Exciting news and cool collaborations

 Hello!

I hope you are well. I have been enjoying spring - it has been lovely to see friends for the first time in a year, have picnics, and go for walks. There has been blossom, fluffy goslings and cygnets, bees and bluebells, and I have been feeling hopeful and positive.

Grants and commissions

Amazing news - I have been awarded a DYCP grant from Arts Council England, to develop my poetry and performance skills. My focus will be on really embracing and owning my queerness in my work, and I will be mentored by some fantastic poets. I cannot wait to get started.

 At the end of March, I delivered my "The Little Things" commission for Beetfreaks, and we had a lovely presentation evening. I performed my spoken-word piece, "Rockpools", which looks back over the first year of the pandemic, and how different communities supported me. I am currently working on putting together a film version to share on here, so watch this space!

 The First Dibs theatre-writing course is going well, and I am building up my spoken-word show. We have had guest workshops from Leo Skilbeck, Louise Wallwein, Cheryl Martin, and Scottee & Friends. I am enjoying the course literature - Temi Wilkey's The High Table and Philip Ridley's Vincent River were especially moving.

Teaching

I work as a languages tutor, and I had been hoping to start tutoring poetry as well. So, it was brilliant to deliver my first solo poetry workshop, to Durham Poetry Society. Entitled "The magic in the mundane", I crafted the workshop around finding moments of magic in our daily lives, at a time when travel, adventures and excitement can be limited. 

 I also led a segment of the Writing Squad's "Workshop workshop", which was a series of mini-workshops led by different writers. My section looked at mythical creatures, exploring them in new ways, and using humour. The writers came up with many different characters, with drafts involving centaurs, gnomes, mermaids, flower fairies, and more.

Publications and collaborations

My favourite thing as a writer is working with other people to create something amazing, and there has been so much of that recently to creatively fulfil me. I hope that this continues.

 Firstly, my poem "Whale baby" has been published in the Growth Issue of Popshot, and illustrated by Simona de Leo. Her artwork is perfect for the poem, and makes me happy whenever I look at it. 

 My poem explores different options that I have considered for having a child as a queer woman, as well as the equally-valid option of not choosing that path at all. That this poem has found a place in such a widely-read magazine feels really empowering, and I hope that it will reach and comfort people.

 Secondly, Unheard Poetry have made a gorgeous film from my poem "The frog pool" - you can watch it by clicking the orange title. The poem is also below.

 "The frog pool" is part of the Dreams for Green series, which is a celebration of our planet and a call to protect it. I feel incredibly strongly about this, and write about it often. So, I was really happy to be part of Earth Zine from Coin-Operated Press, with my eco-poem "How to draw a fish".

 The poem was then also featured in the Press' 2020-2021 Annual, which was really cool.

 More excitement came when my poem "Winter blazer" was chosen for the first-ever issue of Skirting Around, a magazine exploring clothes and identity. 

 My poem tells the story of the first time I bought and wore a "men's" suit blazer, and the range of emotions that it made me feel. I filmed myself reading the poem for the website (wearing the very blazer!), and also read live at the launch, which was a really fun evening.

 Three of my poems were published in the Amy Ray Zine. Songwriter Amy Ray is one of my biggest inspirations, in my writing, activism, and being comfortable with my identity. It was an honour to be part of the zine, which was created to celebrate Amy on her birthday in April.

 It is also lovely to have two of my queer poems in Issue Three of Queerlings - I had hoped to be part of this journal for a while. I hope you enjoy "My other half" and "Indigo nights".

I am also pleased to have three poems - "Imperfect days", "The player", and "Why you should exist" in the She Speaks anthology from Tipping the Scales. You can read it online here, or buy the paperback here.

In May, my poem "Risen" was published in Visual Verse. We were challenged to respond to this intriguing image by an Unknown Artist.

I also have poems coming up in Lighthouse, The Adriatic, and Under the Radar, and my queer coming-of-age short story "Siren" is going to be published in York Literary Review. I can't wait to share them all with you.

 Finally, as always, Foxglove Journal publishes a poem or fiction piece every week - I love editing and taking the photos for Foxglove, and am proud of how the site has grown. I hope you enjoy it, too.

Spoken-word, events and workshops

I was a featured act at Open Dyke Night, run by LQW, and performed five of my most passionate and rallying poems, addressing queerness, self-love, belonging, and the environment. The audience were warm and supportive, all the acts were brilliant, and it was a very special evening.

