St Ives Lit Fest / Tir ha Tavas / John Phillips

The St Ives Literature Festival 2013 is running from Saturday 11th – Saturday 18th May. (NB That’s this coming Saturday folks ! ) A host of events are to be held at St Ives Arts Club, St Ives Library and Café Art. Books by festival authors are for sale from Harbour Bookshop.

• Book Launches, Readings and Workshops.
• Poetry And Music In The Square – daily in Norway Square.
• Free Speech – Open Floor – daily at Café Art.
• The Big Frug

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On Friday 17th May. Local duo Tir ha Tavas, Delia and Dave Brotherton, have teamed up with guests Vaughan Bennett, Peter Burton, former Grand Bard of the Cornish Gorsedd Mick Paynter and fluent Welsh speaker Gareth Parry for an evening of words and music starring the Cornish language, Kernewek, with a tasty serving of Welsh alongside.

“We will be presenting our personal selection of prose, poetry and song in the old Celtic tongue,” said Delia, “a language almost lost in the mists of time yet one that lives on in the daily life of West Penwith and beyond.”

Featuring many original compositions, this special evening will be held at the St Ives Arts Club starting at 9pm and marks the first of several events over the coming months to raise the profile of the Cornish language in a performance.

“The Celtic language of Cornwall is once more being embraced as a symbol of her historic past,” added Delia, “reviving from ancient roots, while ever changing in the hands of the next generation who cherish the old culture and nourish the new.”

Tickets £6.50, or 5 for £30, are on sale now from Café Art in St Ives, tel 01736 799450, or from the St Ives LitFest organiser on 753899 or from Dee on 799305. There is a full programme with more information on the St Ives Literature Festival website www.stiveslitfest.co.uk

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John Phillips was born in St Ives. His poems pose questions about how we perceive the world through language and the senses, deftly weaving together details of the external world with reflections on the thought processes and on the nature of words. At the St Ives Arts club at 15:00 on the opening day of the festival, Saturday, the 11th May, he will be reading poetry from his work so far.

His publications include Language Is (Sardines Press, San Francisco, 2005) and What Shape Sound (Skysill Press, Nottingham, 2011). He work has appeared and been reviewed in a variety of magazines in this country, the U.S., Australia, Austria, Japan and Israel; it can also be found in the following anthologies: From Hepworth’s Garden Out (Shearsman Books, Exeter, 2010), Haiku in English: The First Hundred Years (W. W. Norton & Company, New York, 2013), and Succint (Broadstone Books, Frankfort, Kentucky, 2013). He runs Hassle Press, which has published a range of poets.

Tickets £ 5.00 from Cafe Arts, tel 01736 799450, at the door or ring Jasna Phillips on 07969727040.

Call for submissions for Murder of Krows 2

Duncan Yeates and Abigail Wyatt are inviting poets and artists to contribute to our next Murder of Krows* anthology.

The submission guidelines are as follows:

1)    All contributors should be resident in Cornwall.

2)    Poetry of a serious nature is looked on more favourably than comic or light-hearted verse.

3)    Please do not submit any more than two poems although there is no limit on length.

4)    All submissions should be e-mailed to either lallocropia@gmail.com or abigailelwyatt@rocketmail.com. Please submit poems as .doc or .pdf attachments where possible.

5)   Artwork can be any style or theme. All work should be black and white and scalable to A5 size. Please submit work as JPEGs.

6)    The closing date for all submissions is 1st June 2013.

*Murder of Krows is an anthology of poetry by published and previously unpublished Cornish poets. The first volume was launched at the Melting Pot Café at Redruth in March 2013 and proved to be a great success, selling out its print run and attracting guest readings from Dr Alan M Kent and Les Merton. If you would like to get a feel for the content and style of the first anthology, a PDF of it is available by e-mailing lallocropia@gmail.com. There are also a very limited number of copies left at the price of £2.00 inc. P+P – again please e-mail lallocropia@gmail.com if you wish to purchase one.

There will also be opportunity for all contributors tor read at the anthology’s launch night at The Melting Pot Café.

 

Review: Voog’s Ocean by Dr Alan M Kent

Voog’s Ocean: a historical drama embedded with magic realist and spiritual overtones and a poetic and compelling new novel from Alan M Kent.

