Ty NewyddCourses & Events2014

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“Basically, if I could live here, I would” - Eurgain

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“One of the best experiences of my life. A dream to write in. It has changed my life.” – Ellie

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Tŷ Newydd, Llanystumdwy, Cricieth, Gwynedd, LL52 0LW

01766 522811 tynewydd@literaturewales.org

For more information about Tŷ Newydd and the 2014 courses, including booking forms and FAQs, please visit: www.literaturewales.org

Contact Us

Photography Credits: Richard OutramTŷ Newydd is part of Literature Wales, the National Company for the development of literature in Wales.

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4. Welcome11. Courses14. Non-Fiction18. Myths and Storytelling21. Masterclasses26. East Meets West 30. Prose38. New media43. Illustration and Art46. Poetry51. Health and Wellbeing54. More information

Contents

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Welcome to Tŷ Newydd 2014, not just a beautiful house set in the stunning landscape of the Llŷn Peninsula, but a beginning to a story.

Welcome

Literature Wales believes that literature belongs to everybody and can be found everywhere. That’s why this year’s Tŷ Newydd brochure has something for everyone - readers, writers, poets and explorers. A vigorous new programme has been created, full of new courses, events and discovery adventures which will lead you on poetry trails and creative journeys from the new Literature Lounge inside the house to the gardens and paths outside.

We’ve got courses on scriptwriting for TV, radio and the stage, for gaming, blogging, food writing and nature. There’ll be courses for developing cinematic poems, for singer-songwriters, and for haiku lovers. Whether you prefer the written or the spoken word, poetry or prose – there’s something in the programme for you.

We hope you enjoy our 2014 offers – come over to Tŷ Newydd, the door’s open.

Lleucu SiencynChief Executive: Literature Wales

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During your stay, Tŷ Newydd, the former and final abode of Prime Minister David Lloyd George, will be your home. The beautiful grounds looking out over Cardigan Bay and the Eifionydd hills were re-styled by the famous Sir Clough Williams-Ellis in the 1940s, and provide the perfect setting for you to write in peace and quiet.

The House

A picturesque path leads through woods down past Lloyd George’s resting place to the little village of Llanystumdwy, where a warm welcome awaits you in the Feathers Pub. You could catch a bus from here, or hike downhill from Tŷ Newydd towards the sea and the nearest town, Cricieth, where there are plenty of shops and cafés to visit.

For many, the highlight of their stay at Tŷ Newydd is the food, sourced from local suppliers and prepared, with your help, in the main kitchen. The dining room serves as a communal area and focus point in the house, it’s where ideas are shared whilst passing the salt.

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At Tŷ Newydd we believe the course experience is unique and we take great pride in our hospitality and the informal atmosphere. In close collaboration with professional tutors we’ve tailored the format of each course to optimise the outcomes for the participants. Whether you attend a weekend or a week-long course, the tutors will lead workshops to help you explore specific aspects of your writing.

The Courses

For the majority of courses you’ll share the space with a group of up to 12 writers. You’ll enjoy group sessions, workshops, tutorials and readings. But there’s always time for your own writing, for walks and to explore, and where relevant and possible, we include valuable one-to-one mentoring to look at your work.

We hope you will enjoy a truly unique experience with us and are looking forward to welcoming you to Tŷ Newydd.

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Practicalities

Courses are open to all over the age of 16 and no qualifications are necessary. Staff at Tŷ Newydd are always pleased to advise on the suitability of courses and further details about each individual course can be obtained from Tŷ Newydd.

Participants are asked to arrive between 4.30 pm and 6.00 pm in time for the evening meal at 7.00 pm on the first evening of the course. Vegetarians and people with special dietary requirements are catered for – please let us know your requirements in advance when booking.

Participants help themselves to breakfast and lunch. We ask you to please bring your own towels and writing materials. The Wi-fi at Tŷ Newydd is free to use and available in some rooms and areas around the house.

A lift in the house gives full access to all the main rooms for those with mobility impairment. We also have a bedroom adapted for wheelchair users, which has an adjoining adapted bathroom.

