News from New Writing North: 26 May 2023
New trustees join NWN
We’re delighted to share the news that four new trustees will be joining our board from June 2023.
Gary Wright, Chief Operating Officer and Director of the Great Run Company, event organisers of the Great North Run, will take on the role of Treasurer at New Writing North. He will be joined on the board by Caroline Greenwood Dower, an independent psychotherapist, trainer and organisational consultant; Ian Crow, a partner at Newcastle-headquartered Ryder Architecture; and Matt Forster, an associate director and senior leader at brand communications agency Gardiner Richardson.
The four new trustees will join a board whose members are based nationally, representing leadership and expertise in publishing, education, media and the arts. Read more about our Staff and Board here
Young Creative Associates 2023
We are delighted to announce our cohort of ten Young Creative Associates, the next generation of creative entrepreneurs in the North of Tyne area. Over nine months, this groups of 18-30-year-olds will work with creative industry mentors and their peers as they are supported to explore sustainable routes of self-employment. They will learn business basics, financial management, fundraising, networking and project development skills, and receive a bursary grant of £1000 to support their projects.
Read more about our Young Creative Associates and their projects here.
Last chance to enter the Channel 4 Writing for Television Awards
There’s only 10 days left to apply for the Channel 4 Writing for Television Awards! With bursaries, mentoring support and unique placements with production companies up for grabs, these awards are a great opportunity for new screenwriters based in the North of England to get started in the world of TV writing. Deadline 5 June, find out more here.
Freelance Creative Producer opportunity
We are seeking a freelance Creative Producer to lead our ambitious West End Writes programme in the Scotswood & Benwell areas of Newcastle, which aims to engage a broad range of people from local communities in creative activity. The postholder will have excellent interpersonal skills and a strong track record of creative facilitation as they develop relationships with community-based organisations and individual residents. Deadline midday, Monday 5 June. Download the full freelance brief and apply here.
Freelance PR opportunity: Literary prizes
New Writing North is looking to work with a freelance PR to support its communications strategy for two major literary prizes: the David Cohen Prize for Literature and the Gordon Burn Prize.
The appointed person/ agency will work to raise the profile of these prizes through national coverage. The ideal candidate will have strong experience working on literary prizes and/or books publicity. They will creative ideas about how to raise the profile of both prizes. have an extensive range of media contacts and be adept at securing excellent coverage.
Find out more and submit a proposal by midday, Wednesday 7 June here.
Opportunity: Turn Up For The Books
Aged 18-25 and live in County Durham? Interested in a career in literature, the arts, or events programming? We're looking for 15 people to take part in Turn Up For The Books 2023. You'll take part in industry-based workshops and training; get the chance to programme a Durham Book Festival event; see behind the scenes at the festival; have the opportunity to review a Durham Book Festival event; and more! Find out more and apply by Wednesday 7 June here.
Opportunity: North East Novelists
The journey of developing your writing doesn’t end when you sign with your agent, get your first book deal, or even when you’re publishing your third, fourth or fifth novel. Our brand new North East Novelists group provides craft development and a supportive network for writers navigating life as a professional author.
At minimum, accepted members must be under contract for their first novel and be represented by an agent. The group will be based in and around Newcastle upon Tyne, but writers from across the North East may apply. Find out more and apply by 3 July here.
Opportunity: Creative Associates Residencies
Supported by North of Tyne Combined Authority, we are seeking five writers or creatives based in Newcastle, North Tyneside or Northumberland to take part in a six-month residency to create new artistic work as part of our Creative Associates programme.
Our Creative Associates bring fresh perspectives to the organisation, while being supported to develop their own creative projects and artistic practice. Each Creative Associate Residency will have a budget of £5000 to support the creation of their artwork.
Download the full brief and apply for a Creative Associates Residency by Monday 31 July here. There is also an optional Zoom meeting on Wednesday 14 June, if you would like to find out more about this opportunity.
Free drop in: How to Write a Young Adult Novel
Are you a Young Adult fiction writer in need of expert guidance? Come to a free Zoom drop-in on 31 May to hear more about our How to Write a Young Adult Novel online course with Professional Writing Academy. It's the perfect opportunity to get a taste of what the course will be like before you commit to booking, and to discuss your questions with course tutor and world-leading YA writer LA Weatherly. Register for your free place here.
The full course begins on 26 June, with a 60% discount available for residents of Newcastle, Northumberland and North Tyneside. Read more about all our online courses here.
Join us for an event in Newcastle this summer
On 6 June 7pm, we’re delighted to showcase some recent winners of the Northern Writers’ Awards at a special showcase event at the Magic Hat Café. We’ll hear readings and discussion from: essayist Adam Farrer, author of the acclaimed Cold Fish Soup; eco-poet and musician Jade Cuttle; and Naomi Kelsey, who will be celebrating the publication of her debut historical novel The Burnings. Tickets £5, available here.
