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literature

Fluff Piece: Bromley House Library Celebrates Right to Vote with Knitted Figures

In 1918, the British government passed the Representation of the People Act, granting women in the UK the right to vote. While...

Poetry Profile: A Self-Help Group for People With Too Many Feelings

06 September 18

One year on from their debut, Between the Shadow and the Soul has quickly become a bastion of pleasant poetry. Ahead of their big birthday bash, I had a chat with co-founders Jim Sharpe and Kaia Hristova about the success of their infant poetry night, their own creative processes, and the importance of celebrating good feels. 

Stripped Tease! Rejecting the Rat Race with Sharon Bull

05 September 18

Things weren't going great for Sharon Bull. While she was living a life that seemed perfect on the outside, her mental health was taking a toll. Her new book, Stripped Bare: Swapping Credit for Compassion, details how she opted out of the cosmopolitan lifestyle and found happiness in her true, authentic self. We sent Jazmin Hill to the launch of Stripped Bare, and here's what she had to say. 

Do or Die Poets Facilitator Miggy Angel on New Book Extreme Violets

05 September 18

Originally from South London, poet, performer, and drug and alcohol worker Miggy Angel is a long-term resident of Hoodtown and the author of two poetry books, Grime Kerbstone Psalms and Extreme Violets. We hollered at him to see what he’s up to at the moment...

Proud to be Creative: An Interview With Write Pride Organiser Hayley Green

24 July 18

Representation is a bit of a buzz-word at the moment, so it's refreshing to see it done right. Nottingham-based poet and event organiser Hayley Green is the spearhead for the Write Pride Festival, a five-day event that celebrates some of Nottingham's best and brightest LGBTQIA creatives. We had a chat with her ahead of the festival to chat about the coming week.  

6 Nottingham Books to Read This Summer

16 July 18

Surely you must be in need of a beach side read. Give one of these a try...

Let's Make Some Mischief: Dennis, Gnasher and Horrid Henry to head this year’s Summer Reading Challenge

13 July 18

Listen up, hell-raisers: The Nottinghamshire County Council have set up another summer reading challenge to get some noses in books. Our man Ian C Douglas is here to give us the low-down. 

Penguin Random House is On the Lookout For the Next Big Thing in Nottingham

30 June 18

There’s a sweet upcoming opportunity for under-represented writers and illustrators in the city.

Poetry Profile: Talking Psst. with Christopher Lanyon

12 June 18

In the immortal words of Björk, it's been oh so quiet in Nottingham this month with the launch of Psst., the latest in a long line of poetry events based in the city centre. The brainchild of Christopher Lanyon, Psst. is (in addition to being a grammatical nightmare), a prime example of the newest breed of Nottingham poetry: inclusive, soft, powerful and punchy. I popped down to Jam Cafe for their debut, and while I was there I managed to collar Chris for a chat over a pint of posh ale. 

Penguin in Nottingham: Under-represented Writers Needed WriteNow

06 June 18

The Best Mummy Snails Are Teaching Kids About Same Sex Parenting

19 May 18

With a growing number of young people identifying as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or queer, it’s important to explain identity in an inclusive way. Troy Jenkinson, a headteacher at a Leicestershire primary school, has written a heartwarming and funny kids’ book – The Best Mummy Snails in the Whole Wide World – which aims to do just that. We asked him about the hows and whys of the publication, and here’s what he had to say…

Poetry Profile: Crosswords

18 May 18

On the second Wednesday of every month in a cosy cave three floors below the Malt Cross you'll find Crosswords, Nottingham's only subterranean spoken word open mic. Our Martin Grey popped down to May's event and also had a chat with the organisers, Leanne Moden and Jake Wildeman, and this month's headliner, Gemma Baker.

Nottingham Dialect and Mining Culture Documentary to be Broadcast on BBC Radio 4

15 May 18

James Walker blathers on about dialect and mining culture for a BBC Radio 4 series called Talk and Tongue.

Poetry Profile: Translating Activism Workshop with Kalyani Thakur, Sipra Mukherjee, and Jo Dixon

05 May 18

If you thought that we'd be sick of poetry after last week's festival, you'd be dead wrong. Today we're highlighting the incredible work of Kalyani Thakur, a Dalit poet and political activist from West Bengal, following her appearance at the Translating Activism workshop hosted by the Postcolonial Studies Centre at Nottingham Trent University. 