 My poem "Pilot" was showcased by Young Identity for Earth Day, with a film of me performing it. It is so important to me to keep sharing this message - we need to reduce waste, stop polluting the oceans, and protect whales and other animals. 

 I shared a film of my poem "What I always wanted poetry to tell me", to mark International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia. You can also read the poem at Popshot, here.

 I took part in two editing workshops, one with The Writing Squad and Charlotte Wetton, and one with Fly on the Wall and Nikki Dudley. They were quite different, and it was interesting to get new perspectives. I certainly feel that I have more tools now for editing my poems.

 I have also enjoyed workshops with Andrew McMillan and Sarah Fletcher through the Poetry Business, and with Rachel Long, Steve Dearden, Sian Meades-Williams, Jamal Gerald and Keisha Thompson through The Writing Squad. Having access to these organisations has been so helpful to me throughout the pandemic.

Baking, languages and other fun

It was lovely seeing many of my friends from Village Bakers in person for the first time in over a year, when we met for our socially-distanced Spring Picnic in Heaton Park. I enjoyed discovering a rainbow ice-cream cone!

 You can read all about the Picnic, and much more, in our Spring Newsletter, which I curated as Head of Media and PR. It features delicious bakes by our members, an interview with lovely baker Sakander, and my poem "Apple crumble", which talks about baking and mental health.

 I am very proud to have completed the Irish course on Duolingo, and I am now continuing my work on Mandarin Chinese, as well as starting Finnish. I will let you know how it goes.

 That's all for now! Many thanks for reading, and for sharing my writing journey. I hope you have a lovely summer - or winter, depending on where in the world you are!

 Liz x

Visual Verse - When you told me about pigs

 Hello! Oink!

 Just letting you know that my flash fiction piece "When you told me about pigs" has been published in Visual Verse. For August's issue we were challenged to respond to the above image by Jacob Owens.

 I hope you enjoy my story.

 Liz x

Starring on AndWhatTV!

 Hello!

 I am very happy that my poem "Blood ghazal", which previously appeared in GASP, is this week's featured spoken-word piece at AndWhatTV! You can see me perform it here.

 We drove all around Manchester one cold, sunny morning, finding the perfect spot to film. I hope you enjoy the result. I am always surprised by how Northern I sound!

 Thank you to Nicole May for organising, and to everyone who has supported my spoken-word work.

 Liz x

Speak Easy, Stretford - A summer adventure

 Hello!

 Having performed at a number of the central Manchester spoken-word nights, such as One Mic Stand, Speak!, Bad Language, the Poetry Pop Jukebox Co-op and Stirred, I started venturing further out. I recently read at Verbose in Levenshulme, which was lovely, and this week I tried out Speak Easy in Stretford.

 I had never been to Stretford, and as it was a sunny evening, I decided to walk there from the centre of Manchester after work. The journey took me around an hour and a half, and I stopped from time to time to talk photos in the lovely summer light.

 I arrived at Stretford Sip Club and enjoyed a fun and genuinely varied night of performance, with a mix of humour, seriousness, and some singing, which was quite different and refreshing. It was really nice when everyone got the chorus and joined in.

 I enjoyed performing my poetry to a new crowd, and was really happy to be invited back to do a longer set. I hope to return - watch this space! I caught a tram back to Manchester, as walking all the way back might have been a bit much! But I am glad I walked there.

 Thanks to Speak Easy for having me, and to the warm and welcoming audience, and thank you for reading my blog and sharing my adventures.

 Liz x

News - Spring 2019

 Hello!

 Happy July! I am settled in my new job and greatly enjoying life in Manchester. I have been taking part in a number of creative events, from meeting the recent US Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith, to being a member of the newly-formed International Foundation of Us, and having my jumper and scarf become archive items.

 In May I took part in my second film-making weekend in Sheffield with the Writing Squad, and this time I had a starring role! I hope you enjoy Five New Messages and my acting debut as Catherine, the hotel cleaner.

 I reviewed The Space Between by Meg Grehan for North West Libraries' Time to Read blog - I hope you enjoy reading about one of my favourite books.

 I received a free ticket to see Siri Hustvedt at Manchester Literature Festival, as a member of the Festival's YA Steering Group. On a gorgeous spring evening, I headed to Deansgate Waterstones to hear Siri read from her new book, Memories of the Future, and then discuss it with Katie Popperwell. Siri is clearly incredibly intelligent, with her own way of seeing the world and fascinating ideas about time and memory. It was a thought-provoking event.

 I then attended the launch of Manchester Metropolitan University's journal aAh!, at which my friend Laura Potts performed her poetry. It was lovely to hear her, and we enjoyed a meal out afterwards.