We recognise the limitations of some of our guest rooms. As this is a Grade II listed building, we’re currently reviewing the best options to improve facilities and accommodation, with respect for its legacy, architectural merit and history. We apologise for any temporary inconveniences.

For more detailed practical information and FAQs, please visit: www.literaturewales.org

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How to Book

1. Fill in a booking form. Booking forms are available to download from www.literaturewales.org. Alternatively you can call Tŷ Newydd on 01766 522811 to request one. Return booking forms by email to tynewydd@literaturewales.org, or by post to: Tŷ Newydd, Llanystumdwy, Cricieth, Gwynedd, LL52 0LW

2. Provide a deposit of £100 when you submit your booking form. PayPal buttons can be found on each individual course page on the website. Alternatively you can send a cheque payable to Literature Wales with your booking form in the post.

The deposit is non-refundable once booking is confirmed. The balance is due 4 weeks before the start of the course. If you cancel after this date the balance will only be returned if your place is filled on the course. It may be advisable to arrange your own insurance to cover this eventuality.

Literature Wales reserves the right to cancel up to 3 weeks before the start of the course. In these circumstances a full refund will be made. Literature Wales reserves the right to make changes to the programme.

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It is the aim of Literature Wales to enable everybody who would benefit from a course at Tŷ Newydd to do so, regardless of income or level of experience. For people who may need financial assistance, we have bursaries, but funds are limited. While we prioritise people on lower incomes, we cannot always guarantee to offer financial assistance.

Financial Assistance

In order for us to assess needs and to be fair to all, it is essential to indicate a request for assistance when booking a course. Bursary requests cannot be considered after a booking has been made.

Guidelines and request forms are available online. For further details, please contact staff based at Tŷ Newydd or e-mail tynewydd@literaturewales.org

We also consider requests to pay course fees in instalments over a maximum of 12 months, except for the non-refundable deposit (£100 payable with booking).

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2014Courses

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It’s an exciting time for Welsh literature as a wave of writers and poets have struck a new chord with the old instruments of literary traditions.

Bilingual Courses

New bilingual courses in the 2014 programme aim to give a fresh insight into both the Welsh and English literary streams in Wales, and encourage writers to experiment with words and languages.

Whether you’re multilingual, learning, or without a word of Welsh - the individual can choose to be creative in either language. Write in your mother tongue, experiment in a second language, or juggle with words from both.

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Course will be taught through the medium of Welsh.

Course will be taught bilingually. Participants are welcome to work through the medium of Welsh or English.

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This year Tŷ Newydd will take some of its Welsh-language courses on the road to interesting places across the country. This will give a taste of Tŷ Newydd courses to new audiences, taking authors and themes to inspiring settings.

Literature On The Road

During the year, we’ll be visiting the village of Portmeirion with the dramatist Aled Jones Williams. Bethan Gwanas and Eurig Salisbury will lead a literary armada on Llyn Tegid, and Dr John Davies and Jon Gower will help us delve deeper into the treasures of the National Library of Wales.

Literature belongs to everyone, and we hope that you’ll enjoy the literary activities in your corner of Wales.

For more information about the On the Road programme visit the Literature Wales website: www.literaturewales.org

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1: Hanes Bro a Bywyd 1 March

Tutors: John Davies and Jon GowerFee: £55 per person

On this St David’s Day course you’ll learn how to write about, and summarise local history. John Davies and Jon Gower will teach you how and where to find sources and give examples of how to produce meaningful pieces about history. A course for anyone with an interest in local or family history, and creating biographical works.

John Davies is a historian and author of many prestigious books, including The History of Wales. He’s the general editor of The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales. He won Wales Book of The Year in 2010 with Cymru: Y 100 Lle i’w Gweld cyn Marw.

Jon Gower is a writer, broadcaster and radio producer. He’s written several books, historical works, edited four collections, and has written plays for the radio and the stage. He won Wales Book of the Year in 2012 with his novel Y Storïwr.