Robin Hood Vs Sheriff of Nottingham Rap Battle and Mark Grist at Nottingham Poetry Festival in Photos

03 May 18

Comedy Poet Elvis McGonnagall is Tartanned Up in Nottz

26 April 18

Described as “side-splittingly funny”, “flamboyant” and compared to performance poets Adrian Mitchell and John Cooper Clarke, World Slam Champion and festival favourite Elvis McGonnagall is set to take Nottingham by storm on Friday night at Antenna. Tackling topics of the day head-on, his stand-up style of delivery and polished verse critiques the world’s woes with charm, intelligence and a bag-full of Scottish colloquialisms. LeftLion caught up with him for a quick chat ahead of his show with support from Poetry is Dead Good’s Stephen Thomas and our very own Bridie Squires…

The Nottingham Poetry Festival 2018 Survival Guide

17 April 18

Nottingham's gone poetry mad, and with stellar events popping up in venues all over the city it can be hard to know where to start. Thankfully, your old pal LP Mills is here to give you the rundown on this year's Nottingham Poetry Festival. 

Lainy Malkani on Her Book Sugar, Sugar: Bittersweet Tales of Indian Migrant Workers

09 April 18

Dan Wright talks to Lainy Malkani about her first book Sugar, Sugar, the transition from journalist to novelist and how her cat helped her to overcome the loneliness of being a writer. Malkani offers advice to aspiring writers and reveals which of the stories in the book is her personal favourite…

The Church of Stuart Pearce and other stories: Author Rich Fisher Discusses the Trials and Tribulations of Being a Forest Fan

03 April 18

Lifelong Nottingham Forest fan and author Rich Fisher has seen it all in Garibaldi red. In the latest Forest book to grace bookshelves around the city, he tells the tales of a local football fan experiencing delight and suffering during his time supporting his provincial city club.

Fluent Females: Third Annual Women Say Stuff Event at Cafe Sobar

19 March 18

In celebration of International Women's Day, Women Say Stuff brought together women from all backgrounds to share their life experiences. Headliners included Notts wordsmiths Alice Short and Georgina Wilding, alongside a passionate open mic of female poets, musicians and activists. We sent our Natalie Mills down to check out the DIY Poets’ mixed-audience event at Cafe Sobar to hear what women had to say.

An Evening with Graham Caveney

16 March 18

We went to Beeston’s Middle Street Resource Centre for a Q&A with Graham Caveney, led by Deirdre O’Byrne and Ross Bradshaw of Five Leaves...

Exploring Technology, Spoken Word and Writing our Roots at WEM’s The Writers’ Conference

08 March 18

Last week, Nottingham’s literati gathered on a snowy Saturday to do some listening, learning and creating at The Writers’ Conference, all hosted by Writing East Midlands. We got down to check out some of the talks and workshops…

Nottingham Writers' Studio to Host Joint Networking Event with Society of Authors

26 February 18

Alright you literary lovelies, it’s time to sharpen those pencils and get them typing fingers at the ready — The Nottingham Writers’ Studio and the Society of Authors will be hosting their big networking event for 2018 on Saturday 3 March, following the Writing East Midlands Writer’s Conference. In preparation, we asked journalist, copywriter, and Writers’ Studio alumni Natalie Mills to have a chat with Society of Authors Head of Staff Anna Ganley about what can be expected on the night.

Magic Moments: An Afternoon with Global Wordsmiths at Defining Moments Launch

26 February 18

One of the fresher faces on Nottingham's publishing scene, Global Wordsmiths have made a name for themselves of late by working with writers from all walks of life. Their latest publication, Defining Moments: Stories from a Place of Recovery, is a collaboration with local addiction support charity Double Impact. We sent our Chloe Campbell down to the launch event for the book to get the low-down on the book, and the remarkable people who have contributed to it. 

Poetry Profile: Two Days With the DIY Poets

18 February 18

Every now and then you’ll come across something that does exactly what it says on the tin. Nottingham’s own DIY Poets are a prime example of this, with their tagline “We’re Nice and We Don’t Always Rhyme” neatly printed on the front cover of each issue of their monthly zine. We decided to pop in for a chat with the gang to get a gauge of just how nice they are, and we were not disappointed.