Beyond cliche and condescension: we need new stories about ‘The North’

Barnsley-born poet and novelist Andrew Macmillan on the assumptions and misconceptions that shape our national narratives of the north of England – and the new authors covering fresh groundI’ve lived all my life in the north of England; in Barnsley for 18 years, then Lancaster, then Barnsley briefly again, then Liverpool for a while before settling in Manchester. In my poetry, particularly my debut, physical, and now in a novel, Pity, I’ve always been interested in what role writing can play in celebrating and rethinking place; how it might illuminate silences, or cut through the radio static of assumptions. It’s an interest that was, perhaps, inevitable having a poet for a father, who always encouraged all of us, myself and my two sisters, to see where we lived and how we talked as equal to anywhere and anyone else.The collection physical was my attempt to surface same-sex desire, the fragility of masculinity and the legacy of rapid and often brutal de-industrialisation in the northern town and then the northern city that I lived in. More recently, with Pity, I wanted to interrogate what narratives exist about a place and who gets to tell them. I wanted, in the words of the great north-east poet Barry MacSweeney, to stand at the coalface, like Hamlet, and strike a match.the six of us walk in single fileUp the narrow street that takes uspast The Angler’s Rest and The Shipand the Conservative and Catholic clubsand British Legion and Royal OakAnd The Alma and Little... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2024-01-27 09:00:31 UTC ]
News tagged with: #barnsley briefly #rethinking place #collection physical #national narratives #role writing #illuminate silences #radio static #brutal de-industrialisation #northern town #northern city #narratives exist #single fileup #narrow street #takes uspast #royal oakand #macmillan

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Beyond cliche and condescension: we need new stories about ‘The North’'

W&N buys Malala's story

Weidenfeld & Nicolson's deputy publishing director Arzu Tahsin has bought rights to... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #weidenfeld nicolson #bought rights

Diaz wins Sunday Times Short Story Award

Pulitzer Prize-winner Junot Díaz has won the £30,000 Sunday Times Short Story Award... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |

Amazon's new imprints give opportunities to debut authors, short story writers

Amazon's Little A imprint will release novels, memoirs, and story collections, while Day One will focus on short stories and new writers. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-03-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #debut authors #short stories

New Zadie Smith story for Hamish Hamilton

Penguin imprint Hamish Hamilton will publish a new short story by Zadie Smith later this year.... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #hamish hamilton #short story #zadie smith

Sharethrough Launches Own Take on Sponsored Stories

Companies like InPowered and Disqus have rolled out ad platforms for brands to promote articles and other more media-ish content with paid placements on publishers’ sites, and now Sharethrough is upping its stake in the game. Last September, the San Francisco-based ad startup launched Sponsored... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2013-02-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #sales team #long tail #land rover #latest model #traditional banners #american express #gaining traction #regular users

A Crossmedia Love Story: Cadaver by Jonah Ansell

Writer and filmmaker Jonah Ansell shares how he took his story "Cadaver" from a poem written for his sister to a short film to a graphic novel and, hopefully, a feature film. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-02-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #short film #feature film

Hillary Clinton's story released

A biography of Hillary Clinton's time as US secretary of state will be released on 5th March... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-02-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #hillary clinton #5th march

Curtis Brown launches Jeffrey Archer Short Story Prize

Curtis Brown has teamed up with Kobo to launch a short story competition, to be judged by author... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #curtis brown

Vickers and Okereke shortlisted for Costa short story prize

Salley Vickers and Chiome Okereke are among the authors shortlisted for the Costa Short Story... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-01-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #authors shortlisted

Why WHSmith Remains the Most Remarkable Story in UK Bookselling

A tightly focused strategy on maintaining margins has enabled WHSmith to persist after than two centuries at the heart of UK bookselling, inspiring admiration and ire alike. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-01-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #remarkable story

Support for Seven Stories as it fights funding cut

Seven Stories, the national centre for children's books, is making a final push to galvanise... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-01-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #national centre #final push

Eoin Colfer to write Dr Who story for Puffin

Eoin Colfer has been named as the author of the first of Puffin's eleven Dr Who short stories... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-01-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #eoin colfer #short stories

Happy Holidays! Here's a Free E-Book of Our Best Stories From 2012

A free ebook of our best work just in time for the holidays. Makes a great gift for wordy nerds! And much cheaper than a Battlestar Galactica box set. Continue reading at The Atlantic

[ The Atlantic | 2012-12-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #happy holidays #free ebook

'Dark times' for North East literature bodies

Literature organisations in the North East have said they face difficult times with a combination... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-11-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #dark times #literature organisations #north east

'Put me in the story, mom!' Now you really can

The new app 'Put Me in the Story,' released by publisher Sourcebooks, will allow older readers to add the name of a younger one to Sourcebook titles. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-11-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #publisher sourcebooks #older readers