Looking back over the last year makes me realise just how priviliged I am to live in a country where so many literary events and opportunities exist, and I’m especially grateful for the small community of writers in Cardiff who continue to run free, or low-cost workshops and open-mic nights on a regular basis. I’ve continued to enjoy running my own ekphrastic writing workshop, and have begun the second year of my part-time MA in Creative Writing. There have been plenty of literary highlights over the past few months, including the thrills of the Hay Festival, but here are my top four… Continue reading
Festivals & Events in 2018
Poetry in Three Languages – Irish, Welsh and English
A Guest Post by Ailbhe Darcy
On Monday 3rd December, two Irish poets, Aifric Mac Aodha and Celia de Fréine, will read at the Flute and Tankard in Cardiff alongside the Welsh poet Llŷr Gwyn Lewis. Poet and academic Ailbhe Darcy explains why she’s organised this multi-lingual event… Continue reading
Seeing, Writing & Responding for madeinroath 2018
When you move to a new city, you never know what kind of place you’ll end up living in. Nine and a half years ago I spent an exhausting weekend traipsing through the streets of Cardiff, searching for a place to call home. Roath was the last place I looked, and it felt just right – a suburb full of life, but safe too, and welcoming. Little did I know that it was a breeding ground of artistic creation, or that the annual madeinroath arts festival would become one of the highlights of my year. Continue reading
Cardiff Book Festival – Highlights from 2018
Now in its third year, the Cardiff Book Festival is not only a great platform for local writers and authors from further afield, but also a catalyst for debate on all sorts of issues. There were plenty of workshops too, aimed at writers perfecting their craft, and this year I ran my own event on the subject of blogging. Continue reading
From Book Blogger to Published Writer: Looking Forward to Cardiff Book Festival 2018
I have a particular reason to be looking forward to this year’s Cardiff Book Festival, as I’m running a masterclass – An Introduction to Blogging on Saturday 8th September. I launched this blog back in 2016, and never imagined that it would lead to publication (not only non-fiction but poetry too) as well as the production of a book – How to Start a Book Blog: A Step by Step Guide – which contains all the advice I collected during my initial research, as well as some lessons learned along the way. Continue reading
The Magic of Place – A Creative Writing Summer School
Manchester Metropolitan University’s annual Creative Writing Summer School is designed to push you into trying out new things. As a poet, I naturally signed up to attend most of the poetry sessions, but it was the ‘place writing’ workshops which I enjoyed the most. A visit to Chetham’s Library, on the second day of the summer school, was definitely the highlight for me – an opportunity to forget the pressure of honing my craft as a writer, to wander about and take photos, scribble down notes and enjoy the atmosphere of peace and tranquillity. Continue reading
Beyond Psychopaths: Mental Health in Crime Fiction
Cardiff celebrated its first ever crime fiction festival last week, and one of the most interesting events explored the portrayal of mental illness within the genre. Local crime writer Rosie Claverton also happens to be a junior psychiatrist, and it was fascinating to hear her in discussion with Matt Johnson, a former police officer who also writes crime fiction, and has experienced post-traumatic stress disorder, turning to writing as a form of therapy. Continue reading
Hay Festival 2018 – Part 2: A Constellation Novel, A Musical Odyssey and the Life of Sylvia Plath
The Hay Festival always presents a real mix of genres and ideas and, despite a rather long commute from Cardiff each day over the Bank Holiday weekend, the atmosphere of intense literary devotion made it worthwhile. One thing I particularly love about Hay, is the fact that there are plenty of free events alongside the big names, and this year I attended the preview screening of an (as yet unfinished) documentary style film about the life of Sylvia Plath, focusing on her famous autobiographical novel, The Bell Jar. Continue reading
Hay Festival 2018 – Part 1: Poets, Art, Ambience and the Taste of Words
I’ve just spent three days immersed in the excitement and inspiration of the Hay Festival, writing about Welsh writers and enjoying the sunshine (with a little mud, lightning and rain thrown in for good measure) so here are some of my poetic highlights from the first few days of Hay 2018…
On Saturday morning I arrived bright and early to get a good parking spot and soak up the atmosphere. It was damp and foggy, but soon brightened up enough for an ice cream (gooseberry crumble flavour – the best I’ve ever tasted!). Continue reading
Crime & Coffee – A Festival of Crime Fiction in Cardiff
Cardiff will soon be playing host to some top quality crime fiction writers in the capital’s newest literary festival – Crime and Coffee. Taking place over two days – 1st and 2nd June – the festival is organised by Cardiff Council Library staff in conjunction with Crime Cymru, featuring Belinda Bauer, Christopher Fowler, Rebecca Tope, Kate Hamer, Mark Ellis, Katherine Stansfield and other crime writers, for two days of workshops, readings and discussion. I interviewed local crime writer Katherine Stansfield, to find out more about this brand new festival…
How to Write for Children – Advice from the Cardiff Children’s Literature Festival
It was reassuring to hear that Claire Fayers, who introduced this Cardiff Children’s Literature Festival event, was actually in the audience five years ago, when it first took place, wondering if she’d ever get her work published. She now has two children’s books published (the Accidental Pirates series), which proves that these things can happen! She introduced us to author Horatio Clare and literary agent Philippa Milnes-Smith, who shared their advice on writing for children and getting published.
Open Space with Philip Gross and Robert Walton
Last Thursday night we were treated to a myriad of images and rhythms from Robert Walton and Philip Gross, two local poets whose work covers a wide range of themes. You can tell that Walton has a musical ear, as each of his poems has a certain rhythm to it, from dancing grandfathers to suspicious canaries and stolen saxophones. Sax-burglar blues, the title poem from his recently published collection, combines word and saxophone in a tremendous burst of sound which brings the instrument to life. Continue reading
Verve Poetry Festival – Highlights from 2018
Last year’s Verve Poetry Festival was an incredible weekend of variety and fun, and this year I was determined to come away with some inspiration of my own. The day began with a mammoth climb to the giddy heights of the sixth floor in Birmingham’s narrow Waterstones store (where I attended workshops accompanied to the sound of church bells and pneumatic drills) and ended with readings from a score of different poets amidst bright pink bunting, free cake and an atmosphere of celebration. Continue reading
Looking Forward to Literature Festivals in Wales – 2018
Wales is full of literary events, book fairs and writing festivals, from the very small to the very large, and in almost every corner of the country… we love to celebrate literature in all its forms. So here’s a list of all the literary / book festivals taking place in Wales during 2018.
Please use the comments below to add information about any festivals which I have missed out, and I’ll continue to update this post throughout the year.