Six members of the Circle, plus one guest, took the train to Walsden for a poetry infused walk, a nine-mile route devised and led by Mark Pennington. The main focus of the day was the Rain Stone, an outcrop of ancient gritstone high on the moors alongside the Pennine Way, just north of Blackstone Edge. It’s one of the Stanza Stones and home to the poem Rain by Simon Armitage.

Lunch was taken after a reading of the poem (with thanks to Marg for dispensing emergency bananas to those who forgot to bring anything to eat), before we took a meandering descent down to the Summit Inn for a beer (or two). The ‘summit’ is a reference to the high point on the Rochdale Canal as it crosses the Pennines. Our route along the canal back to Walsden took us past another poem: Andrew MacMillan’s Watershed. It’s situated at the point from which the poem takes its name—rain on the Lancashire side will eventually end up in the Irish Sea; rain falling on the Yorkshire side will flow into the North Sea.

From left to right: Bob, Graeme, Gail, Mark, Marg, Su, John

Many thanks to Mark for the idea and the organisation. The only disappointment was the weather. Our leader singularly failed to deliver any suitably damp weather to do the poems justice. We were instead cursed with blue skies and warm sunshine on what proved to be the hottest day of the year so far.

It is hoped that a summer walk with literary leanings can become an annual tradition for the Circle.

We’re thrilled to announce that Sarah Dodd (writing as Sarah Brooks) has been announced the winner of the Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize for 2019. This may have been less of a surprise for members of the Circle who know her than it was for Sarah herself. In her typically modest way, as we wished her luck at the manuscript evening the Monday before, she dismissed any possibility of actually winning from the short list of seven. We knew better.

The Lucy Cavendish Prize has developed a formidable reputation for uncovering new talent and draws significant interest from the publishing industry. It has been a catalyst for launching numerous literary careers and we’re sure that Sarah will follow in that tradition. Full details here.

Success comes in many shapes and sizes and we like to celebrate everything achieved by members here, whatever form that takes – a hint that we can’t publish those achievements unless you tell us about them. Don’t be shy.

We’ve already celebrated some big successes this year and we now have a few others.

Sarah Dodd (writing as Sarah Brooks) has been shortlisted for the Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize. She’s made the shortlist of seven (from an entry of over 600 submissions) for her novel The Cautious Traveller’s Guide to the Wastelands. You can get a taste of the writing from her competition profile page here. The winner will be announced on May 23rd. We wish her the very best of luck.

Sunyi Dean has had her short fiction piece “-Good“ selected for the 2018 Best of British Science Fiction Anthology. It will be launched at WorldCon in Dublin in August.

Finally, Caroline Humes has her short story A Petitioner Calls currently short-listed for publication in Factor Four Magazine.

It’s a pleasure to report that both Pat Belford and Gill Osborne have had more success in placing stories with the People’s Friend. As the longest-running women’s weekly magazine in the world—the first edition appearing in 1869— and with a still growing subscription base, it’s good to know that Pat’s The Early Delivery and Gill’s Double Trouble will be read so widely.

Emma Storr is now officially able to announce the publication date on May 22nd for her debut poetry pamphlet Heart Murmur, published by Calder Valley Poetry (£7.00). The launch event will take place at Seven Arts at 31 Harrogate Road in Chapel Allerton (LS7 3PD), 7.30 – 9.30pm. Also reading will be John Foggin and Carole Bromley. There is a bar, with food available, at the centre. Emma would be delighted to see members on the night to help her celebrate. Full details here.

Finally, Ian Harker and Andrew Lambeth have succeeded again in getting Strix on the Saboteur Awards Shortlist for best magazine. They didn’t win last year but are hoping to go one step further this time around. Although obviously not asking out of blind loyalty, if you are a fan of Strix, they would really appreciate your vote. Cast your mark on the ballot paper here.

Our new Chair, Lucie Warrington, takes the gavel from outgoing Chair, Mark Pennington.

The evening of March 25th saw a record turnout of 27 members for the AGM. After serving for six or possibly even seven years on the committee, the last two as Chair, Mark Pennington handed the gavel over to Lucie Warrington. It is a testament to Mark’s skill in the role that the meeting was so well attended and also over so quickly. We were able to retire to the pub well before 9 pm. Huge thanks are due to Mark for all his energy and enthusiasm. We now look forwarding to hearing him read more often

Replacing Lucie as Competitions Coordinator is Emma Storr. The only other change to the committee sees Caroline Humes taking over from Andrew Lambeth in the role of Events Coordinator. Many thanks are due to Andrew for his hard work and we still look forward to him running his own occasional, much-celebrated workshops.

Finally, a report of a double success in the publication of Emma Storr’s review of Charlotte Eichler’s debut pamphlet Their Lunar Language in The London Grip.