On 22 June 7pm at the Biscuit Factory we’re celebrating the launch of one of the most anticipated crime debuts of 2023: Speak of the Devil by Rose Wilding. Rose will be in conversation with bestselling crime author Ann Cleeves. Standard tickets £10/£8 or get our book-and-ticket offer for £20, available here.
Come along to our Summer Proof Party with Tinder Press to get hold of advance proof copies from Sarah Marsh and Amy Twigg, two of Hachette UK’s most exciting new novelists. Sip on fresh fruit bellinis as you get an exclusive first look at these upcoming debut novels. 5 July 7:30pm at the Magic Hat Café, tickets £18/£15, available here.
Download our full Summer Programme here.
Lockhaugh Farm: Special subscriber offer
This year, Lockhaugh Farm in rural Derwent Valley, Tyne and Wear, will be hosting winners of the Northern Debut Awards (part of the Northern Writers’ Awards) over two weekends in Autumn 2023.
The farm and its self-catering accomodation, which includes a renovated Stable House, Gardener’s Cottage and two Railway Carriages, overlooks fields and forests with uninterrupted views to National Trust Gibside and the Column to Liberty. Wild swimming, cycling and endless walks lie just beyond the gate. The night skies are beautiful and often punctuated with calling owls and the rustle of hedgehog and badges.
Easily accessible via public transport (buses regularly run from Newcastle Central Station) or by car, it’s an ideal place to retreat to for a few days. NWN newsletter subscribers can receive 10% off a mid-week stay until the end of July by emailing Lockhaugh Farm directly quoting the offer code NWNMay23.
Find out more at www.lockhaughfarm.com, on Facebook at @lockhaughfarm or on Instagram at @lockhaugh.farm.
People, publishers and podcasts
Well done to two of our 2021 Northern Writers’ Awards alumni on their recent successes:
- Patricia King has had her novel manuscript, Outsider Art, named a finalist for the 2023 PEN Bellwether Prize and longlisted for the 2023 McKitterick Prize. She has also been awarded a Tennessee Williams Scholarship to the Sewanee Writers Conference.
- Harminder Kaur has won The Bridge Award/Moniack Mhor Emerging Writer's Award which will support her to complete her novel in progress.
Coast to Coast to Coast is a prize launched by previous Northern Writers’ Awards winner Maria Isakova-Bennet which publishes limited-edition handmade journals through competitions, private commissions and collaborative projects. The winners of the 2022/23 prize have now been announced and will be invited to launch their journals in Liverpool, read more here.
unfinishing is the podcast about projects that are incomplete, abandoned, or not public. Presented by Emily Anderson, each episode features a different guest talking about something they never completed or never shared with the world. Previous guests include writers, artists, musicians, dancers, designers, academics, and even gardeners. If you have an unfinished or unpublished project that you’d like to talk about, please contact unfinishing.pod@gmail.com.
Congratulations to York based writer Rue Baldry for winning the Commonwealth Prize (Canada and Europe region) with her short story ‘Lech, Prince, and the Nice Things’. The five regional winners were chosen from a shortlist of 26 stories from more than 6600 entries. The overall winner will be announced at an online ceremony on 27 June.
Patrick Belshaw’s short story ‘My Nigel’ was highly commended in this year’s Crossing the Tees Short Story Competition and has been published in Crossing the Tees: The Sixth Short Story Anthology.
Hooray for Danielle Jawando, whose coming-of-age novel, When Our Worlds Collided, has won the Jhalak Prize children’s and young adult award.
Competitions, awards, and submission opportunities
Applications are now open for Future of Film Incubator 2023, a unique virtual programme designed to help screen storytellers bring their projects to market. This 8-month process will mentor, guide and support creators with 1-2-1 coaching, sessions with some of the most respected players in the industry and dedicated learning opportunities with new technology. Deadline 31 May, find out more here.
With support from the New Writing North Young Creative Associate's Scheme, The Braag CIC is opening for submissions of poetry pamphlets and micro-chapbooks! They’re looking for work that is sprawling and speculative, where the last wolf in England may be hiding in stanzas thick as ancient woodland. Towering smokestacks are just as welcome and the landscapes do not have to be pastoral, they can be tapestries of ghosts, spells, glimpses from a moving train—Surprises are welcome too. Pamphlets of between 15-30 pages of poems in a .docx or .pdf format can be emailed to thebraagcic@gmail.com by 30 June. Full guidelines available on their website.
The Lindisfarne Prize for Crime Fiction recognises outstanding writing in the genre of crime or thriller fiction, sponsored by the author LJ Ross. It is open to all writers who are from, or whose work celebrates the North East of England, and who have not previously had their submission published in any form. The winning entry will be awarded a prize of £2500 to support the completion of their work. Deadline 30 June, find out more here.
