I'm very excited that I've been asked to read at the next Glue Gun '91. The theme for the night is 'Glue Velvet' and it will be themed around the films of David Lynch. The night contains 'strobe lighting and scenes of violence'! 'It begins with a clown and ends with a spider'.
I will be reading a new story, set in Brighton, that will unsettle and disturb. You must come along! The night starts at 8:30pm and is completely and utterly free.
My next reading is going to be part of the Melbourne Arts Festival in the village of Melbourne. I am going to be reading some of my stories which will then be followed by a performance from poet Les Barker. The event starts at 7:30pm in Melbourne Public Hall. Tickets cost £7 – they can be booked in advance, so get in touch if you want details.
My new post on literaturenetwork.org is now live: Big Game Hunting in the Bookshop. It's about the disappearing world of the secondhand bookshop and is unashamedly nostalgic. Writing it has put me in the mood for spending a weekend exploring Brighton's secondhand bookshops. Anyone up for an expedition next weekend?
"I love buying things on-line. No matter how strange or obscure the item I want, there always seems to be someone selling it. The most interesting thing I’ve bought recently is a mid-nineties guide to British second hand book shops. This book, by the mysterious Driffield, is long out of date: most of the shops listed that I remember from 15 years back are no more. The guide would likely be little use in navigating present-day second hand bookshops (although I sometimes day-dream about trying)."
I'm a bad person: I meant to post a month or so back about the new issue of Penumbra magazine, which includes a story of mine called 'Easter Rains'. Here's the opening:
"Ghost songs. They’d been drinking beer, kind of bored, when someone mentioned this radio station out in the woods that broadcast to no-one. Some guy had a radio transmitter and broadcast his favourite songs, not caring if anyone listened or not. A passing car might pick it up, if anyone actually drove out that way.
So they’d gone into the country, turning the dial until they found a station that was playing the Sid Vicious version of My Way. They pulled over and sat on the bonnet drinking beer. Song followed song with no adverts or idents, mostly cheesy rock, each record becoming something more in the moment. And he often thought he’d never have felt like he did now if making music meant as much to him as transmitting it had to that man."
Easter Rains recounts the last few days in the life of Kurt Cobain. I was a huge Nirvana fan at the time Cobain died and have read most of the biographies published since his death. What fascinates me is how the story has changed over the years. Initially the books recounted a doomed love affair between Kurt and Courtney but some later volumes have taken a more cynical turn
Listening to Doll Parts again recently ('yeah, they really want you, but I do too'') brought back the freshness, the innocence of those early accounts. I miss the story of Kurt and Courtney how it was originally, two lost people who found in each other the missing parts of themselves. Whether or not the later accounts are more accurate, for me the earlier books told the better story.
I wrote Easter Rains in Coventry last summer. It's closely based on factual accounts of the hours preceding Cobain's suicide, most notably the Cross biography and Everett True's stunning work, Nirvana: the True story. But, as you'll find if you read it, I tinkered with the end a little.
As mentioned above, Easter Rains can be found in the new issue of Penumbra. Copies can be bought from the Penumbra website for £4.95 which includes P&P. Thanks to Alex and Elle at Penumbra for publishing the story; and to Rosy and Ian for their feedback on the earlier drafts.
My new post is up on literaturenetwork.org: Let's have a golden age:
"Every year 1,300 creative writers qualify from British universities. Every year. Think how much raw talent that represents. Thousands upon thousands of people capable of crafting their experiences, hopes and fantasies into decent prose and poetry. So where are they? Where are all the little magazines, spoken word nights, pamphlets and small presses? There are some out there, but not enough to reflect the work of 1,300 additional writers a year. It’s an artistic version of the Fermi paradox: if they’re out there how come we don’t see them?"
One of the things I've enjoyed most about writing for the literature network is exploring different aspects of the explosion in creative writing. In this post I'm considering the huge potential of the huge number of people studying creative writing. Please have a read and add a comment. Thank you!
I had a fantastic time at Short Fuse last night. There was an excellent line-up and it was lovely to read just before Rosy, who has done some amazing performances recently. The night ended with stories from David Bramwell and Ros Barber, both of whom were enthralling. I loved being be part of such an exciting, friendly night.