Read it here.

 

 

First, a few Circle members were lucky enough to hear Andrew Lambert read as the featured poet of the Rhubarb Open Mic at the Triangle, Shipley on Wednesday, Jan 30th. Congratulations are due for what was acclaimed on the night as a great set and a thoroughly engaging performance.

Gill Osborne recently had her short story Second Chances longlisted for the Henshaw Press short story competition. It has now been accepted for publication later this year by Park Publications in their quarterly magazine Scribble.

Pat Belford has scored another success with The People’s Friend. This latest story, called Counting Sheep, is set in a Victorian country village in Northumberland in very heavy snow. A young man and his girlfriend are able to save the Squire`s sheep when rustlers were plotting to sell them over the Border.

Marg Greenwood has an article about the island of Gigha appearing in the Jan/Feb edition of Scotland Magazine.

Finally, Emma Storr has been featured on John Foggin’s blog (The Great Fogginzo’s Cobweb), introducing her as an (un)discovered gem – although not undiscovered to us, of course. He talks about hearing and listening and showcases a few of Emma’s poems. Read the piece here.

The new year has got off to a hot start with the wonderful news that Andrew Lambeth’s poem Why the swan has just been selected as Guardian Poem of the Week. It’s a huge accolade. Please follow the link to read the poem, along with some hefty analysis. Huge congratulations to Andrew.

Monday, Jan 14th saw the adjudication for our own short story competition, judged by novelist, short story writer and creative writing tutor, Martyn Bedford. Described by the New York Times as “the genuine article, a writer of unmistakable flair and accomplishment”, we felt lucky to have him and he delivered a thoroughly engaging evening of feedback on the submitted stories. Martyn had praise for the high quality of writing across the entire entry for the competition and gave the impression of having thoroughly enjoyed the process of reading them all. Full details of the winners can be seen on the Competitions Page.

A number of members had pieces published in the latest edition of Strix, including the magazine’s own founders. Ian Harker’s short story Harvest time, as well as Andrew Lambeth’s poems Towpath (tinnitus) and Why the swan, would grace any publication but an assurance was added that all selection of pieces is done blind by different editors. Also featured in this fifth issue were Charlotte Eichler with her poem Cephalophores, Sandra Burnett with her poem Fighter, and Anna Sutcliffe with her poem Magic Mushroom.

The photograph features what was widely acknowledged as the highlight of the launch evening at the Vic, a performance of a short story by Joe Williams entitled #DogsAtPollingStations, featuring Ian Harker as the voice of the Yorkshireman. For an impromptu, unrehearsed double act, it was brilliant. You really had to be there but it’s well worth reading if you can still get a copy of Strix#5.

The other recent success we’ve heard about is Pat Belford, who has had two stories picked up by The People’s Friend: The Long Road to Bethlehem and Matt’s Snow Trek. Congratulations to her.

And congratulations to all of our members who have had work published this year, as well as to those who write just for their love of the written word and share their work with the Circle on Monday evenings. Merry Christmas everyone. And enjoy your writing in between all the festivities. It can be a great escape.

A couple of events to bring to your attention for November.

First, our own Emma Storr is featuring at the Puzzle Hall Poets on Monday, 5th November at the Shepherd’s Rest, Sowerby Bridge. 8pm. An open mic follows at 9pm. Be aware that this does happen to clash with a Manuscript evening.

Details here.

Second, the next Chelping event is at the Carriageworks on Wednesday, 14th November. These are a series of spoken word poetry events that are usually held at The Leeds Library. The event starts at 7.30pm, doors open at 7pm. Tickets just £5. A few members have attended these previously and can vouch for the quality of the evening’s entertainment. There are also open mic slots available.

Details here.

Just in case you’re not aware, there are all kinds of events going on at The Leeds Library at the moment, as part of its 250th birthday celebrations. They are invariably good value and, if you’ve never been inside before, offer an opportunity to look around the best-kept secret in the city.

Details here.

First, two events this month to bring to your attention …

Thursday Oct 18th, 8pm: Andy Armitage is guest poet at The Purple Room in Ben Rhydding, along with guest musician, singer/songwriter Matthew Sturgess. Details here.

Tuesday Oct 30th, 7.30pm: Charlotte Eichler is launching her new Valley Press pamphlet at Jacob’s Well in York. Penny Boxall, who is also launching her new Valley Press book, and guests Antony Dunn and Wendy Pratt, are reading too. All are welcome. It should be a great night.

Second, news of an exciting local success. Graeme Hall has just been announced as winner of the Ilkley Literature Festival Short Story Competition. It’s a fine achievement, especially after having been placed and shortlisted a number of times in recent years. It’s understood that Linda Fulton (who took the photograph) was on the shortlist. Congratulations to her too.