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2: Stories in our Surroundings 16-21 June

Tutors: Martin Daws and Karen OwenFee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

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On this course we’ll be visiting areas of north Wales to inspire us to write about place. Contrasting the post-industrial slate quarries of north Wales with the outstanding natural beauty of Snowdonia National Park, we’ll be questioning our relationship to the places we inhabit. How do they influence us? What is their story and what part do we play in the way that it’s told?

Martin Daws is the current Young People’s Laureate for Wales. He’s an established performance poet and spoken word artist. He leads community and youth workshops across the country, and lives in Bethesda.

Karen Owen is a poet from the quarry area of Dyffryn Nantlle. She’s worked as a journalist for Golwg, BBC Cymru and Y Cymro. Her poetry collection, Siarad Trwy’i Het, won the poetry category of Wales Book of the Year in 2012.

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3: Travel Writing and Writing about Life 1-6 September

Tutors: Jay Griffiths and Rory MacLean Guest: Llion IwanFee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

This course explores the transformation of our ordinary encounters, epic journeys, family histories and imaginative quests into stories and books. How do we turn a brief, personal excursion or a lifetime’s voyage into prose?

Jay Griffiths is the award-winning author of Kith: The Riddle of the Childscape and Wild: An Elemental Journey. Her fiction includes A Love Letter from a Stray Moon, partly based on the life of Frida Kahlo.

Llion Iwan has lectured on journalism and creative writing at Bangor University, gaining a PhD on the influence of the documentary director. He’s the Factual Commissioner for S4C.

Rory MacLean is a travel writer. His ten books include the UK best-sellers Stalin’s Nose and Under the Dragon. He’s won many awards and was nominated for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary prize. www.rorymaclean.com

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4: Writing Creative Non-Fiction 24-29 November

Tutors: Horatio Clare and Laura Barton Guest: Janice GallowayFee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

How does one write well about life, whether from memory, sources or observation? Participants will look at how the techniques of fiction and drama can best be applied to non-fiction. We’ll aim to produce work which is vivid and original. The course is aimed at participants who are serious about writing for publication and will be tutored towards the production of publication-standard writing.

Laura Barton is a writer and journalist. She’s a regular contributor to The Guardian, The New York Times, Intelligent Life, Q and Radio 4, with expertise in music writing. She published her first novel, Twenty-One Locks in 2010.

Horatio Clare is a prolific author and journalist. He was awarded the Somerset Maugham prize by the

Society of Authors, and is a Foreign Press Association Travel Writer of the Year.

Janice Galloway has collaborated on works with visual artists and typographers. Since her first novel, The Trick is to Keep Breathing – a Scottish contemporary classic – she’s won prizes, fellowships and international awards.

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5: A Tale on the Tongue: Storytelling for Beginners 28-30 March

Tutors: Hugh Lupton and Daniel Morden Fee: £275 per person (single room) / £220 per person (shared room)

A Tale on the Tongue is a chance to learn how to prepare and perform traditional stories from two of Britain’s leading exponents of the art of storytelling. The folktales, fairytales and myths of our ancestors are the building blocks for every story that has been told since. Participants will leave the course having told and heard many stories during the weekend.

Daniel Morden has been a professional storyteller since 1989. He’s performed all over the world. He’s twice won the Welsh Books Council’s Tir Na n-Og Prize for his books that retell traditional stories.

For thirty years Hugh Lupton has been a central figure in the British storytelling revival. He tells myths, legends and folktales from many cultures. He’s written several collections of folktales and one novel.

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6: Developing Personal Myths from Indigenous Traditions 14-19 July

Tutors: Pascale Petit and Armand G. Ruffo Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

Drawing on a rich store of traditional Canadian and Amazonian indigenous myths, you’ll be encouraged to write poems or prose pieces that transform the raw material of your life into personal mythology. Individual tutorials will be available, and evening sessions will include Armand’s illustrated talk about the celebrated indigenous Canadian painter Norval Morrisseau.