Fox and Windmill’s second collection featuring essays and short stories on the theme of food will be published in Winter 2023, inspired by the significance of food culture within South Asian communities. They want to share authentic food stories, essays about life and cooking, the joys, the hardships and the comfort it brings. Submissions are open for essays and short stories until 30 June, find out more here.
The 2023 Stephen Spender Prize for poetry in translation is now open for entries. Translate any poem from any language into English, and win publication and cash prizes. This year, the Stephen Spender Trust is delighted to extend the Open category to adults aged 19+ from all over the world, welcoming translations into all World Englishes. Deadline 14 July, find out more here.
The national Aurora Prize for Writing 2023 is now open until 19 July! Our friends at Writing East Midlands are seeking short fiction and poetry entries, with a £500 cash prize in both categories, editor/agent feedback, and a year’s Society of Authors membership available. More information here.
The Caledonia Novel Award 2024 is an Edinburgh-based, international award for unpublished and self-published novelists in all genres for adults and YA. Top prize of £1500 and a free place on a writing course at Moniack Mhor Creative Writing Centre. £25 per entry, deadline 1 November. Find out more here.
Freelance opportunities and jobs
Live Theatre, Newcastle upon Tyne, has a vacancy for a New Work Producer to join them as they enter their 50th year as one of the country’s leading theatres dedicated to new work. Deadline 30 May, find out more here.
Barrowfull, based in Barrow-in-Furness, is looking for a dynamic, established theatre-maker (director/writer) to research, write and direct a new piece of theatre for young audiences exploring the subject of positive behaviour between young people. Apply by 5 June here.
Seven Stories, Newcastle upon Tyne is seeking a Data Project Coordinator to help renew and expand its systems with a renewed digital infrastructure. The postholder will initially support the project planning and development of a new website and CRM ticketing system. Deadline 7 June, more details here.
Manchester Literature Festival is seeking a Treasurer to join the Board of Directors/Trustees and to help lead one of the North’s most innovative literary festivals in its exciting next phase of development. Find out more and apply by 9 June here.
Ilkley Literature Festival has a variety of both staff roles and volunteering opportunities to work on this year's festival, with the first closing date on 12 June. Find out more here.
The Reader is seeking a Digital Manager to develop its use of digital services to further its mission of transforming lives through the power of literature. Deadline 12 June, find out more here.
The Bronte Society is currently looking for trustees. It is a registered charity responsible for the accredited Bronte Parsonage Museum in Haworth and is dedicated to promoting the Brontes' literary legacy within contemporary society. Find out more and apply by 16 June here.
The Southbank Centre is now recruiting for the New Poets Collective 2023-2024. It will comprise a group of 15 poets aged 22+ who will hone their skills and expand their knowledge and confidence. Over the course of a year, the group will develop creatively while drawing upon – and contributing to – the rich and varied artistic life of the Southbank Centre. Application deadline 5 July.
Workshops and events
Celebrate what it means to be from the West End of Newcastle at West Start, West Middle, West End on 13 June, a workshop followed by a family-friendly performance event by Poet in the City at West End Library, Benwell, featuring the best in live local music, poetry, storytelling, discussion and food! Find out more here.
The York Festival of Ideas 2023 invites you to Rediscover, Reimagine, Rebuild with an exciting programme of over 150 free in-person and online events to educate, entertain and inspire. Meet world-class speakers, experience incredible performances, join entertaining family activities, explore York on guided tours, and more! Taking place from 2-15 June, browse the full programme here.
Looking to kickstart your career in publishing? Not sure where to look for advice, support and guidance? Join indie Manchester publisher Comma Press at The Manchester Writing School at MMU for a full-day deep dive into the UK publishing industry. Hear from leading editors, marketers, publicists, sales and production managers on their day-to-day roles. 15 June, tickets £45, book here.
Join a 3-hour poetry masterclass with Katherine Horrex to look at Hebden Bridge and its waters in new ways, to draw from past and present-day local experiences and to put these into poetry which ebbs and flows. The work made by participants will be shared in an exhibition on 15-16 July as part of the Open Space 70 arts trail. 24 June 1:30pm at Hebden Bridge Town Hall, book here.
Trans Writing Group facilitated by Ennis Welbourne (they/them), is a free 8-week online group open to trans and gender non-comforting writers. Starts 2 July, taking place on Sundays, 7-9pm over Zoom. Application details available here.
Young aspiring poets, unleash your poetic voice with captivating workshops at the Roundhouse in May and June, including protest poetry, getting your poetry published, and a general poetry masterclass.
If you have news that you would like to be considered for inclusion in the newsletter please contact carys@newwritingnorth.com. The deadline for receipt of information for the next newsletter is 23 June 2023.
While every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this newsletter is correct at the time of going to press, things do change, frequently at the last minute and very often without our knowledge.
