A showcase of 10 emerging and established poets with a short open mic section hosted by Sarah L Dixon and Dave Pitt.
Sarah L Dixon, The Quiet Compere of Huddersfield, is taking her unique show on a nine-date tour. Six live and three online events. This series will feature 73 performers.
The tour brings together a diverse selection of poets of all ages, cultures, styles and experience, designed to entice an audience that may never have experienced spoken word events before. Sarah has been running spoken word events under her guise as The Quiet Compere for eleven years.
Quiet Compere events are unique. There are no lengthy introductions to poets, no-one is designated as ‘top-of-the-bill’ – all performers considered equal in Sarah’s eyes. Each line-up boasts a varied and diverse mix of poets, ranging from established local poets, some new to the scene who are ready to stun audiences with their talent, plus a generous sprinkling of nationally well-known poets and performers.
I have been overjoyed to play a part in The Well/ Mindful Poetry events over the past few years, (since Lockdown 2020/21). For the 2nd year running I am delighted to have poetry included in the anthology.
The Book Launch happens today at The Mercantile Library, which is incredibly beautiful and in Cincinnati… however, if you are not you can still watch the event on Crowdcast, to register: book tickets for the Live Launch or reserve your spot virtually check here.
I am really looking forward to spending some of my Birthday celebrating with these poets and can’t wait to hear everyone’s words.
Hope you can join us!
Book cover artwork courtesy of @alexandraramirezarts Mindful Poetry Moments was incubated with @onbeing and virtual gatherings are supported by @cincyhive @wordplaycincy and @themercantilelib #TheWellWorld #TheWell #MindfulPoetryMoments #MindfulPoetry #Poetry #PoetryCollection #OnBeing #PoetryUnbound #Poems #Poets #Poet
Since 2016 I have been fortunate enough to have written endorsements for new collections. It is always an honour to be asked and to be trusted with the m/s, to read it before it’s published and to ultimately string words together which will encourage other’s to buy it from the blurb.
When Peter Sutton approached me in 2021 I was delighted to be one of the poets writing an endorsement for his latest collection. I have known Peter for many years and know what an expert he is on Elgar, I knew this collection would be a m/s I would enjoy. I wasn’t wrong! I read it many times.
Fast forward the publishing process and Peter is ready to launch. I am invited as one of his Guest Readers and all LIVE tickets have SOLD OUT! It will be my first live event since January and I am looking forward to seeing real people, (I still only leave home for work/medical/family visits).
Elmslie House, Malvern – 4pm Sunday 3rd April
You can join the fun online – instructions will appear here tomorrow.
The Facebook event page can be found here. Peter will be joined by guests Sara-Jane Arbury, Nina Lewis and Michael W. Thomas who will also be reading.
This is a collection of ultra-short Thumbnail Nature pieces from a February workshop ‘Nature Writing Through the Window’ which Amanda Tuke co led with Helen Jones, an inspirational disabled nature writer.
It was a great workshop and the last from this particular Arts Council funded project. It has been a pleasure to get to know Amanda and delve into thumbnail nature. I am delighted to have pieces in all the anthologies of workshops I was able to attend.
Angi Holden also attended the workshops and been published in the anthologies. It is always a great delight when you see friends sign up for the same events. An extra delight in February was spotting Elizabeth Uter in attendance. Liz and I met at the Poetry in Motion classes 2020/21 with CelenaDiana Bumpus, Liz still attends classes with Inlandia. Her poem is above mine, it’s so lovely to share the virtual page with her again.
Thanks again to Amanda Tuke for these incredible workshops and for giving my first thumbnails a home.
Amanda Tuke – workshop co-leader and Great North Wood nature-writer-in-residence in partnership with London Wildlife Trust. Once covering a large area of south London, today the Great North Wood consists of a series of small green spaces – all of which provide a home for nature within a modern urban landscape.The workshop was made possible thanks to public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England.
Sarah L. Dixon was successful with her Arts Council bid and has brought the Quiet Compere back. This time the QC tour covers many parts of the UK with live events and is some dates available to the world online.
Starting tomorrow with an online event featuring poets from across the UK.
A showcase of 10 emerging and established poets with a short open mic section hosted by Sarah L Dixon and Tony Curry
Saturday 19th March 1-4 PM
Quiet Compere Online
TICKETS are free to register on Eventbrite. The event is PAYF (pay as you feel).
Future QC Tour Dates:
19th March Quiet Compere Tour online
23rd April QC Tour Chatham Library Hub
14th May QC Tour Morecambe West End Playhouse (& workshop Nib Crib)
11th June QC Tour Bradford Library
1st July QC Tour Wolverhampton Arena
17th August QC Tour Zoom online
16th September QC Tour Marsden Mechanics (& Workshop at Mario’s Diner)
The latest anthology of nature writing is live on the London Wildlife Trust website – with thanks to Amanda Tuke/ Goldcrest Projects.
A great collection of thumbnail nature from a workshop Amanda co-led on 18 December 2021 with Rebecca Gibson, wildlife writer and photographer. These workshops fill me with joy and are precious spaces of calm in this distressed world of ours.
Read It Wild – readings and conversations with nature writers
Join nature writers Amanda Tuke, Electra Rhodes, Vanessa Wright and Jane V Adams for an event to celebrate nature writing.
About this event
Sit back and relax while a range of new and established nature writers spin words for you which bring the wild inside. From a frantic spring and light-filled summer, to autumn scents and winter footprints, join us for a celebration of diverse nature writing. And you’ll hear what nature writing offers for published writers, with the opportunity to ask them questions.
