Ross McCleary and Andrew Blair are becoming fairly familiar faces on the Edinburgh spoken word circuit. Between them they’ve been published in Gutter, Valve, Dactyl and The Grind; they’ve headlined Blind Poetics and Inky Fingers, and appeared at Story Shop and Illicit Ink. They are also the driving force behind the increasingly popular Poets Against Humanity, and the main reason I have any knowledge or understanding of poetry outwith Dorothy Parker, Edward Lear and John Hegley. Continue reading “Is This Poetry? – A completely unbiased review*”
It’s August in Edinburgh, and that means Festival time. So far I have – perhaps not surprisingly – mostly been to storytelling and poetry events. Here are a couple of listicles – although not with gifs in the way that Buzzfeed would do it, I don’t want to get too populist – of what I’ve seen and what i have yet to see. Just in case my opinions are likely to sway you. Continue reading “I Wish To Go To The Festival”
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Those of us who live in Edinburgh (i.e. me) are two weeks into the Edinburgh Fringe, a rather massive arts festival that annually bankrupts countless comedians, actors and spoken word artists. Continue reading “Five free literary events for the fringe”
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Are you a poet or penner of short fiction? Have any of your poems or prose ever included aliens, time travel, jelly babies, or copious amounts of running? Then have I got the Open Mic Night for you!
Organised by my good friend Andrew Blair and the chaps behind Blind Poetics*, the truthfully titled ‘The Doctor Who Open Mic Night’ is coming to Edinburgh pub The Blind Poet on November 25th. Join performers Kevin Cadwallender, Tracey S. Rosenberg and Russell Jones as they celebrate the Fiftieth Anniversary of Doctor Who through spoken word. And as you do it, you can help raise money for The Lullaby Trust, an amazing charity that supports bereaved families.
Open mic slots are available if you want to perform – email drwhoopenmic@hotmail.com for further info – but the organisers would like to make it clear that you don’t have to perform 100% Doctor material: ‘anything even tangentially related, be it sci-fi, time travel, weeping angels, things-being-bigger-on-the-inside or Jon Pertwee, is totally cool.’
Meanwhile, if you just want to go and have a listen, that’s likely what I’m going to do. Unless I spend the next week finally committing that Ode to Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart I’ve been composing to paper… But I fear I’ve said too much. Anyway entry is free, although as discussed there is the option to donate to the Lullaby Trust (they are suggesting a very reasonable £2).
If you fancy coming along or know someone else whose cup of tea it is, please help spread the word – join the Facebook event, share this blog post, and generally make a lot of noise. Like Kevin Cadwallender might do:
Hope to see you there!
When: Monday 25th November, 7.30pm
Where: The Blind Poet, 32 West Nicholson Street, Edinburgh
*Those chaps are Roddy Shippin and Alec Beattie, and you can keep up with Blind Poetics, a monthly night of spoken word, on Facebook and Twitter.
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On Friday, author and poet Tracey S.Rosenberg posted on the tricky subject of acknowledgements. Today she gives some practical advice to help you thank people without being twee.
I had a pretty full acknowledgements slate with my debut novel, The Girl in the Bunker and I could have included more. In general, categories include (but are not limited to):
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In today’s guest post, author and poet Tracey S.Rosenberg looks at Acknowledgements. If you’re genuinely overwhelmed, how do you express your thanks in a public setting without making yourself – or onlookers – cringe? Read on to find out…
The stereotypical Academy Award acceptance speech involves a tearful starlet clutching her statuette and blubbering thanks to her agent, producer, plastic surgeon, dental hygienist, and every driver who let her merge into the exit lane on the 405 that morning. Writers also have plenty of thanks to give, though we don’t often have the chance.
Continue reading “How To Say Thank You”
12 Books in 12 Months 