Pascale Petit’s books are influenced by her travels in the Amazon and Mexico. Her latest collection What the Water Gave Me: Poems after Frida Kahlo was shortlisted for both the T S Eliot Prize and Wales Book of the Year, and was named Book of the Year in The Observer. www.pascalepetit.co.uk

Canadian poet Armand Garnet Ruffo draws on his Ojibway heritage for his writing and film-making. His work has won numerous awards including Best Picture at the 2010 American Indian Film Festival in San Francisco. He teaches Indigenous Literature and Creative Writing at Carleton University in Ottawa.

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Tutors: Hugh Lupton and Eric Maddern Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

For hundreds of years stories have travelled along trade and pilgrim routes, constantly adapting and adjusting. In this final course of our seven-year exploration of the ‘Matter of Britain’ we’ll examine the stories that might have been told on a pilgrimage, with an emphasis on The Canterbury Tales,stories that inspired Shakespeare and the pan-European wonder tales. Participants must have storytelling experience and will need to do background reading and to prepare a story beforehand.

For thirty years Hugh Lupton has been a central figure in the British storytelling revival. He tells myths, legends and folktales from many cultures. He’s written several collections of folktales and one novel.

Eric Maddern is a storyteller specialising in historic and natural landscapes. He’s written several children’s picture books and produced two CDs of his songs. He’s currently writing Snowdonia Folktales for The History Press series. www.ericmaddern.co.uk

7: Storytelling Retreat: Pilgrim Tales 6-11 October

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Masterclasses

Due to their high demand and overwhelming success more masterclasses than ever will be available in 2014. These dedicated masterclasses are structured especially for established poets - writers who have been practising their craft for many years.

This year we’re also offering courses to develop greater professionalism in other areas. We’re delighted to include Radio and TV drama writing courses and also a week-long residency around gaming.

Guardian Masterclasses

Literature Wales is delighted to include new events in partnership with The Guardian Masterclasses at Tŷ Newydd. In 2014 we’ll be marking the end of the great Welsh poet R. S. Thomas’s centenary year, and the beginning of Dylan Thomas’s centenary celebrations with retreats of writing and responding to their poetry at Tŷ Newydd.

And for those who want to learn more about food writing, sampling and foraging, a very special weekend is being planned. More information will be available in The Guardian and The Observer later in summer 2014.

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Tutors: Gillian Clarke and Robert Minhinnick Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

An opportunity for committed poets to move their writing up a gear. The focus will be on seven group workshops, small group meetings for mutual support and discussion, and individual writing time. Daily workshops will engender new poems and encourage discussion of work in progress. During the week the tutors, and our visiting poet will give readings of their work, participants will edit and contribute to an anthology, and will finish with a celebratory reading on Friday evening.

8: Poetry Masterclass 1 14-19 April

Tutors: Gillian Clarke and Imtiaz Dharker Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

9: Poetry Masterclass 2 13-18 October

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Gillian Clarke is the National Poet of Wales since 2008 and President of Tŷ Newydd. In 2010 she was awarded the Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry, and the Wilfred Owen Award in 2012. Her latest published collection Ice was shortlisted for the TS Eliot Award 2012.www.gillianclarke.co.uk / www.sheerpoetry.co.uk

Robert Minhinnick published New Selected Poems in 2012. His prose books include Island of Lightning and The Keys of Babylon. He’s won the Forward Prize for best individual poem twice and has also won Wales Book of the Year twice for his prose. www.robertminhinnick.com

Imtiaz Dharker is a poet, artist and documentary film-maker. She’s had ten solo exhibitions of drawings in India, London, New York and Hong Kong. She scripts and directs films, many of them for non-government organisations in India, working in the area of shelter, education and health for women and children.

In order that everyone can benefit from a high level of critical discussion and participation, poets will be selected. Preference will be given to new participants. Contact Tŷ Newydd for guidelines on how to apply.

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Tutors: Gillian Clarke and Damian Walford Davies Booking: Please refer to The Guardian Masterclasses’ website: www.theguardian.com/guardian-masterclasses

The inspiration for this three day retreat of writing and responding to poetry is the centenary of great Welsh poet R. S. Thomas. The tutors will offer personal tuition, group workshops and an immersion in the life and work of R. S. Thomas in the breathtaking landscape of the Llŷn Peninsula which inspired his most famous works.