This free event is made possible through National Lottery Funding via Arts Council England.
Join us for FREE Register for tickets here on Eventbrite.
Amanda Tuke is a nature writer, botanist and birder based in suburban south London and she is currently Great North Wood nature-writer-in-residence. She contributes regularly to Bird Watching Magazine , the London Wildlife Trust Blog and has written for BBC Countryfile and Resurgence & Ecologist Magazines. Amanda blogs about nature and her freelance nature-writing journey and loves leading nature-writing workshops.
El Rhodes is an archaeologist who lives in Wales and Wiltshire. Her prose and poetry has been widely published in a range of anthologies and journals, and she writes a regular column on rural issues for Spelt Magazine. Her book, ‘My Family & Other Folklore’, was recently longlisted for the Nan Shepherd Prize and is now out on submission. And her coastal South Wales set novella, ‘Sextet’, recently won the Louise Walters Books P.100 competition.
Vanessa Wright is a nature writer who lives in Hertfordshire and loves the Hebrides. She left corporate life last year to pursue her passion for wildlife and study for a Masters in Nature and Travel Writing at Bath Spa University. She has contributed to Bird Watching Magazine and The Pilgrim, written on behalf of the Hertfordshire & Middlesex Wildlife Trust, and was recently longlisted for the Yeovil Literary Fiction Prize.
Jane V Adams is a naturalist, photographer and travel and nature writer based in Dorset. She has written for The Telegraph, BBC Countryfile and BBC Wildlife Magazines, and writes a regular nature column for The Blackmore Vale Magazine. Recently longlisted for the 2022 New Travel Writer of the Year Competition, Jane is currently writing a book about nature’s amazing moments, due for publication in 2023.
El Rhodes first reached my radar during Lockdown/ 2020 and I enjoyed her workshops and the writing that brought me. Last year, I was lucky enough to find some more nature writing workshops and as a result, met Amanda Tuke and started the joy that is writing Thumbnails.
I have successfully had both my workshop pieces published on the London Wildlife Website, thanks to Amanda. You can read them here, along with many others:
At the last workshop in 2021, Amanda told us about a planned reading and how we may be able to get involved. In 2022 we were invited to write some seasonal thumbnails, sketching a whole year of nature. After much research, drafting and editing I was excited to press SEND on my first submission of 2022 – and even more excited to hear my pieces had made it into the reading this weekend.
I am delighted to have my nature year included in this event and look forward to hearing the other pieces and the main readers.
Since the opening of live events back in 2020, I have struggled to physically attend any. Partly as I am involved in family elder care and have a duty to protect others, partly because I am already taking a gamble working across many different schools. Lastly, I tried back in September 2021 for the first LIVE SpeakEasy event (WLFF) at The Swan Theatre and had a complete anxiety attack.
Last year I was booked to feature in person in February and am grateful my booking was postponed (now in April), as I am very unsure. I didn’t work much physically at events in 2019, only a handful of times (as opposed to 100+) and wasn’t on the road at all as I couldn’t drive… so there has been a 3 year gap in this practice!
However, I became involved in this wonderful project and have decided to go for it – our internet is not stable at the weekends so there was a risk of failure attached to the live stream and I know the venue/event will be Covid safe.
You can enjoy it from the comfort of your own home! Join us!
The event will be in-person and live streamed – tickets are free but registration required. Register
I:DNAis a multimedia installation with a huge aluminium sculpture as its centrepiece, forming a journey through the lives of those affected by genetic conditions. A film and evocative soundscape create an arresting and thought-provoking event. I:DNA has toured Oxford, Coventry, the British Science Festival and Millennium Point, Birmingham. I:DNA is currently at Leamington Spa Art Gallery and Museum.
I:DNA art installation, for I:DNA – at MILLENNIUM POINT Birmingham UK 2020
LATEST NEWS: DNA – OUR STORIES Spoken Word Event Join us to hear new poetry exploring what it is to be human, at a special event Saturday 22nd January 2022 at Warwick Arts Centre (also live streamed). This is part of the Resonate Festival.
A performance of shared spoken word and poetry that follows on from the successful installation and workshops at Leamington Spa Gallery where writers and poets explore their responses to identity individuality and DNA inspired by the installation at the gallery entitled I:DNA.
This is a thought provoking event that explores the impact of ground breaking biological sciences on our everyday life.
The poetry anthology that is being compiled is unveiled and investigates the themes of identity, individuality, genetics and what it is to be human. The work includes contributions from across the region and beyond, supported by published poet Nigel Hutchinson and hosted by Sandra Godley (BBC CWR).
This event is part of a series of creative outputs reflecting the research of Professor Felicity Boardman of Warwick Medical School, which explores the lived experiences of families affected by genetically inherited conditions. The art installation which features a sculpture of a denatured helix I:DNA (available to see at Leamington Art Gallery until the end of January) was created directly from this research using research participants own words in the soundscape and is an arresting and thought-provoking journey into the world of what it is to be human, using sculpture, film, and a sung/spoken soundtrack.
Following the success of the touring installation, DNA Our Stories will feature poetry readings created by contributors across the region and beyond.
The Installation, workshops and this live poetry event are produced by STAMP Theatre and Media Productions CIC.
The event will be in-person and live streamed – tickets are free but registration required. Register
Register in advance for the live poetry streamed event. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about accessing the stream.
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