Pulp Idol Firsts 2016

We had a wonderful evening in the new beautiful Music Room to celebrate our local authors.

On Thursday 10th December, we celebrated our Pulp Idol writers first chapter. 12 writers made it to our Pulp Idol final and have had the opportunity to work with established editors before getting their work published. With great success from previous finalists Pulp Idol is an inspiring opportunity for writers. Pulp Idol focuses on supporting new original voices and getting them heard. We provide a platform for up-and-coming writers, helping with exposure to new audiences and providing contacts with key publishers and agents. Thank you to all who joined in the celebrations! 

You can buy Pulp Idol Firsts 2016 in News From Nowhere

or get it on kindle here 

On the night we also held an interesting and insightful Q&A with previous Pulp Idol winner, John Donoghue to discuss his debut novel, The Death's Head Chess Club. The book has sold to America and is being translated for Norway, Poland, Italy, Greece, China and Brazil. It's an incredible tribute to the success of our Pulp Idol novel writing competition. 

John says, 'I really do feel that, to a great extent, I owe this to Pulp Idol. My agent (Carolyn Whitaker from London Independent Books) contacted me after seeing the anthology of the finalists' first chapters. It was she who managed to get me in front of a highly respected editor, Ravi Mirchandani, leading to the subsequent book deal.'

To end the evening we heard an amazing set from upcoming Liverpool artist, Rosenblume. A perfect way to end a very successful night, celebrating local talent. 

December Project Celebrations

George Garrett Travelling Man with

St Vincent Primary School

On 8th December we started the day with a 'Hunger March' recreated by St Vincent Primary School to celebrate their George Garrett - Travelling Man publication. Our Garretteers have been delivering writing workshops with years 4,5 and 6 since September which culminated in a book launch at the Women's Organisation Building. George Garrett (Actor, Paul Duckworth) even made an appearance to congratulate the pupils! You can read the publication here

What's Your Story? with Advance PSS

& Brothers of Charity 

Later that day, the WoW team went to Thingwall for the Brothers of Charity & Advance PSS What's Your Story? celebration event. Curtis Watt led a fantastic showcase performance with the group featuring poetry, movement and music.

What's Your Story? Stroke Association 

On Friday 11th, we travelled to Manchester CityLabs to watch a performance from our What's Your Story? Stroke Association group who had been working with Chris Mellor to produce creative writing from their life experiences. The group read from their publications and told stories. A very moving event.

- WoWFest 2016 Announcement -

WoWFest 2016 is all about exploring the future past and present (well, it’s all relative isn’t it, Einstein?) through sci-fi, super heroes, graphic novels, comics and…a Time Machine! What can sci-fi teach us about climate change or our climate of fear; what is the long term effect of smartphones and surveillance? We’ll be featuring the best of SF classics, voying into the wonderful world of Afrofuturism, Cover Girls and Girl’s Comics, technologies for creating and living, and, as ever, tilting to the future with a whole star ship full of new and up and coming writers. Countdown begins now…Lift Off scheduled for May 2016.

Black Poppies Unveiling!

Saturday, 19th December 2015

1pm at Liverpool Central Library, William Brown St, L3 8EW

Free Event. All Welcome.

In commemoration of the black contribution to World War One, over 100 black poppies have been hand crafted by members of the public under the guidance of renowned artist Faith Bebbington. Faith has taken these poppies and created a stunning art work that will be on display in the hub of Central Library as part of the City’s Weeping Windows experience. Weeping Widow is the iconic poppy sculpture that is currently cascading down the pillars of St George hall. 

 

The Black Poppy sculpture idea arose out of a Writing on the Wall heritage project which focuses on an archive of letters and documents highlighting the plight of black soldiers, seafarers, and workers in Liverpool following demobilisation in 1919. This archive contains the testimony of men from the Caribbean, West Africa and other colonial territories, who had fought for England on land and at sea during the Great War and were then left stranded, destitute and subject to racial violence on the streets of Liverpool.  The documents reveal a plight of daily racism and loss of jobs because of the boycott by white workers, a boycott often supported by the trades unions. This tension led to the race riots of 1919, which resulted in many serious assaults and attacks and the murder of Bermudian seafarer Charles Wootton. The Black Poppy sculpture is designed to raise awareness of the events of 1919 and the historic experience of Liverpool’s black community and to highlight the sacrifices made by Black families during the First World War and the period that followed. 

Writing on the Wall have been working with a group of dedicated volunteers drawn from the local community who catalogued and digitized the archive to create a dedicated website. The documents can be viewed at www.greatwar-to-raceriots.co.uk. A selection of the archive is on display of the third floor of central library.