Poetry Publications

Kirsty who does the excellent A Poem by Manchester on cycling has published two of my tiny little pieces on cycling which I blogged below into a lovely collage kind of poem on cycling

This can be read or heard here

http://www.apoembymanchester.co.uk/station-south/

The Sunday tribune has also published a article called 'Meet Manchester Writers Andy N and Amanda Steel' which talks about the journey I have gone on with Amanda since we became a couple (and also puts in one of my poems 'Amazons and Swallows' for good measure'

https://www.thesundaytribune.com/2019/09/18/meet-manchester-writers-andy-n-and-amanda-steel/

Impspired has also published one of our poems 'Dissolved Horses'

https://impspired.com/2019/07/17/505

Bleached Butterfly has also published 'Robot Hitchhiker' and 'The Missing Sermon of Reverend Collier'

https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/60a536_b30f56f0fb004b88a345bc54ac838a93.pdf

After the bomb (New Flash Fiction)

Who was Margaret, I asked myself as I picked up his mobile phone after I managed to get back to where we had stood before the bomb went off and saw a text message starting ‘Hi Margaret’.

 Who was Margaret? I asked myself repeatability. I didn’t know a Margaret and was sure there was nobody in the Post Office or anybody who went to the Protection called that.

I didn’t know a Margaret in any of the surrounding farms or in the next village or indeed the one after that. It wasn’t like John I told myself I told myself as I flicked through the calls which dated back months and months often at night or first time in the morning whence would he would have been up in the hills with the livestock.

The text messages were first, simple and business like asking how did the meeting go before progressing onto have you booked the hotel and are you sure about this to which you responded ‘She doesn’t know, who would she know?’ How would she know what?

I almost called out before you arrived at the back of me denying everything. ‘How could you?’ I called out ‘at a time like this’ ‘I was trying to sort out your surprise birthday party’ you responded.

(Wrote at a writing workshop on Peterloo by Mosley Writers at Ashton Library a few weeks back. The first part of the workshop was creating a character from notes provided from somebody else and then inserting into a place where they find a item on the floor just after a terrible event had happened)

A Poem for Manchester - two short poems / Poetry on New Mills Art trail

The two above short short poems have been published by the 2019 project for A Poem by Manchester on the theme of Cycling.

More details about this project can be found on this facebook page 

Also just appeared two of my poems have appeared on the New Mills Art Trail and these poems can be found here 

News July / August / September 2019

Ocean in a Bottle news:

Last release on the Ocean in a Bottle page was the haunting single
‘Reading in Space between Earth and Venus’ which covered the simple act of reading in Space (https://oceaninabottle.bandcamp.com/album/reading-in-space-between-earth-and-venus)

Since then, a full length album called ‘On Saturn’s Wings’ has appeared on Peristent Vegetative Statement Records which is described as two long, epic ambient drones spinning
into a more spiralling, freer form and carries its drones across an imaginary journey between beauty and a paradox of what it is seen and what is not seen.
This album can be streamed / downloaded for FREE from  persistentvegetativestaterecords.bandcamp.com/album/on-saturns-wings

Also released on Silber Records as part of their field recordings series, two singles have been made both made up of live Field Recordings

Birds on the Roof with a bad throat at Manchester Victoria Train Station just before the moon rises
(silbermedia.bandcamp.com/album/birds-on-the-roof-with-a-bad-throat-at-manchester-victoria-train-station-just-before-the-moon-rises)

Walking to the Bus Station
(silbermedia.bandcamp.com/album/walking-to-the-bus-station)

The next two Ocean in a Bottle singles ‘Waiting to land on Venus’ (Haunting angel choirs prior to landing on a devil like planet)
and ‘Space Graveyard Volume 1 (An musical space piano and drone noise EP and the first in a series) which follow over September and October all been well, and I am now working on a single called Examining Phobos and Deimos for life.

A few versions of a track called The Noir Side of the Moon have also been completed and could crop in a few places also.

Ocean in a Bottle will also be doing a track for the annual DIH and friends  (More details can be found here - http://onewriterandhispc.blogspot.com/2019/09/dih-and-friends-christmas-2019.html)



Spoken Label News:

Spoken Label since my last newsletter has been operating on almost a weekly basis and has included Podcasts by the following people since my last update..

Rob Barrett (July 2019)
https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/rob-barratt-spoken-label-july-2019

Roz Weaver (July 2019)
https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/roz-weaver-spoken-label-july-2019

Robert Garnham (July 2019)
https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/robert-garnham-spoken-label-august-2019

Serafina Bersonage (August 2019)
https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/serafina-bersonsage-spoken-label-august-2019

Grant Curnow (August 2019)
https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/grant-curnow-spoken-label-august-2019

Roxanne San Jose (August 2019)
https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/roxanne-san-jose-spoken-label-august-2019

Chris Neilson (September 2019)
https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/chris-neilson-with-special-guest-amanda-steel-spoken-label-september-2019

Planet in Peril – Various Poets (September 2019)
https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/planet-in-peril-various-poets

Bernie the Bolt (September 2019)
https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/bernie-the-bolt-spoken-label-september-2019

Matt Nicholson (September 2019)
https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/matt-nicholson-spoken-label-september-2019

A number of future sessions have been recorded from the following –
Joe Williams, Ellie Mason, Leanne Beadle, Emilie Lauren Jones, John G Hall, Nicola Dale, Noemi Scotellaro Massimi, Penny Sharman, Lizzie Smith, Howling Jack Russell, Thomas, Yvonne Ugarte and Rob Goodier with other sessions currently been lined up.

