Post-graduate writers at DMU, an inspiration to me

I think it is always important to support people, and the best possible opportunity I had to do this was attending a talk which featured post-graduates on the DMU Creative Writing course, sharing their work. I was completely inspired by them, their work was absolutely extraordinary.

Excited, was an understatement. They inspired me so much, because one day, I hope to be where they are now. All of them were so confident in their words, and it made me realize that, if I work hard enough, perhaps people will enjoy listening to my words, as well as reading them.

It was fantastic to hear both a mix of poetry and short stories, especially as I enjoy writing both of those genres, and as I listened to them speaking, it helped me think about how I could be making my words better, so people enjoy them out loud too.

Since starting the Creative Writing course, I've learned that you can write about anything really. I loved listening to a poem that featured sweets, such as a green jelly baby, a dolly mixture and a liquorice allsort. It made me and the audience laugh as a comical piece. It's starting to make me think that writing about my love for 'Mini eggs' is not all a bad idea. It was a very enjoyable experience, and I wish them well for the future.

Claire McGowan

Incomplete novels and attack dolphins

I could wax lyrical about the quality of the readings at the "Work in Progress" evening, but for the sake of sanity (yours) and dignity (mine) , I won't. The idea for the event was simple: three authors - Michelene Wandor, Jonathan Taylor and Will Buckingham (the last two are DMU lecturers) - gave readings from books they are in the process of writing as well as talking about the process of coming up with ideas, shaping them, and setting them to paper.

In the midst of a sea of "How To Imagine" books that set out the rules of inspiration with firm, patronising hands, the event took a refreshingly open-minded approach. The three authors were very specific about their own methods, but made little attempt to push them on to the audience as the Only Method.

It's an approach which would rub some people the wrong way: "What's the point if they're not going to tell you how to write a novel? If I wanted to hear people talk about what they personally do, I'd go read a blog," they might say in rather nasal tones.

But they aren't the target audience: The target audience is writers, who chafe at being told how they should find inspiration. Attempts at setting down hard and fast rules for imagination result less in delighted cries of "Thank you! I wouldn't have known how to get an idea otherwise" and more in low snarls of "Release the attack dolphins."

Or perhaps that's just me. Either way, the three authors earned their applause at the end of the evening.


Phillip Dobson

Postgraduates Shine a Light on Post-Human Landscapes

Dan O’ Donell-Smith blazed the trail for this cultural creative writing smorgasbord, with readings of his evocative poetry delivered in a deadpan fashion. The poems barked a sort of machine language, depicting a digital dystopian gaming life that truly shocked the uninitiated.

Contrastingly Mystie Hood’s reading of the first chapter from her novel radiated a sinister provincial elegance. Indigenous angst and disconnect rub against multiculturalism in a residential building inside a ghetto. The paranoid maladjusted rural protagonist craves anonymity in a globalised city which refuses her the isolation she yearns. Her dysfunctional existence resonated in the well-read extract from this engaging piece of work.

Poems in progress delivered with verve by Pam Thompson whispered other worlds. A plethora of imaginative language conjured apocalyptic visions as we listened transfixed. Pam cited numerous influences including W.S. Graham and Barbara Guest. Her poems powered home, fired by visceral language and imagery that conveyed human landscapes at their bleakest.

Alex Plasatis blasted us into the magic realist zone of eviction, with his gripping tale of student domesticity under attack by the apparatus of the state. Landlord and police are deployed in a surrealist adventure to disrupt student innocence, which creates mayhem. As a consequence a bat takes flight squeaking and shrieking, freaking out the powers that be. It was a fine way to wind up this literary treat.

These readings were well attended and left us in the audience slightly disturbed but craving for more. A big thank you to everyone involved.

Laurie

A range of styles: the postgraduate reading

The postgraduate writing session proved an interesting mix of different styles by four writers: Dan O'Donnell-Smith, Mystie Hood, Pam Thompson and Alex Plasatis.

The first reading by Dan O'Donnell-Smith was based around computing and technology. I particularly liked his original take on this modern phenomenon. It was different, and thought-provoking. Dan suggested his poems were more suited to being read on the page, rather than spoken aloud, but they still grabbed my attention.

My personal favourite was Mystie Hood's reading of her first chapter. It had humour, mystery and a strong concept in terms of plot. It was easy to understand, and she read it really well, managing to captivate the audience.

Pam Thompson read a collection of her poetry, all very strong in their subject, and finally Alex Plasatis's added another very engaging piece, with touches of humour that had the audience laughing.

As a whole the variety of pieces, made me think about the sort of things I could write in the future and gave me new ideas to aid me in my own writing.

Gemma Carey