I'm currently very excited as Alex and Elle, the folks behind Penumbra Magazine, have invited me to
read at Ride the Word X on Monday June 15th. The night is organised by Salt
Publishing and features a range readers, including Salt poet Vincent de Souza and short story writers Jay Merrill and Richard Bardsley.
Alex and Elle are doing a talk at the start of the evening, which will feature readings from myself and Luke Roberts. I've been asked to read LIBRARYS, a story of mine that was published in Penumbra's first issue. It's probably my favourite story, but I'd not considered reading it aloud until Penumbra suggested it. I'm very excited about reading this piece since its formatting makes it interesting to reproduce orally.
The event takes place at Stratford Library, E15 1EL (map here). Admission is free and the night starts at 7pm, continuing until 9:30pm. It would be lovely to see some familiar friendly faces there.
I was asked last night if I could read at Short Fuse in Brighton tonight as one of the other performers was unable to read. I am going to be reading my story Puddlejumping. Also reading tonight are the stunning Ros Barber, as well as Cheeky Guide author David Bramwell and my friend, poet Rosy Carrick. The theme for the night is True Stories. Ros is reading an award winning piece called 'Re-Shape Whilst Damp', and David Bramwell has "an hilarious
story set at a Saltdean Seance". It's going to be a fascinating and exciting night, so do come along. The night is held at the Komedia's Studio bar and doors open at 8pm. Entry is £5.
Last night I read at the opening night of Short Fuse Hastings, which was held at the Rooms. It was my first trip to St. Leonards in a long time but I didn’t get much chance to explore. I was reminded, however, exactly how dull the road from Brighton to Hastings is.
The Rooms was quite a small space, which the audience easily filled. The night featured a mix of Brighton and Hastings writers – Short Fuse is good at picking an interesting mix of writers, and all the stories were interesting and engaging. My favourite performances were AK Benedict‘s fairy tale Zoetrope and an excellent story by a recent Sussex Graduate about unemployed slackers watching TV.
I read a story called ‘Puddlejumping’. I’d rehearsed it quite a few times so, once the first few paragraphs were done, I felt fairy relaxed. When I’m reading and it seems to be going well I sometimes feel weirdly disassociated. I’m reading the words, but at the same time part of me is looking at the audience and wondering what they’re thinking of the story. Which is fine, except I sometimes panic because I won’t remember actually reading the previous paragraph aloud: what if I’ve been standing onstage, reading it in my head? But I’m sure somebody would have told me if I had a habit of doing that.
Thanks to Tara for inviting me to read. I’m looking forward to watching the next Short Fuse, on June 7th at the Komedia, which features Ros Barber and David Bramwell reading true stories about Brighton. I’m also hoping to visit Hastings for the next event there, and will maybe explore some old haunts beforehand.
Today has been tiring, so I’m off to bed to read comic books. Hopefully tomorrow will be less trying.
I don't know how many readers this weblog has in the Hastings area, but just in case: I'm reading at the opening night of Short Fuse Hastings on Sunday May 31st. The night starts at 8pm in The Rooms Cafe Bar in St. Leonards and costs £5.
I like St. Leonards. Back in 1998 I lived in the Grand Hotel ("as seen on Channel 5's The Hotel Inspector"). St Leonards was a strange place, dominated by the impressive Marine Court; under the building nestled a Dr. Who shop, keeping the faith in the programme's wilderness years. I believe Iain Sinclair lived in Marine Court around the time I was in St Leonards – certainly I recognised some of the background characters in his novel 'Dining on Stones'. You can get a good idea of the town from the Lost Promenade's recent visit (see here and here).
Anyway, if you're at the night, come and say hello. I've not decided what to read yet. I do have one story about St. Leonard's ('The Final Performance of the Puppy Dog Ballet') but I might ignore that in favour of something more substantial.
I'm putting on a one-off night of spoken word on June 16th at Brighton's Marlborough Theatre. The best thing about organising an event is choosing who you want to see perform. I've selected some performers I'm very excited about seeing:
Tickets for the night will be £4 on the door (details of how to book in advance will follow). We're starting at 8 with the main performances finishing around 9:30 – so if you've got work the next day you can make it home in good time. I'm currently planning a few things for those don't have a curfew and want to linger. This will be the first spoken word night with a director's cut.
I also want to have a stall on the evening with books and pamphlets from local writers. Leave a comment below if you're interested and I'll get in touch.