Readers of Kent’s previous novelistic output such as the social realist trilogy of Charlie Curnow books may be initially surprised that Kent has now shifted his attention to the opposite end of the historical spectrum. However, this dovetails exactly with what appears to be one of Kent’s key themes in his writing: a thorough and thoughtful examination of the Cornish identity and the Duchy’s impact on the wider world.

The geographical sweep and attention to detail in this novel is superb. Beginning in West Cornwall Kent introduces us to a fogou builder named Voog – who, after an unforgiveable indiscretion at the expense of a local village chief, is banished from his home. Displaced, he undertakes an epic seagoing journey assisted by a broad cast of unusual characters, many of who represent the evolving dynamic between pagan spirituality and the emergence of Christianity. Without wishing to ruin the plot of the novel Voog’s final stop on his journey works as an intelligent foreshadowing of Cornish migratory patterns in years to come.

The most striking thing about Kent’s writing in Voog’s Ocean is its sheer lyricism; something fitting with both the period in which the novel is set and the tone of many of our remaining stories from this era. It is also worth remarking on the verisimilitude of Voog’s voice. Having read countless novels where the narrator’s voice is clearly that of the author; it is refreshing to see in Kent’s sensitive and sparing use of dialect the cadences of Cornish speech. In addition to this I would commend to the reader’s attention the insight and understanding contextually relevant to Voog’s status: he knows what he knows and is an engaging and convincing narrator because of this. However, fans of the earthy humour and honesty Kent evinces in much of his written output will also not be disappointed. This is mainly due to the fact that although gifted with a poetic, storytelling voice Voog does not flinch from Kent’s trademark dark humour or covering the more unsavoury elements of the period.

As well as being a meticulously well-researched historical novel, Kent’s narrative also makes some interesting use of magic realism. This dovetails well with our lack of concrete knowledge of the era, and the myths and legend prevalent at this time – many of which were created by travellers such as Voog.

Rooted in Cornwall but with an acute awareness of the Duchy’s context in world history, Voog’s Ocean represents another positive phase of Kent ‘s journey to establish and delineate the specifics of Cornish identity.

Alan M. Kent and Les Merton guest at launch of new Redruth poetry anthology

Following the “Call for Submissions” post in the Cornish Lit blog last year, Duncan Yeates and Abigail Wyatt are delighted to announce the launch of their poetry anthology, “Murder of Krows” on 20th March at 7:00 pm at The Melting Pot, Redruth.

Featuring guest readings from the prolific and talented Alan M. Kent alongside Les Merton, the editor of “Poetry Cornwall”, this promises to be both an exciting and significant occasion to make space for in your diary.  The anthology itself is a selection of local poets from the Redruth area and beyond and gives an insight into the sheer diversity of work being produced in the small community of people who often convene to perform their work at The Melting Pot’s late opening Wednesday nights. In addition to this are other previously published and well respected poets such as John Phillips, and visual artists who work with language such as Janet McEwan, ensuring that this is a collection of work that really does showcase what Cornwall has to offer.

The night itself will include a free buffet and drinks for all who attend and a chance to buy a copy of this numbered and strictly limited anthology at the sum of £1.00.  If you are interested in purchasing an advance copy, please contact Duncan Yeates at lallocropia@gmail.com.

Please come and support Cornwall’s burgeoning creative writing scene. We intend that this anthology will be the first of many to promote Cornwall’s many published and unpublished writers.

New Release: Cornish Studies 20 edited by Phillip Payton

At some point over the end of 2012 the latest volume in the Cornish Studies series of books was released by University of Exeter Press.  The series has, for the past twenty years, offered a collection of articles which have perceptibly and effectively altered our thinking about notions of Cornwall and Cornishness and, although I haven’t yet seen the contents of number 20 it should continue in this tradition, being a festschrift for the recently retired Bernard Deacon.  Bernard’s analysis of nineteenth and twentieth century Cornish social and industrial history in particular has been one of the principle developments in the “New Cornish Studies” whilst his contributions to language studies, literature studies and social studies have been no less welcome or insightful.

Priced at £15.99, Cornish Studies 20 is a paperback of 272 pages.

Yule Book Review: The Mousehole Cat by Antonia Barber

Antonia Barber has had a second home in Mousehole since the 1980’s.  There are few things Mousehole’s more famous for in Cornwall than Tom Bawcock’s Eve and so it should come as no surprise that an author residing there for any length of time should hear the tale.  Here, Barber reworks the legend as a short story for reading with small children, beautifully illustrated by Nicola Bayley.

