I'll be reading a short set myself, to kick things off, and probably one or two at the end of the evening too.
The open mic takes place at the old Kozi Bar just off the Market Square in central Warwick, across the road from the museum. I have a sneaking suspicion it may begin around 7.30pm, but I shall be there rather earlier, of course, to set up and get comfortable.
In case anyone here is going, I shall be taking copies of my brand spanking new paperback edition of Camper Van Blues to sell. So bring extra cash!
I'll also be reminding any poets in the audience to enter the Warwick Laureateship competition, for a shot at the title. The position is unpaid, but as a former Laureate, I can assure people that there are always a few well-paid poetry commissions and workshops available to you during the year-long stint - if you want them. I published an entire book of poetry off the back of my Laureateship - 'On Warwick', available from Nine Arches Press - so it's well worth entering if you like public poetry.
Plus, of course, the wonderful fun of being Warwick Laureate, which is part of the package. See the Warwick Words festival site for more details.
2 comments:
Thanks for the heads-up, Jane - sounds like an interesting event.
Erm... is it wrong that I don't actually know exactly where Warwick is? I know, I know, ignorant Canadian-Londoner...
Not wrong, Talli. But you might want to pick up a map of England sometime!
For starters, Warwick is very near Stratford, where our most famous playwright was born and died. It's a small market town, with some lovely ancient and half-timbered buildings, almost in the dead centre of England. It's about 35-40 minutes by car from Birmingham, which lies roughly north, north-west of the town. It has a literary festival every autumn, and an annual Poet Laureate - of which, I have been one!
It was a good event. About 30 people read at the open mic. It's the second time I've hosted an open mic there - a really cosy, up-market venue, right in the centre of town.
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