by Administrator | Sep 27, 2020 | Quick Reads
Many Nottingham writers have taken inspiration from their memories of Southwell, including D.H. Lawrence, Alan Sillitoe, and B.S. Johnson, whose experimental book-in-a-box, ‘The Unfortunates’ (1969), includes Brian’s recollections of visiting Southwell with June,... 
by Administrator | Sep 19, 2020 | Quick Reads
In the rolling acres of Robin Hood country, along a mile and a quarter of tree-lined road, is Newstead Abbey, surrounded by woodland, lakes, waterfalls and walled gardens. The Augustinian priory was built by Henry II, between 1163 and 1173, to atone for the murder of... 
by Administrator | Sep 17, 2020 | Quick Reads
Martin Grey’s ‘The Pretty Boys of Gangster Town’ has a unique and emotional stance on the separation of identity and unity. This book explores oneself in relation to others. A non-insular exploration of self-identity. Tearing up this divide with his reoccurring theme... 
by Administrator | Sep 15, 2020 | Quick Reads
Here is a bit about my experience with the NTU Creative Writing Short Course… Days on the course always began with a twenty-minute free write. During the time allocated, we would write with a given prompt, which was always varied and thought provoking. I enjoyed this... 
by Administrator | Sep 12, 2020 | Quick Reads
Helen Cresswell (1934-2005) was a prolific writer of children’s books, more than 100 of them, insisting that children “deserve the best”. She also wrote for television, producing a mix of fantasy and anarchic humour that contributed to the golden age of British... 
by Administrator | Sep 8, 2020 | News & Press
UNESCO Cities of Literature strive to improve literacy every day, in order to improve life outcomes and wellbeing for their communities. As the world continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, some cites have reconfigured their plans for International Literacy Day... 
by Administrator | Sep 5, 2020 | Quick Reads
Where Broadway Cinema now stands was the Broad Street Wesleyan Chapel. Erected in 1837 with its impressive Corinthian columns, the venue witnessed the conversion of a fifteen-year-old pawnbroker’s apprentice called William Booth. He later wrote ‘Darkest England and... 
by Administrator | Sep 5, 2020 | Quick Reads
Broadway has been at the heart of my life since the month I arrived in Nottingham. I joined Nottingham Film Theatre, as it then was, in October 1976, tempted by their Kenneth Anger season. I’m an avid movie goer, averaging at least once a week. Broadway also plays a... 
by Administrator | Aug 30, 2020 | Quick Reads
There’s a plaque on the outside of G.H. Porters on the corner of Market Place and Ridge Street that marks the spot where S. and J. Ridge of Newark (Ridge’s) printed the first volumes of Lord Byron’s poetry. Successive generations of the Ridge family were stationers,... 
by Administrator | Aug 26, 2020 | Readers & Writers
Richard The Oxford English Dictionary describes ‘solidarity’ as the ‘fact’ or ‘quality’ on the part of a community of being ‘perfectly united or at one in some respect’. Perfectly united – as anyone who has been in a group of friends, family, at school or in the... 
by Administrator | Aug 24, 2020 | Readers & Writers
Solidarity Noun Union or fellowship arising from common responsibilities and interests, as between members of a group or between classes, peoples, etc. Community of feelings, purposes, etc. Community of responsibilities and interests. Flying ants know what solidarity... 
by Administrator | Aug 21, 2020 | Quick Reads
Nottingham Writers’ Club (NWC) was established in 1927 after a group of writers known as the Nottingham Writers’ Circle placed adverts in the ‘Evening Post’ and ‘Nottingham Guardian’. Still going strong, the Club can count Helen Cresswell, Alan Sillitoe and a largely... 
by Administrator | Aug 19, 2020 | Readers & Writers
Look Out For Small Publishers Thanks to a renewed interest in poetry and short stories, new publishing houses seem to open every week, meaning there are literally hundreds of potential places ready to feature your best work. While the existence of numerous independent... 
by Administrator | Aug 14, 2020 | Quick Reads
For his 2012 book ‘Made in Nottingham’, Peter Mortimer returned to Danethorpe Vale in Sherwood, a road he had left behind when he went to University some half a century earlier. Hoping to stay at the home he grew up in, Mortimer wrote a letter to ‘The occupants, 97... 
by Administrator | Aug 14, 2020 | Quick Reads
For me, as for many people, it’s been a summer of reading. I’ve not had the brain space or inclination for creative writing and preparations for next term’s online teaching have taken a toll. For the last eleven days, Sue and I were meant to be travelling around...