INKWELL Copywriting, Ghostwriting, PR

Don't throw it away! Write about it.

The unique writing project, Throwaway Lines, has been transformed into an exhibition. 

Lead by 26 member Andy Hayes – who collected handwritten pieces of 'throwaway' from the streets of London – a bunch of writers (including me) wrote short stories about a hand-picked piece of 'trash'.

Once this litter was turned into litterature, the stories were uploaded to this blog. Now, a group of designers have got their hands on the stories and developed the ideas still further.

If you're in London over the coming month, get down to the Free Word Centre to see what gems can be picked up on London's streets.

Writers' Pecha Kucha = terrifying and exhilarating

It's good to meet fellow writers in a generous spirited, communal environment. Which is why I try not to miss the annual get together of 26, a 'collective for writers who want to inspire a greater love of words, in business and in life'. Plug over.

The event is called Wordstock, and this year futurist, historian, scientist, business advisor and prize-winning author David Bodanis (haven't you read e=mc2?) got top billing. 

It gets better each year.

We also got to pick and mix workshops about…

• getting published (Acacia Avenue’s Martin Lee, Unbound's John Mitchinson and other industry names)
• PR for authors from bestselling author, Sara Sheridan
• kickstarting fiction (Saint Martins and Arvon author-teacher, Elise Valmorbida)
• speech-writing (Brian Jenner, founder of the UK Speechwriters’ Guild)
• public speaking (Sharon Duce, actor and speech trainer)

The event kicked off with six members (including me) presenting a Pecha Kucha (Google it). Terrifying and exhilarating in equal measure.

It finished on a more polished note: Jacob Sam-La Rose doing what he's best at – proving poetry is for all of us.

It all happened on 13th October at The Free Word Centre, London. 

Book me a place at next year's event!

 

The Word is...

I'm writing so much at the moment that I haven't had time to write about the hugely successful writing festival that I helped organise a couple of weeks ago.

The Word brought together 50 or so writers from Lancashire for a day of stories and inspiration from Ra Page of Comma Press, Manchester blogger Kate Feld, writer Claire Massey and thriller writer Kerry Wilkinson. 

The Word was also the launchpad for our writing project, Writing Astley Hall, which we hope to turn into something permanent. We've got the stories, we just need a little inspiration to transform them into a tangible record of the day.

The Word was intended as a one-off event to help create a network of writers in Lancashire. But after reading the generously complimentary attendee 'happy sheets' at the end of the day, it would be churlish not to have another go next year. Same venue, same format? Who knows.