London night

Down to The Smoke last night for the writLOUD event and a bit of a gad about town with an old friend, a banker, my daughter and her lover. Had a blast – but the best ‘lit bit’ was a reading by John Lucas – an MA student on Birkbeck’s Creative Writing MA. He read his story – Becoming Marc Almond – and it did it for me. Have a read and see what you think.

Met some lovely people, including Jill McGivering, who also read a moving passage from her new novel The Last Kestrel (you can read a good chunk of it here). I started the book this morning and I’m halfway through (I got some reading time thanks to various train journeys) and so far it’s pretty compelling stuff.

Thanks to James Vincent and the writLOUD crew.

Reading at writLOUD

I’ll be reading at writLOUD on August 9th. writLOUD is a monthly readings event showcasing both new writers from Birkbeck’s Creative Writing courses and established authors.

I’ll be reading from my novel Among Thieves, and I’ll be joined by Jill McGivering who’ll be reading from her first novel, The Last Kestrel – ‘a deeply compassionate and thoughtful novel, written with the humanity that is a trademark of her reporting’ (Fergal Keane). Jill is a Birkbeck, MACW alumnus and BBC senior foreign news correspondent.

There will also be readings from Matthew Wright, Azra Hussain and John Lucas.

Admission is free of charge, but with a suggested donation to Oxfam of £3.50.

To reserve places in advance, email writloud@aol.co.uk or rock up at RADA Foyer Bar, Malet Street, London WC1E 7JN Monday 9 August 2010, 6.30-8.15 pm

Coventry Inspires

Among Thieves was the winning book in the Murder and Mayhem section of the Coventry Inspiration Book Awards and on 16th of June I went along to St Mary’s Guildhall in Coventry for the awards ceremony.

The whole thing began with a civic reception, hosted by Coventry’s Mayor. Then there were photos of all the winning authors in strange local-paper-styleee poses. And finally there were the awards themselves.

The event was a resounding success and Joy Court, Learning Resources Manager at Coventry City Council and organiser of the awards, had gathered a brilliant crowd of schoolchildren, teachers, library personal and book lovers, as well as several of the winning authors.

Discovering A Song of Jean

I can’t believe it’s been so long since I last posted here – work/family have been filling my time but I’ve also been hacking apart an almost complete novel and trying to put it back together again. This involves courage – and some writing. I’m determined to have a new #1 draft by the beginning of the summer so I can take a few weeks off before the rewriting process begins – so this post might be my lot for another few weeks.

In the last couple of months I have been accepted as a member of the Tindal Street Fiction Group (TSFG). The group meets once a fortnight and so far I’m enjoying the experience. The evening goes like this: reading, analysis, pub. An excellent format in my opinion. I’ve never belonged to a writing group before and although TSFG has been established for years it doesn’t feel cliquey.

I have just discovered – while writing this post and trying to find links to TSFG – that one of the members, Sybil Ruth, is the author of a poem that I have read and reread since I first came across it last year. The poem won the Mslexia Poetry Competition and is called A Song of Jean – and you can read it here.

I suddenly feel even more chuffed about being a member of TSFG.

Aye Write!

Mitchell Library Glasgow

I’m off to Scotland tomorrow to Aye Write! Glasgow’s Book Festival. I will be reading in The Burns Room at the Mitchell Library – and this will be followed by the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize announcement at 6pm.

The event is free and from the website looks as if it’s open to all – but if you don’t fancy that then the most talented AL Kennedy is giving a talk at 7pm in the same building.

I’m nervous. The building looks rather large. I wonder, if you spend a lot of time in buildings that are grand and imposing do you begin to think of yourself as grand too? Maybe this is explains why people who live in cities often think they are more sophisticated than the rest of us – they can’t help themselves, it’s simply their environment. Whatever, I don’t spend much time in grand buildings. I prefer a small room, with a desk, and a stack of books, several pens, some paper and a computer – oh and I’d like a view one day – onto a garden or the sea. Yes, I am nervous. Wish me luck.

