressed from there. This is going to sound like the ster...

Individuals and groups that have an interest in the literary activity that takes place in Leicester and Leicestershire are meeting to look at what can be done to raise the profile of the scene locally, nationally and internationally. The meeting is free and open to all and is taking place at the Bishop Street Methodist Church, 10a Bishop Street, on 13 December 2017, in Leicester, from 6.30pm till 9.30pm. Speaking at the event are: ● Henderson Mullin , Chief Executive Officer, Writing East Midlands (WEM) ● James Urquhart , Relationship Manager for Literature in the Midlands, Arts Council England ● Cllr Sarah Russell , Deputy City Mayor with responsibilities for Children, Young People's Services, Leicester City Council ● Farhana Shaikh , Dahlia Publishing / Leicester Writes Short Story Prize / The Asian Writer ● Matthew Pegg , Mantle Arts / Mantle Lane Press ● Emma Lee , President, Leicester Writers Club; and ● Bobba Cass , Pinggg...k! The event is being hosted by the...

As part of events to mark International Translation Day 2017 and as part of Everybody's Reading, Journeys in Translation will be hosting an event at which 13 poems will be read in English and in translation. Posters showing the poems alongside the translations will also be on display. The event will be held at the African Caribbean Centre on International Translation Day which, this year, falls on Saturday, September 30. The poems, from Over Land, Over Sea: Poems for those seeking refuge (Five Leaves Publications, 2015) have been translated into more than 16 other languages, among them, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Farsi, German, Hindi, Italian, Shona and Spanish. The event is free and open to all. If you cannot make it to the September 30 event in Leicester, you could: translate or encourage others to translate as many of the 13 poems as possible, share the translations and reflections on the translations through blogs, in letters and emails to family and friends and ...

Grant Denkinson is an Open Access and Research Data Advisor at the University of Leicester's David Wilson Library. He is also a qualified psychotherapist and is one of the contributors to Purple Prose (Thorntree Press LLC, 2016), a new book about bisexuality in Britain. In this interview, Denkinson talks about writing, sexuality and Purple Prose : How would you describe Purple Prose ? Purple Prose  presents different forms of writing about various aspects of being bisexual, such as being a bi person of faith and so on. Each chapter curates a number of personal experiences, collected thoughts and even tentative advice, together with quotes, cartoons and poems. The chapter I co-curated with Juliet Kemp covers bisexuality and non-monogamy. The bi community I've been part of has been talking about how you can be bi and happily monogamous, non-monogamous in various ways, or not in relationships at all. Relationships of all kinds we could think of are spoken about in  Pur...

Lydia Towsey is a poet and a performer. Her previous commissions include: Freedom Showcase (Literature Network); Spoken Word All Stars Tour (Poet in the City); Beyond Words , U.K. tour of South African poets (Apples and Snakes); and, Three the Hard Way UK tour, alongside Jean ‘Binta' Breeze and Alison Dunne in 2014 and Jean Binta Breeze and Shruti Chauhan in 2015. Poet, Performer and Spoken Word Artist, Lydia Towsey. A Decibel commissioned artist, in 2008 Lydia Towsey was one of 50 international artists in residence at Stratford Theatre Royal. Previously shortlisted for the Bridport Poetry Prize, she has spoken and performed everywhere ... from London’s 100 Club, Roundhouse and the House of Lords, to ... Plymouth University’s Zombie Symposium . Her work has been featured in publications that include the magazines: The London Magazine , Hearing Voices and Magma Magazine ; and the anthologies, Hallelujah for 50ft Women (Raving Beauties, Bloodaxe, 2016),  Over Land, Ov...