 The next day was the Northern Publishers' Fair at Manchester Central Library. I learnt about so many presses and publications, and met some cool people. I had a nice chat with Jo Clement, Editor of Butcher's Dog Magazine, and bought Issue 11, which I read in one sitting and really enjoyed.

 I took part in two spoken-word nights in three days, with Verbose on Monday and Bad Language on Wednesday. It was intense, but fulfilling and fun. May's Verbose had the theme of Zodiac, and I shared my poem "Dogteeth", among others. My set at Bad Language included "Blood ghazal" and "Arrival". At both events I chatted to some new people and had a good time. I also discovered Levenshulme and its colourful bee!

 Again through the Manchester Literature Festival Steering Group, I was offered the chance to see Tracy K. Smith in conversation with Jackie Kay at the Central Library. It was an incredibly rainy June night, but for a couple of hours my world was lit up by incredible poetry and a great chat between two amazing women. I met both afterwards and got my books signed. They were so sweet and really uplifted me.

 I attended a Writing Squad workshop at the International Anthony Burgess Foundation, at which we decided to start the International Foundation of Us. We reviewed books we love - guess which is mine! - catalogued our possessions and made podcasts in which we discussed our creative inspirations and work. We also ate a lot of chocolate and grapes. It was a gentle and memorable day.

 The poem I wrote during the Writing Squad Lunch Poems workshop in Leeds earlier this year is also now online - I hope you enjoy "Sweet".

 So, that was my spring, writing-wise. I'm hoping to keep the energy going for a positive, creative summer. I already have some new and exciting things lined up, from mentoring to festivals to radio to poetic film, so watch this space!

 Thanks for reading.

 Liz x

The Writing Squad - Lunch Poems in Leeds

 Hello!

 As a graduate of The Writing Squad, I was delighted to get the chance to visit Leeds to take part in a workshop with poet Andrew McMillan and photographer Lizzie Coombes.

 At Yorkshire Dance, our base, Andrew shared some poems capturing place and city life, and we discussed them. Lizzie gave a presentation on the history of street photography, from which I learnt a lot. She gave us some tips, and then we headed out into Leeds to take some photos.

 It was great to be reunited with my friend and fellow writer Laura Potts. We ate lunch together, and it was lovely to catch up.

 Some of the things I spotted and try to capture on our travels were a brolly in a bin, a lone baby boot sitting on a post, a rainbow mosaic, fruit sellers at the market, multicoloured rolls of carpet, many pigeons, and a man working in a sweetshop, who inspired a poem I wrote on our return to the group.

 I hope to do something more with these photos, so for now I will abstain from posting them, except for the rainbow above. I performed the first draft of my sweetshop poem to the group, and it received really nice feedback. It may well be appearing online soon, so I look forward to sharing it with you.

 I returned to Manchester feeling happy and accomplished, having drunk three hot chocolates, taken lots of photographs, written a few poems including one I really liked, and spent the day with cool people.

 Thanks to Steve, Andrew, Lizzie, Laura, Lydia and the rest of the crew for creating such an encouraging and relaxed atmosphere. I hope to be able to take part in many more workshops.

 Liz x

Poetry Pop Jukebox Co-op #3

 Hello!

 I was very happy to be invited to perform at the third edition of the Poetry Pop Jukebox Co-op. This is a spoken-word night with a difference - each of the five guests reads their own work, a piece by another writer, and some song lyrics that they admire or which have a personal meaning for them.

 It was a beautiful evening, with spring just arriving. I made my way to Gullivers, a venue I really like and where I performed last year, at Bad Language.

 I would be reading first, which was slightly daunting, but I embraced the challenge. I was very moved when my friends Hayley and Andy arrived to support me - it was lovely to be able to share my passion for poetry and performance with them.

 I read four of my poems which, although I chose them primarily because I liked them, happened to be a good taster of my work, touching on some of my key themes.

 These included bodies and identity in "Blood ghazal", travel, nature and memory in "Peaches", destiny and chance in "17th February", and Manchester and belonging in "Arrival".

 For the poem by somebody else, I chose "Venus" by Carol Ann Duffy, as I love its simplicity, and how it combines very intimate moments with a moment watched by people all over the world - a lover's body with the transit of Venus.

 For my song lyrics, I recited "Point Hope", by Indigo Girls, written by Amy Ray. Amy is a big inspiration to me as a writer, and I chose "Point Hope" because its message is so important, and because for me it is a remarkable example of how to write respectfully and well about something that seems so awful as to be unwritable.