Also lined up for Speak Easy is a charity Christmas album wanting submissions.

More details can be found here http://onewriterandhispc.blogspot.com/2019/08/spoken-label-christmas-album-poetry-and.html

Reading in Bed News:

Reading in Bed has carried on with its monthly production schedule of Podcasts between me and Amanda. The last few Podcasts can be found here -

Reading in Bed Episode 19 (July 2019)
https://readinginbed.bandcamp.com/album/reading-in-bed-episode-19-july-2019

Books reviewed were:
1. Stephen King - On Writing
2. Gregg Hurwitz - Out of the Dark
3. Paul Auster - Hand to Mouth
4. Charles Harris - the breaking of Liam Harris
5. Serafina Bersonsage - A Witch's Education

Reading in Bed Episode 20 (August 2019)
https://readinginbed.bandcamp.com/album/reading-in-bed-episode-20-august-2019

Books reviewed were:
1. Susanna Beard - Dare to remember
2. Fred Hoyle - The Black Cloud
3. Riley Sager - Lock every Door
4. Howard Caryle - The Meyerstown Secret
5. Stephen King - Cell
6. Amber Kraysen - I see myself in the distance

Reading in Bed Episode 21 (September 2019)
https://readinginbed.bandcamp.com/album/reading-in-bed-episode-21-september-2019

Books reviewed were:
1. Samantha Schweblin – Fever Dream
2. Jane Corry - - The Dead Ex
3. Daniel H Wilson – Robopoalypse
4. Louise Doughty - Platform 7
5. Alta H Mabin – Evidence of Pain

We are currently planning books for Octobers and Novembers Podcast.


Comics Unity News:

After a slightly quieter spell, Comics Unity has been really busy recently between myself and Michael with the following episodes been recorded:

Extra Episode 7 with guest co host Amanda, myself and Michael discussing more about what we would like to see from the final season of Supernatural
https://comicsunitypodcastseries.bandcamp.com/album/extra-episode-7-supernatural-special-2-with-guest-co-host-amanda-steel

Extra Episode 6 with guest co host Gavin about what we would like to see from the final season of Supernatural
https://comicsunitypodcastseries.bandcamp.com/album/extra-episode-6-supernatural-discussion-part-1-over-the-forthcoming-15th-season-with-guest-cohost-gavin

Episode 10 - Andy N and Michael discuss a whole host of topics featured at the San Diego Comics Con 2019 and all the latest comics news and latest TV / film news including rumoured James Bond news, Supernatural castings, castings for DC shows and much, much more
https://comicsunitypodcastseries.bandcamp.com/album/comics-unity-podcast-series-episode-10-august-2019


Episode 11 of Comics Unity has also been recorded and will be getting released shortly but also on a monthly basis all been well for the foreseeable future myself and Michael probably starting November or December 2019 will be releasing a special series within the Comics Unity universe of works by comic writers we like and would like to recommend)

A Nature’s Path: 

A new Poetry and Literture Podcast with my old friend Colleen has been set up and will be broadcast live on blogtalk radio every Monday from 7pm to 7.15pm or so on blogtalkradio.com/anaturespath
(I’m doing a backup for this on https://anaturespath.bandcamp.com which will be remastered a few hours later).


Printed Words:

This literature / creative writing magazine / journal edited and created by Amanda and featuring me on the submissions panel has just released its 3rd issue which can be found and bought on Amazon but can also be downloaded for free at Amanda’s website at
http://doccdn.simplesite.com/d/c0/5a/287104482209651392/f7238143-478d-4f24-bca0-b6e86b6d854a/Printed%2BWords%2B-Autumn.pdf

Printed Words also made it’s live debut recently at the Festival of Manchester more of which can be read here
https://www.amandasteelwriter.com/443373776

Special thanks to from me and Amanda Steel to Randy Horton, Alicia Fitton, Zoe Howarth Lowe, Sara Culleno, Alex Asher and Anthony Brisco for reading out with us that day.

All been well, future live dates will follow.
(My live video from that day can be seen here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEvzagIRzEA)

You can also now submit if you wish to Issue 4 (Closing date 10th November 2019) and further submission details can be read here
https://www.amandasteelwriter.com/440793822


Speak Easy:

Speak Easy is Stretford’s always friendly spoken word open mic night which is held at Stretford’s lovely Sip on the first Wednesday of each month.