Gillian Clarke is the National Poet of Wales since 2008 and President of Tŷ Newydd. In 2010 she was awarded the Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry, and the Wilfred Owen Award in 2012. Her latest published collection Ice was shortlisted for the TS Eliot Award 2012.

Poet, librettist and literary critic, Damian Walford Davies is the author of several poetry collections including Suit of Lights and Witch. He was Head of the Department of English and Creative Writing at Aberystwyth University, and is now Professor of English at Cardiff University.

Guardian Masterclass Poetry Conversation: responding to poems by R. S. Thomas 24-28 January

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Tutors: Robert Minhinnick Booking: Please refer to The Guardian Masterclasses’ web-site: www.theguardian.com/guardian-masterclasses

This is a chance to find inspiration in the words and landscape of the late Dylan Thomas, in the year of his centenary celebrations, and to write new work under his presiding genius. Participants will also be given the option to join the Full Moon Walk, open to the public, on Friday 7 November with Victoria Field, exploring the themes of mental health in Dylan Thomas’ work.

Robert Minhinnick published New Selected Poems in 2012. His prose books include Island of Lightning and The Keys of Babylon from Seren. He’s won the Forward Prize for best individual poem twice and also won Wales Book of the Year twice for his prose. www.robertminhinnick.com

Victoria Field is a Poetry Therapist and has worked in a wide variety of health and social care settings. She’s a former director of Survivors Poetry and has chaired Lapidus, the UK’s organisation for reading and writing for health and wellbeing. She’s also a playwright and a poet.

Guardian Masterclass Poetry Conversation: responding to poems by Dylan Thomas 3-8 November

The Full Moon Walk is part of the Dylan Odyssey series of unique Dylan Thomas-inspired literary tours run by Literature Wales.

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Offer: Should you wish to attend all 3 courses, a bundle offer is available: £750 per person (single room) / £600 per person (shared room)

East Meets West

Tŷ Newydd introduces East Meets West, three weekend courses exploring boundaries and perceptions, bridging cultural divides and looking at influences. Over the three courses we’ll look at the haiku, influences from Japan, India and China, and at how this crosses over into different art forms, drawings and music. A fascinating exploration enriching your own expression.

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Tutors: Nigel Jenkins and Lynne Rees Fee: £275 per person (single room) / £220 per person (shared room)

This weekend will include a practical workshop, group discussions and a ‘ginko’ - a walk with prompts to stimulate the writing of haiku: small epiphanies, the tiniest of elegies, snapshots from our daily lives.

Lynne Rees is a novelist, poet, award-winning creative writing tutor and joint-editor of Another Country: Haiku Poetry from Wales. Her haibun collection, Forgiving the Rain, is a multifaceted prose memoir studded with haiku. www.lynnerees.com

Nigel Jenkins teaches creative writing at Swansea University. His book about Welsh missionaries, Gwalia in Khasia won Wales Book of the Year in 1996. He is co-editor of The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales. His latest book of poetry is the haiku collection O For a Gun.

10: Haiku: Writing from Life and the Landscape 9-11 May

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Tutors: Imtiaz Dharker and Moniza Alvi Fee: £275 per person (single room) / £220 per person (shared room)

How do the images and idioms of the East and the West speak to each other, in poetry and in art? A weekend of readings, workshops and exploration, with Imtiaz Dharker and Moniza Alvi.

Moniza Alvi was born in Pakistan and grew up in Hertfordshire. Three of her poetry collections have been shortlisted for the T S Eliot Prize. She tutors for the Poetry School.

Imtiaz Dharker is a poet, artist and documentary film-maker. She’s had ten solo exhibitions of drawings in India, London, New York and Hong Kong. She scripts and directs films, many of them for non-government organisations in India, working in the area of shelter, education and health for women and children.

11: Tiffin Box Talks: An East-West Dialogue 11-13 July

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Tutors: Gareth Bonello, Georgia Ruth and Gwyneth Glyn Fee: £275 per person (single room) / £220 per person (shared room)

Join three of Wales’ most acclaimed bilingual singer-song writers to transcend the boundaries between East and West through music and poetry. Poets, singers, songwriters and the curious are all welcome.

