literature Archives - Blackpool Social Club

12 Aug

Seaside Shuffle: local writers pen Blackpool anthology

Linda Hampton0 CommentsLiterature & Spoken Wordauthors, Blackpool, blackpool art scene, books, community, heritage, literature, memoir, Place, poetry, publication, Stories, tea amantes, writers

Local author Linda Hampton (Sailing To The Moon), hosted the launch of a unique collection of writings last week – Seaside Shuffle. As a contributing writer to the collection, she tells Blackpool Social Club readers how work from local writers manifested into a new publication It was a packed house at Tea Amantes Community Arts on Albert Road in Blackpool, as many of the 37 Blackpool-based-or-connected writers, and friends, piled into to celebrate the culmination of nearly a year’s work, the publication of the anthology Seaside Shuffle - an eclectic mix of writing styles, and points of view all summoning…

01 May

Linda Hampton shares debut novel Sailing to the Moon

Linda Hampton0 CommentsGuide, Literature & Spoken Wordauthor, books, creative writing, library, literature, local author, novel, tea amantes

Blackpool author, Linda Hampton muses on the hurdles and bumps in the road that must be navigated to write and publish a book, and invites you to find out more about Sailing to the Moon, her debut novel that took her five years to finish. After five long years of swinging between getting on with it and sheer procrastination, and many, many life events that made it difficult for me to just write, I finished my debut novel, Sailing to the Moon. Sailing to the Moon is a story about the invisible ties that connect two people over a lifetime,…

05 Oct

Poetic License: Showcasing the work of local poets

Blackpool Social Club1 CommentLiterature & Spoken WordBlackpool, blackpool arts scene, heritage, literature, poet, poetry, writers, writing

To celebrate National Poetry Day, Blackpool Social Club launches Poetic License, a new series to bring you poetry about Blackpool and written by Blackpool poets It's National Poetry Day today, 5th October, and to mark the occasion BSC is bringing you some of the poetry that sprung from a place-inspired poetry writing workshop. As part of the Heritage Action Zone (HAZ) Cultural Programme, in July this year local writers came together at the new home of the community arts organisation Aunty Social on Topping Street, seeking their poetic muse in a workshop hosted by local writer and published author, Linda…

11 Jul

Blackpool Social Club Presents: Claire McGlasson in conversation

Blackpool Social Club1 CommentGuide, Literature & Spoken WordBlackpool, heritage, historical fiction, literature

Blackpool Libraries and Blackpool Social Club present author Claire McGlasson in conversation on 14th July. McGlasson will be discussing a historical novel about the disgraced Rector of Stiffkey and his Blackpool sideshows in the 1930s. Margaret Finch has just begun work in a position that relies on her discretion and powers of observation – documenting the behaviour of working-class holiday makers in Blackpool in the interwar period. Harold Davidson, the disgraced Rector of Stiffkey, is the subject of a national scandal and has also arrived in the seaside town to win over the masses by appearing in its famous sideshows.…

06 Jul

Podcast: novelist Claire Fuller talks octopuses and the Memory of Animals

Blackpool Social Club0 CommentsLiterature & Spoken WordAntonia Charlesworth Stack, Claire Fuller, Lancashire Stories, literature, podcast, The Call of the Sea, The Memory of Animals, The Reading Ramble

The Costa Novel Award-winning author of Unsettled Ground has released a stunning new piece of speculative fiction, The Memory of Animals. She chats to writer and editor Antonia Charlesworth Stack, about their shared fascination with octopuses. Octopuses are having a moment. In scientific discovery and in literature. In this special Blackpool Social Club edition of Lancashire Libraries’ Reading Ramble podcast, Antonia Charlesworth Stack sits down to chat with Claire Fuller about her new novel, The Memory of Animals, and the unlikely themes it shares with her story, The Call of The Sea – part of the Lancashire Stories anthology. https://open.spotify.com/episode/3NyaaUWquyf7IMuhsUAd0U?si=YaL8AdeTTT-4sZvpsxeTrQ…

14 Sep

Blackpool to host Word Fest Literature Festival

Linda Hampton0 CommentsLiterature & Spoken Word, Theatre, Dance & PerformanceBlackpool, book, books, bookshop, celebrity, children, Comedy, entertainment, families, literature, podcast, Spoken Word, Winter Gardens

Blackpool is getting its very own literature festival this autumn in Word Fest, a weekend of literary events and spoken word where literary heavyweights and popular authors host events side by side with celebrity writers. Running between Friday 7th until Monday 10th October 2022, the festival takes the form of a series of ticketed events to hear authors talk about their love of writing and their books, answer questions and sign books for fans. Most ticket prices include a copy of the latest publication by the author. Hosted and held in the Winter Gardens and co-produced by Kirkham's independent coffee…

12 May

Review: Three Girls by Katie Clapham – a novel of friendship, changing lives and running

David Simper0 CommentsLiterature & Spoken Word@publishing uclan, book, fiction, literature, local author, three girls, young adult fiction

In Katie Clapham's first young adult novel, the three girls of the title are thrown together in a school brochure photo shoot and at that time are not actually friends. This changes as events develop, presenting a realistic picture of how lives alter as we approach adulthood. The characters' ages are not mentioned but they appear to be year 11 and around 16 by the time of the book's events. Clapham is an independent bookseller at Storytellers Inc in St Annes. Her three main characters are: Minnie, ace netballer and general athlete; Lena, ace runner but feels overshadowed by Minnie;…

06 Dec

Little Spud Shines Magic Light on Diversity

Linda Hampton0 CommentsLiterature & Spoken Wordbooks, children, childrens book, community, families, literature

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Marie Stell’s book about her brother, Christopher, who is on the autistic spectrum, delights and inspires. Unless we know someone who is on the autistic spectrum, it is hard to really know what life is like for them. We still have far to travel to ensure that people who feel different to their peers can be accepted by others around them. Marie Stell’s book is helping to change those perspectives. Little Spud is a friendly blue dragon and like no other. He is on the autistic spectrum and sometimes life can be difficult. But then something happens - Little Spud finds…

04 Oct

Blackpool Reading Challenge Launch

Stephen Dunstan0 CommentsLiterature & Spoken Word, Local Newsliterature, reading

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] We just love reading at Blackpool Social Club, so it was a privilege to be invited to the launch of our town’s literacy strategy, which took place last Thursday in the spectacular Spanish Hall in the Winter Gardens. [/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Frank Norris MBE was the first speaker in his capacity as Chair of the Blackpool Education Improvement Board. Frank is keen on embracing new technology and stressed that reading ebooks and using tablets was still reading, and to be encouraged not criticised. He also talked about the impact of literature on his personal development, including when he raided a copy of The…

01 Aug

Blackpool nature writers showcased this Wednesday

Blackpool Social Club0 CommentsEnvironment and Nature, Literature & Spoken Wordauthor, book, books, environment, literature, nature, writers, writing

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Litfest’s New Writing Northwest has given emerging talent the opportunity to work with established writers over the spring and summer. There were four strands including Poetry, Fiction and Translation. The final one, Nature & Environment Writing, comes to a conclusion with a free reading this Wednesday featuring two authors with a Blackpool connection. Michelle Allwood was born in the resort, before moving to London. After working for the BBC, she is now at the BFI. She is dyslexic and neuro-diverse, and holds a BA and MA in Literature & Creative Writing. She is currently planning a PhD, focussing on…