Among Thieves listed for Commonwealth Writers’ Prize

Among Thieves has been shortlisted for The Commonwealth Writers’ Prize Best First Book Award in the South Asia and Europe region. The regional shortlists were announced yesterday and I was delighted to find that another Tindal Street author, Anthony Cartwright, has also been shortlisted in the Best Book category for his novel Heartland.

The Director of the Commonwealth Foundation, Mark Collins, said:

The Commonwealth Writers’ Prize is distinct and unique in that the books that win often have strong insight, spirit and voice about the incredible diversity, history and society of the Commonwealth. The Prize aims to reward the best of Commonwealth fiction written in English and in doing so, spots rising talent and creates new literary figures from the Commonwealth. This is the Prize to watch for tomorrow’s best-sellers.

I feel proud to be shortlisted – and proud of my publisher for championing the literature of diversity. You can read about all the other shortlisted titles in all regions here.

Coventry LitFest

Click to enlarge

On Wednesday February 17th I will, once again, be joining the novelist Amanda Smyth at Coventry University to give a talk entitled “How I Write”.

Ours is the first talk in a 3-day series for Coventry Conversations. This time however, the formula has been extended to create a mini Literature Festival. The speakers during the week include Mr Golden Pen himself – Andrew Davies (screenwriter of films such as Pride and Prejudice, Middlemarch, Vanity Fair, Wives and Daughters and Tipping the Velvet) and Nick Walker – whose novel Black Box was considered one of the year’s outstanding debuts in 2005.

All the talks are free and open to all, and take place at 13.00pm in Room ETG34, Ellen Terry Building, Coventry University, Jordan Well, Coventry.

• 17th February: Mez Packer and Amanda Smyth
• 18th February: Andrew Davies
• 19th February: Nick Walker

Shakey, Mills&Boon and me

Sara Craven, Alycia Smith-Howard, Mez Packer and Annie Othen

Last week I had another invitation from the lovely Annie Othen to be a guest on BBC Coventry and Warwickshire’s Friday morning Coffee Club. The format is simple; three women, a surfeit of coffee and biscuits and a trawl through the headlines. It’s not exactly highbrow but it’s good fun and last week the guests all had a literary flavour.

Alycia Smith-Howard – a Shakespeare scholar and writer (recently of New York University) and Sara Craven, author of eighty – that’s eight-zero – Mills&Boon romances, and me, sat round the little coffee table in the corner of Annie’s studio and discussed topics ranging from bankers’ bonuses to how we met our husbands. (I’m not sure if you can still listen again but if so, it’s here). Good fun, as usual.

Quick on the update?

Time – where does it go? Have had very little of it in the last few weeks and consequently the blog has become rather static. I do have an event coming up this weekend in Hillfields (see post below) but apart from that I’ve been working (teaching) or I’ve had my head down writing the new novel.

The excellent news is that one of my musical heroes is releasing a new album next year. Gil Scott-Heron has moved and inspired me since the 1980s and one of the chapters in Among Thieves is titled – The Revolution Will Not Be Televised as an homage to Gil. The track is also (and has been for some years) the ringtone on my mobile phone.

An interview with Gil on Newsnight shows that he is still a political animal as well as a musician and writer of extraordinary talent.

Rumours of Gil’s death have circulated in recent years he is very much alive and I am lucky enough to have received a hand written letter from him last year giving me permission to use the lyric from The Revolution Will Not Be Televised in my novel. I’m not prone to any kind of fandom but receiving that letter was a moment of intense pleasure. Enjoy TRWNBT – tis the truth.

New Tindal Street website

All new Tindal Street website

Tindal Street Press (my publisher) has finally dumped the old website and launched the all new funky version. It’s so sexy!

The old site was in need of an upgrade when I first met the team two years ago – wheels turn slowly in the publishing world:-)

Anyway – visit the new site. There’s info on all Tindal Street authors, reading guides, submission guidelines, news & events and even a lovely picture of Alan of Luke. Enjoy!

Also – Roads Ahead – the new offering of short stories from Tindal (edited by Catherine O’Flynn) has been getting some great reviews in the press. You can read Catherine O’Flynn’s introduction here.