Helen Mort – Tutor
Tutor
John Alexander Scott – Guest Reader
Guest Reader
7th – 11th September 2020
Course Date

Robert Frost said: “It begins in delight and ends in wisdom.” In this course we will delight in the variousness of the figures that poems make by exploring a wide variety of styles, forms, writing processes and techniques. In the beautiful surroundings of Garsdale, we will expand our own horizons, build on our repertoire, and practise new ways of developing and editing our poems. We will discover how, by shaping the figure a poem makes, its true nature is revealed.

Tutor: Helen Mort– Poet/Novelist

Helen Mort is a poet and novelist. She is a five-times winner of the Foyle Young Poets award, received an Eric Gregory Award from The Society of Authors in 2007, and won the Manchester Poetry Prize Young Writer Prize in 2008. 

Her collection Division Street[2] is published by Chatto & Windus and was shortlisted for the Costa Book Awards and the T.S. Eliot Prize. Her second collection ‘No Map Could Show Them’ was shortlisted for the Banff Mountain Literature Award in Canada. Helen’s first novel ‘Black Car Burning’ was published by Random House in April 2019.

In June 2018 Helen was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. She lectures in creative writing at Manchester Metropolitan University. 

Guest, Wednesday evening: John Alexander Scott – Performance Poet

John Alexander Scott was born in Edinburgh, Scotland and grew up in Aberdour, Fife. A graduate of Gray’s School of Art, Aberdeen, career-wise, he’s had more sideways moves than a line-dancing spider. He has lived in Kendal, England for ten years.

A Performance Poet, he regularly appears at Kendal Brewery’s “Verbalise,” Lancaster “Spotlight” and solo spoken word shows at the Edinburgh Free Fringe in 2017 & 2018 and Bearded Theory Festival in 2019.

He’s written a novel “The Cold Glass Star”; two books of poems and monologues; ”One Precariat Place” and “Voodoo Nation” and also written a couple of short plays.

His poems and monologues are a mix of personal and political, accessible yet thoughtful, serious and comic, usually reflecting on life in the UK. His latest project is a collaboration with musician friend Martin Dewar, putting music to some of his spoken word poems.

PRICES £400 fee includes eight 90 minute workshops, one, 60 minute workshop, one 30 minute individual tutorial, evening readings/entertainment including both a tutor and guest reading, afternoon chat room.
TO BOOK £150 deposit payable on booking by PayPal, bank transfer or cheque, to secure place, balance due six weeks before start of course.
Please see Terms and Conditions.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED  A reliable internet connection and access to Zoom
START TIME

5.00pm on Monday – one hour introductory workshop

END TIME

After evening readings on Friday

The Garsdale Retreat Online Course Outline: 2020

Maximum 8 participants

Course begins on Monday at 5.00pm. Ends Friday evening after reading.

Monday:

Welcome (5 mins) from Hamish, followed by 1 hour workshop.

Tuesday – Friday:

Two daily workshops: 9.30 – 11.00/11.30 – 1.00pm

Afternoons: Chat-room open for participants.

Tutorials

Each student has an entitlement of 1 x 30mins tutorial in the course of the week.

These take place at a mutually convenient time one afternoon – Tuesday – Friday.

Evening Events  (starting at 8.00pm)

Tuesday:

Tutor reading

Wednesday:

Guest reading (except Carol Farrelly – Thursday)

Thursday: 

Live music and poetry performed by Hamish Wilson and

Rebecca Nouchette (Garsdale Retreat directors)

Friday:

Poetry Courses  group reading of anthology of work produced in the week.

Fiction/Non-Fiction courses – group reading of extracts of work written during the week.

Poetry-The Figure a Poem Makes