In Barber’s version, the story is told from the point of view of Mowzer, Tom’s Cat (or, as the story is told, Tom is Mowzer’s pet human).  She opens the book by proclaiming a land between the seas at the end of England – a perception of Cornwall firmly rooted in her second-home owning experience.  Such an image is also a powerful one though and fitting for introducing a legend and, indeed, any story to be read aloud: setting a dramatic scene and capturing the audience’s attention from the off.  Here, the illustrations form a core part of the book rather than being simply supplementary to the imagery of the text: the book is clearly designed to be read with a child, being wide enough to spread across a lap and every page being illustrated to some degree or another – there is a double-spread without any text, but never the other way around.  In fact, the text rarely takes up more than a quarter of the available page space (half of one side).

Mowzer is present throughout the book, even accompanying Tom to sea, where she fights and comforts the storm.  Of course, no-one knows how Tom survived the storm (if the legend is true in any way), so why not allow the author some licence for an exciting, magical climax to the story?  Beyond that point, the author’s version is pretty faithful to the traditional version.  If you know any children around five years old, I’d strongly encourage you to buy this book for them and read it together.

New Editorial Team at Poetry24

Here is an announcement from Poetry24, site where ‘News is the Muse’.  The present editors, Martin Hodges and Clare Kirwan, who established and developed the site, are moving on in order to devote more time to their own projects.  I am delighted to say that the new editorial team includes me, Abi Wyatt so please have a look at the site at www,poetry-24.blogspot.co.uk and maybe consider making a submission. 

Sunday Review, and…. the New Editors!

 

Many thanks to the poets who have kept the submissions coming in during Poetry24′s time of transition – of which exciting news in a moment.

Not that it’s been a very cheery week: do we find it comforting or depressing to dwell on the suffering of others? Either way, there’s plenty of it around at all ages from Amy Barry’s bleak pieta of A Boy’s Life in Gaza to  David Subacchi’s no-frills old soldiers in No Country For Old Men. Also disappointed this week were Noel Loftus, whose thoughts on fractured Ireland churned like his washing machine in Fell fast asleep at noon and Abigail Wyatt’s nostalgicEngland, My England. “I did have the world on / a paper plate; / the family silver still belonged to you.” 

Where will it all end? Afric McGlinchey saw a bigger picture in Existential risk: while we muse on distant planets and ancient gods, the machines might just cull ‘the human herd’. Not so, says James Gordon, who sees us more as the saviours, the benefactors, who can save our Threatened heritage if we choose to do so.

Talking of saving a threatened heritage, I am delighted to say that Poetry24, on the brink of being culled, has been taken on by enthusiastic new editors, all of whom have had poems published here. Here are a few words from two of them:

Abigail Wyatt 

Hello, I am Abi. I was born in Essex but I am now based in Redruth in Cornwall. For many years, I was Head of English and the Expressive Arts at Redruth School but, in 2004, I retired from teaching following a period of illness. Since 2007, I have spent as much time as possible developing my own writing, mainly poetry and short fiction. I have been a regular contributor here at Poetry24 for about a year and I am looking forward to the challenge of becoming part of the editorial team

Abi’s blog is abigailelizabethwyatt.wordpress.com 

Hamish Mack

I am Hamish Mack, aged 50 mumble and living in new Zealand, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Lord of the Rings industry. 
I have been writing poems for about 3 years after being eased into it by an internet friend. I have found poetry to be a great help in dealing with sudden onset unemployment and the immediacy of Poetry 24 had me hooked from the first time that I visited it. Clare and Martin surprised the hell out of me by accepting some of my poems and I will always be grateful to them. This is part of the reason that I have volunteered for this position. That and the key to the Editors Liquor Cabinet, which has not arrived yet…
I will do my best for this site and for the poets that frequent it. This is a very important time time for poets to be speaking the truth to power. Keep  it up, folks.

Hamish blogs at Light of Passage. 

The other two poets who have volunteered for the editorial team - Martin Bartels and Mike Holloway - will introduce themselves next week.

I’m thrilled that Poetry24 will have this new injection of energy and I hope all you poets and subscribers will give the new team all the support you can – with plenty of quality submissions and by spreading the word. I’ll probably be still hovering in the background, too, like an anxious mum at the school gates when the bell goes…

Have a great week

Clare (and the new tea