After a change in approach on the advertising, numbers have been steadingly increasing to around 20 people reading each month,
pictures from the last few months can be seen here

September
http://onewriterandhispc.blogspot.com/2019/09/pictures-from-speak-easy-september-2019.html

July
http://onewriterandhispc.blogspot.com/2019/07/speak-easy-pictures-from-july-2019.html

Dates for the rest of the year (for either 5 or 6 minute slots) shall be 02 October 2019, 06 November 2019 and 04 December 2019 with dates pencilled in from February 2020 also to follow.

Email me on aen1mpo@yahoo.co.uk if interested as the night is starting to get a real buzz about it.


Personal Writing / Open Mics:

Myself and Amanda have generally maintained our usual or so 4 readings every month. In August, while there was no Speak Easy and we were unable to go Word Central, we went over to Bradford’s speaking in tongues. There is no video footage of myself but I did record Amanda with two of her poems – Abscence Minded (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBz_bzz48dc)
and How to tell if she loves you (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duRQ5j2sBpQ)

I did a few separate gigs during August on the theme of Peterloo
(the most shouty of which can be heard here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjruu7HGc0E&t=225s)

Lastly on the video front, a video of me doing ‘Unexpected Change in Weather’ also appeared from August’s Word Central (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ldvo_m6hrcY&t=1s) on youtube.

Publishing wise, all been well, there is quite a few things on the go
but firstly the Mark Literary has published one of my mini poems from my 4th and upcoming collection ‘The Streets were all we could see’
https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/0a3c70_b4bd74f36b6b4865b7c5f4531f1cce15.pdf

Bold Plus Italic back in July also published one of my Robot poems ‘Reading the news with Erica’
https://boldplusitalic.wordpress.com/2019/06/25/andy-n-news-with-erica/

and of course my piece Longford Theatre appeared in issue 3 of Printed Words
http://doccdn.simplesite.com/d/c0/5a/287104482209651392/f7238143-478d-4f24-bca0-b6e86b6d854a/Printed%2BWords%2B-Autumn.pdf

There are quite a few new pieces also forthcoming in other publications and projects which I’ll be able to talk about another day.

Pictures from Speak Easy, September 2019

Here are the pictures from September's Speak Easy all took by Amanda Steel. (apart from the last two pictures which were took by Andy N)

Next one will be 2 October at the Stretford's Sip Club.

Get in touch if interested. 

Andy N

Mary Cunningham

Eve Nortley 

Neill Watkins 

Kevin White

Elenia Gr 

Elenia Gr 

Chris Moore

Joy Wassall Tims 

Penny Sharman

Lynn Walton

Rhana

Mike Booth

Steve Smythe 

Gordon Zola

Esther

Anthony Smith

Anthony Briscoe

Matt Phillips

Jez

Grant Curnow

Amanda Steel 

Andy N 

Conversation informat

DIH and friends @ Christmas 2019 submission

Back again for its 18th anniversary(Barring a few gaps off course), DIH and friends at Christmas are opening their doors on a submission for ambient, drone, metal, singersongwriter, experimental and poetry to name but a few genres (all welcome really) on the theme of Christmas.

The history of the project from Digital Vomit state ‘The origin behind the infamous series of DIH with friends at Christmas began back in 2002 when for a one off joke as a side project from his more official work in DIH, Andy N one year decided with the help of one or two friends decided to do in his words ‘ A Christmas album for those people who don’t really like Christmas’ where in the space of half an hour (as was the original plan) – Andy and a few friends would murder, cripple and take the piss out of as many songs as they could.

However, as is the nature of the beast with this sort of thing things snowballed and by the time the second album came along, It had become officially a DIH project where they would between the three of them alongside with an ever-increasing cast play around with the myth of the Christmas, which will often be funny and sad sometimes within the same breath.

The music contained within this series of albums are varied and can vary from spoken word (sometimes with musical backing or experimental backing), acoustic singer songwriter stuff to music that could appeal to fans of Aphex Twin, hardcore, breakbeats, dub step, fans of the spoken word, re-imagining of carols and classic songs, faithful versions of Christmas carols and songs and generally people who like their music to challenge and make them think.

For reasons too long winded and just plain boring to go into here, DIH took a break from the Christmas albums in 2012 before starting up again in 2015. Following on from their 2015 comeback, we are now expecting submissions for our 2019 album, our fifth album since starting up again with anything and everything encouraged from experimental, drones, ambient, Christmas Carols, Poems, songs.. whatever takes your guardian really..

Anything is welcome by email to either myself aen1mpo@yahoo.co.uk (Andy N)

Me and Keith can also be contacted viva Facebook for further questions 

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100011783198151 (Andy)

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=627682972 (Keith)

The complete archive can be sampled here - http://www.digitalvomit.com/dih-and-friends
and the album will be released on Hicc Records
on bandcamp.com

Closing date is 15 December 2019