 I enjoyed hearing the other four performers, including Jane Bradley, with whom I got talking after the gig, and who had some remarkable stories to share involving togas and babies. She hosts the spoken-word night That's What She Said, which I hope to visit soon and maybe even perform at.

 I hadn't known exactly what to expect from the Poetry Pop Jukebox Co-op, but it turned out to be a wonderful night out, and I certainly intend to return for more poems and song lyrics, and the great sense of camaraderie and support.

 If you would like to invite me to perform at an event, please do get in touch.

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

News - January and February 2019

 Hello!

 Since my last news update, Spring has been slowly making its way to Manchester. I am enjoying my job and flat, and exploring parts of the city I didn't really know as a student. I have been very busy, but have made time for hobbies such as baking and singing and, of course, my creative writing.

 I have been attending Young Identity regularly, and learning so much. It really is like a family, and one of the highlights of my week. Through Young Identity I took part in my first poetry slam, One Mic Stand, which was an important experience for me, and a quietly empowering one.

 I shared my poem "Campfire", about health and body image. Through it I discuss some painful moments, but the tone is of comfort and hope.

 I also represented Young Identity at Big Words, a cosy and fun spoken-word night in Chorlton. I read four poems, which all mentioned blood - it wasn't intentional but ended up being quite a nice link! You can read one of them, my "Blood ghazal", online in the Poetry School's anthology GASP.

 I took the train to Liverpool to attend the launch event for both Coast to Coast to Coast, and pamphlets by Jane Lovell and Rebecca Gethin - the latter of whom I have had the pleasure of publishing in Foxglove Journal.

 I heard some beautiful and unusual poetry, and watched the sun set over the docks. It was a memorable evening.

 I enjoyed a writing workshop by Malika Booker here in Manchester, with The Writing Squad. I learnt some new writing exercises and took fellow participant and poet Laura Potts on a magical mystery tour of Manchester in search of inspiration.

 We visited Emmeline Pankhurst and ended up in Chinatown. 

 We also wrote a poem about lemons. It was a strange and lovely day.

 I have been continuing my year as a Digital Reporter at HOME, learning new skills and polishing old ones. So far in 2019, we have had masterclasses in filming and editing video, and working with audio. I am really enjoying getting to know the group and creating little projects I can be proud of.

 Issue 62 of Now Then Manchester's Word Life had the theme of "Magic" and was a really nice one to curate - I hope you enjoy it. We have also had some powerful poetry and fiction in Foxglove Journal.

 I received an exciting piece of news: I have been announced as a winner of Hedgehog Poetry Press' Tree Poets Competition and will be published in the pamphlet Tree Poets: Flames of Ice later this year. There will hopefully be a launch event - watch this space! 

 I look forward to sharing this set of poems, which are inspired by my time living in France and explore nature, body and mind, and identity.

 Finally, my short story, "On earth, looking up" has been published by Visual Verse and is free to read online - I hope you enjoy this tale of fish, stargazing and wondering whether it is ever too late to take a chance.

 Thanks for taking the time to read my news and share my writing journey. You can also keep up with me on Twitter and Instagram.

 Have a lovely couple of months!

 Liz x

Young Identity at Big Words, Chorlton

 Hello!

 I was invited as a member of Young Identity to perform at spoken word night Big Words at Vinyl Fiction in Chorlton. 

 I hadn't been to Chorlton in five years, and had a mini-adventure hopping on a tram and heading off into the sunset. It was a relief to see the familiar shape of the big Morrisons, as well as some blossomy trees and Brewski, where I stopped to enjoy a halloumi burger and sticky toffee pudding.

 I arrived at Vinyl Fiction and settled in for a really nice night. I heard some amazing work, both from my Young Identity friends, and from writers who were new to me, and who I am happy to have discovered. 

 I shared my "Blood ghazal" from the anthology GASP, as well as some of my newer poems, to a great reception - the audience was attentive and warm, and having my friends there, smiling at me and finger-clicking at their favourite lines, was extra-lovely.

 With enthusiastic hosts, a game of Vinyl Fictionary (nothing at all like Pictionary...) in which I correctly guessed an answer (Van Morrison), and little touches such as our names being written up nicely on a board behind us, it was fun, and cosy, and I will definitely be attending Big Words again.

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

One Mic Stand - February 2019

 Hello!

Photo by Alex Morgan

 Having been a regular member of Young Identity for around six months now (having previously attended on and off as university life allowed), I was overjoyed to be able to take part in my first One Mic Stand, the collective's showcase poetry slam at Band on the Wall.

