Welcome to Stuff. The Poetry Trust's latest news, events, podcasts and publications.

Two favourite poets coming to Suffolk

Thursday 16 July, 7.30pm, The Cut, Halesworth

Tiffany Atkinson
Atkinson’s debut collection Kink and Particle was published to wide acclaim by Seren in 2006. This smart, sexy and often very funny collection established her as one of the rising stars of UK poetry. As winner of the Jerwood Aldeburgh First Collection Prize (2007), her jubilant performance at the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival in 2008 was one of the outstanding performances of the whole festival. Listen to Tiffany reading her darkly funny poem ‘Bad Karaoke’ on The Poetry Channel

Neil Rollinson
Rollinson’s bold, surreal, edgy and erotic poetry celebrates a sense of wonder at the universe. Born in Yorkshire in 1960, Rollinson studied Fine Art in Newcastle before moving to London. He has published three collections of poetry most recently Demolition (2007). His work was reviewed by Alan Brownjohn in The Times as ‘...hilarious, watchful, profound and sharp’.

We’re delighted to showcase two such original and appealing poets and sincerely hope you and your friends will join us at The Cut for a summer storm of electrifying poetry.

**SPECIAL OFFER FOR FRIENDS OF THE POETRY TRUST**
Two tickets for the price of one - just tell the Box Office when you book.

Tickets £7.50
Box office 0845 673 2123

 

Welcome to the surreal world of Peter Blegvad

Peter Blegvad - creator of the dreamlike philosophical landscape of the Leviathan comic strip - is The Poetry Trust’s commissioned artist for 2009. Blegvad’s cartoons entertained Independent on Sunday readers during the 1990’s and it’s fantastic to be working with him. His new Poetry Trust illustrations will be showcased in the 21st Aldeburgh Poetry Festival programme and you won’t need to wait long to get your hands on a copy: distribution starts next month! Peter’s illustrations will also be integral to the look and feel of the sixth issue of The Poetry Paper, to be launched at the Festival.

 

Closing date for the Aldeburgh First Collection Prize fast approaching

As part of our mission to nurture and champion new talent, the Aldeburgh First Collection Prize is one of the most valuable contemporary poetry awards in the UK. We invite submissions from publishers or individual poets who have had a first collection of at least 40 pages published in the UK and the Republic of Ireland between 1 August and 31 July 2009.

The winner not only receives a cash prize of £3,000 but more importantly a fee-paying invitation to read at the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival 2010. This is an unparalleled opportunity to reach Britain’s largest and most appreciative poetry audience. In addition the winner receives a week of paid ‘protected’ writing time on the inspirational East Suffolk coast. Previous winners include Guardian columnist Nick Laird who went on to receive the Somerset Maugham Award and the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize in 2008.

The deadline for entries is 31 July and the judges (David Constantine, Mimi Khalvati and Michael Laskey) will announce the shortlist in October. The winner will be announced at the 21st Aldeburgh Poetry Festival 6-8 November 2009.

For details of the free submission process click here or call 01986 835950, email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

 

New Marketing and Communications professional joins The Poetry Trust

We want to make an even bigger noise in celebrating world wide poetry. This summer we welcome our new Marketing and Communications Manager, Alice Kent. Alice has a background in journalism and a wealth of experience in marketing in the charity and private sector. She’ll encourage new and existing audiences to enjoy and engage with contemporary poetry. In particular she’ll lead on establishing our new digital platform, The Poetry Channel as a major player in international poetry.

“This is an exciting time to be joining The Poetry Trust. The organisation has seen phenomenal growth since starting out as a small group of committed and passionate Suffolk poets. I love poetry and all forms of creative writing, it is fantastic to be able to use my marketing experience in a field I really enjoy”. Contact Alice at: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

 

 

Sharon Olds partners with The Poetry Trust for series of UK events

Described by the Guardian as ‘America’s greatest living poet’, Sharon will participate in series of events in the UK this summer brokered by The Poetry Trust. Starting with The Poetry Prom at Snape Maltings Concert Hall on 25 August, she’ll read alongside the UK’s Alan Brownjohn and Finuala Dowling from South Africa. On 27 August The Poetry Trust is holding ‘An Evening with Sharon Olds’ at the Hampstead Theatre in London. This is both a fundraiser and part of our development plans to host poets in new venues across the UK. We’ve also coordinated readings for Sharon at the Edinburgh International Book Festival and at Topping & Co bookshop in Bath, maximising the UK presence of this astonishing poet. For further details click here or call 01986 835950

 

Friends of The Poetry Trust

If you like The Poetry Trust’s work and can offer a little extra support, then please become a Friend. In return for a £15 annual subscription, Friends enjoy Special Offers (see Poetry at The Cut above) as well as an exclusive priority booking period for the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival. As dedicated Festival audiences know all too well, Aldeburgh events frequently sell out: so being a Friend offers a real benefit. If you join now you will receive exclusive priority booking (from 18 - 26 August) to the celebratory 21st Aldeburgh Poetry Festival in November.

To join, email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) and we’ll do the rest.