First Draft

We're so thrilled that with our @ace_national funding we've been able to support these fantastic writers' residencies at @McrWritingSchl & @MMUSpecial. Don't miss them in action on 9 Nov! @amoRbackwards, Lydia Hounat & Merrie Joy Williams eventbrite.co.uk/e/let-the-arti…

I've got a great workshop lined up for @LITmacclesfield, and it's only a 20-minute train ride from Manchester Piccadilly. Pep up your performance — aimed at short story writers, but perfectly suitable for poets and novelists too. litmacc.org/post_type_even…

Hey hey #spokenword friends. My spoken word night Big Words, what I run with that playwright fella Ali McDowall, is BACK on the 28th November. Fancy 5-7 on our invisible microphone inside @vinyl_fiction? Gimme a shout. instagram.com/bigwordsmcr/

💙💛💖Happy publication day to The Craft and the 24 poets who contributed essays & editor @BetaRish - so proud of this awesome writer’s handbook! The perfect desk companion, packed full of ideas on making & shaping poetry today. Order here: ninearchespress.com/shop.html#!/Po…

Nov. 21 I'll be in Manchester reading from Remembered and enjoying a potluck supper. The meal celebrates #community #Sharing. I hope you join me and bring a dish to share at this free event. facebook.com/events/4371195… @joannuski @realstoryuk @commapress @cultureword @VerboseMCR

Next up from our anthology contributors is Abi Hynes (@AbiFaro) with "Rosie", in which a close encounter between the human and the animal finds a dark, inchoate, primal kinship between them: ThisIsSplice.co.uk/2019/07/24/ros…. The whole piece is available on our website.

#poets + #museums = magic Today we have come together to launch the zine publication #LetTheArtistsIn Poets In Residence Merrie Joy Williams, Lydia Hounat & Roma Havers inspired by @MMUSpecial @ManMetUni supported by @ace_national @thewritingsquad & @FirstDraftMcr

Great to hear @lymhlymh sharing her new weave written out of her @FirstDraftMcr residency @MMUSpecial and @McrWritingSchl this summer. Here she reflects on her experience in a photo-essay. www2.mmu.ac.uk/poetrylibrary/…

"Death is a next-door neighbour Who visits far more often than grief." Read 3 new poems by the brilliant @r_awolola, inspired by the history of @NewcastleCastle firstdraftmcr.wordpress.com/2019/09/30/the… #LetTheArtistsIn @ace_thenorth

In case you missed it - last week we published 3 poems by @r_awolola that mix the history of @NewcastleCastle with contemporary politics. You can read them for free here! firstdraftmcr.wordpress.com/2019/09/30/the… #poetry #spokenword #newcastlecastle #LetTheArtistsIn

@GulliversNQ @hauntMCR @HalloweenMcr Joining us on Monday 7th October at @GulliversNQ is ABI HYNES @AbiFaro, drama & fiction writer extraordinaire! A Channel 4 Screenwriting 2018 grad, Abi’s short fiction has been published widely, & she is one of the masterminds behind @FirstDraftMcr. Tix: fatso.ma/Nmbd

JUST PUBLISHED: Three new poems by @r_awolola, originally commissioned for and performed at our #FlyingDonkeys event @NewcastleCastle. Read them here: firstdraftmcr.wordpress.com/2019/09/30/the…

In case you missed it: Last week we published a beautiful new poem by Fahad Al-Amoudi, commissioned for our event @NewcastleCastle and inspired by the building's bloody history. Read it here: firstdraftmcr.wordpress.com/2019/09/13/a-b…

They tore down my auntie’s building, kicked out her great grandchildren, stone by stone this terradome had never known such growing pains Fahad Al-Amoudi's moving poem inspired by @NewcastleCastle's history firstdraftmcr.wordpress.com/2019/09/13/a-b… @thewritingsquad @ace_thenorth #ACEsupported

New on our blog: a fantastic poem by Fahad Al-Amoudi of @thewritingsquad, commissioned for our #LetTheArtistsIn event @NewcastleCastle. Read it here! firstdraftmcr.wordpress.com/2019/09/13/a-b…

Join us for an evening of readings from the poetry and prose of Tania Hershman and Rosie Garland, two acclaimed Manchester-based writers who are currently working in the Gothic mode - in conversation with our Professor Dale Townshend eventbrite.com/e/writing-manc…

REMINDER: We’re still looking for #submissions from creative people of colour from, or currently based in, the North West of England! ‼️ DEADLINE: Tuesday 1 October Please RT 🙏🏾

The Costa Short Story Award is open for entries until 1st August. Submit up to 4,000 words for a chance to win £3,000. It's free to take part. costa.co.uk/costa-book-awa… @CostaBookAwards #writingprize #writing #shortstories

Aged 11-17? Send me your poems by 31 July in the #FoyleYoungPoets of the Year Award! I’m judging this year’s competition with @RaymondAntrobus and can’t wait to read your writing. Help us spread the word and enter now: foyleyoungpoets.org

If you're a writer aged 18-25, you can still apply for the Lynne Gagliano Award. An opportunity to be attached to the building for a year with a writing assignment to create a new piece of work. The deadline to apply is Friday 19 July. More info: bit.ly/RCTLynneAward