 I was one of ten poets competing for a prize of £50, although winning was far from my mind as I performed - just standing on the stage and sharing my poem, "Campfire", which is quite personal and very close to my heart, was an empowering and memorable experience.

 I scored 51/60 overall, including a 10/10 from one judge for my content, which was wonderful. The winner was Saf, whose performance was intense and powerful. I loved hearing all of my friends from Young Identity sharing their work, and overall it was an amazing night.

 Thank you to Young Identity and Shirley May for making this happen, to Nicole May and Reece Williams for hosting, and to the lovely, supportive audience.

 Liz x

Young Identity - 2018 highlights

 Hello!

Keisha Thompson and Reece Williams presenting One Mic Stand

 I was a member of Mancunian spoken-word collective Young Identity for the final few months of 2017, but it was in 2018 that I really got stuck in and attended regularly (before that it had been difficult due to me living in a catered university residence, with meal times clashing with workshops). 

 I now take part in the group every week that I can, and it has become like a family to me. Everybody has been incredibly supportive and has made me feel comfortable sharing my writing, even when I have only just written it and it still feels very raw. 

 Having a space to practise performing has been invaluable to me in a year when I have hugely increased the amount of spoken-word work that I do. It is also humbling hearing the wonderful work of the other writers - we are all so different, and I get to learn about the world in so many ways, through so many voices.

 Special highlights have included attending One Mic Stand, Young Identity's own poetry slam, and being awed by the talent of the performance teams, and reading at the launch of our anthology No Disclaimers - such a lovely night of friendship and creativity.

 I enjoyed curating a special Young Identity edition of Word Life, and putting together a feature on the group, interviewing CEO Shirley May, and poet and editor Frankie Blaus.

 I was also delighted to review Keisha Thompson's show Man on the Moon, and interview her - Keisha was a core member of Young Identity, and her talent for spoken word, music and storytelling really inspires me.

 Thank you to Shirley, who has been so encouraging to me, and to everyone at the group, with shout-outs to Toreh O'Garro, Nicole May, Nasima Begum and Roma Havers for making me feel so welcome.

 I'm very much looking forward to seeing what is next for Young Identity in 2019.

 Liz x

The Writing Squad - 2018 highlights

 Hello!

Leeds

 This year I officially graduated from The Writing Squad, after two years of workshops and events. However, the great thing about the Squad is that even as a graduate you stay a part of the community and can be very much involved.

 This year, one Squad moment really stands out, and is one of my proudest achievements as a writer. I was commissioned by Manchester Literature Festival to write an original piece about what reading means to me, to encourage young people - and older ones - to read for enjoyment.

 I was incredibly proud to share "On stories and snow" at the Take Ten event at Manchester Central Library, and it felt like a major milestone for me as a spoken-word performer.

 I also attended two Writing Squad workshops, which both happened to be in Leeds. The first was with Hannah Silva, who taught as about performance techniques and technologies, such as using a looping pedal. 

 She also performed for us, and her work blew my mind in how different and brave it is, and how precise her timings have to be for the pieces to work. I was really inspired to try new things and grow as a performer.

 The second workshop was led by Stevie Ronnie, who shared his passion for making books and pamphlets. We learnt how to make precise cuts and folds in paper, and basic book-binding stitches. This workshop included a number of Squad members I hadn't met before, so I made some new friends.

 It was interesting to be so hands-on in a publishing process, making these precious, limited-edition items, and it made me much more aware of the possibilities in putting my work out there. I would definitely consider creating a small run of handmade zines or pamphlets.

 I discussed with Stevie how I wanted to work on the structure and presentation of my poetry on the page, and he was really helpful. Hopefully we can talk more about this in the future.

 I also met with Steve Dearden, the Squad Director, to generally discuss my writing and what will come next. I'm really looking forward to 2019 and moving forward as a creative.

 Thanks for reading, and thank you to everyone who has followed my writing career so far.

 Liz x

Northern Poetry Showcase and Roadshow

 Hello!

 I had an enjoyable night performing at the Northern Poetry Showcase and Roadshow at York St John University. I was invited as one of the five 2017-18 New North Poets, and read three of my poems to an attentive audience. 

 It has been a whirlwind year since I won my Northern Writers' Award. I have been mentored by Clare Pollard, attended two writing retreats , been published in GASP, and felt my poems strengthen. The Showcase was a cosy and fun way to celebrate the journey we New North Poets have been on.

 Thank you to the Poetry School, New Writing North, and everyone else who has supported my writing.

 Liz x