Gareth Bonello is a bilingual songwriter and guitarist from Cardiff. For his most recent album, Y Bardd Anfarwol, he travelled to China to collaborate with musicians from Chengdu.

Georgia Ruth is a singer, songwriter and harpist from Aberystwyth. She won the Welsh Music Prize in 2013 with her debut album Week of Pines. In February 2013 Georgia flew to Kolkata, India to participate in a musical residency.

Gwyneth Glyn is a folk singer, songwriter and author who was brought up a stone’s throw from Tŷ Newydd. Gwyneth recently worked on a Welsh-Indian musical collaboration, Ghazalaw, which fuses Welsh folk verses with the Indian Ghazal tradition.

12: Poetry and Music 24-26 October

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Tutors: Lucy Christopher and Julia Green Guest: Nicola Davies Fee: £450 per person (single room) / £400 per person (shared room)

Discover the ways in which writing the wild can be important and useful in writing for young people. Wild places are spaces for initiation: places away from parents where a child’s imagination can run free. Through walking, writing and exploring the wild places around Tŷ Newydd, participants will be urged to find their own wild places and use them as starting points for their fiction.

Lucy Christopher, author of young adult novels Stolen, Flyaway and The Killing Woods, was born in Wales but grew up in Australia. Lucy now works as a Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Bath Spa University, and is also working on the screen adaptation of Stolen.

Julia Green is the author of more than twelve novels for young people, including

This Northern Sky and Tilly’s Moonlight Fox. She’s the Course Director for the MA in Writing for Young People at Bath Spa University.

Nicola Davies is the author of more than forty books, fiction, non-fiction, picture books and poetry, all exploring human relationships with the natural world.

13: Writing the Wild in Fiction for Young People 28 April – 2 May

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Tutors: Lucy Christopher and Ken White Fee: £450 per person (single room) / £400 per person (shared room)

Join script collaborators Ken White and Lucy Christopher as they discuss how they adapted Stolen, a young adult novel set in the Australian desert, to the screen. They will look at ways in which wild settings have been used previously in film, and will urge participants to find wild settings that are important to them for their own writing. Using the three act structure as a basis, participants will be urged towards creating or forwarding a script with wild setting at its core.

Ken White is a poet and screenwriter, and teaches screenwriting at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe. He’s the author of one volume of poetry, Eidolon.

Lucy Christopher, author of young adult novels Stolen, Flyaway and The Killing Woods, was born in Wales but grew up in Australia. Lucy now works as a Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Bath Spa University, and is also working on the screen adaptation of Stolen.

14: Writing the Wild in Script and Image 3-7 May

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Tutors: Siân Melangell Dafydd and Angharad Elen Fee: £175 per person

This course is aimed at new Welsh-language authors who wish to experiment with genre and craft. This is a great opportunity to learn from the experience and the expertise of the Y Neuadd editors (www.yneuadd.com) as they give advice and guidance on your work. We welcome poets, performers, reviewers, genre, fiction and factual writers to develop their work and to have the opportunity to publish a piece on Y Neuadd website.

Siân Melangell Dafydd won the Prose Medal at the 2009 National Eisteddfod with her first novel, Y Trydydd Peth. Siân is co-editor of the Welsh journal Taliesin and Y Neuadd website, is a yoga instructor and enjoys collaborating with artists and dancers to create new work.

Angharad Elen is a writer and scriptwriter. She works with Cwmni Da as a producer, and co-edits the Welsh journal Taliesin and Y Neuadd website. She won a Bafta Cymru Award in 2013 for her producing work on the documentary Gerallt.

15: Ysgrifennu ar gyfer Y Neuadd 31 January – 2 February

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Tutors: Jean McNeil and Julia Bell Guest: James Friel Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

Everyone has a story – but not everyone can tell it. On this course learn how to turn your stories into prose, be that a short story, a novel or a piece of non-fiction. This is a course on narrative technique, how to write persuasively and engagingly from tutors at two of the top MA courses in the country. The students will emerge with a completed short story, or possibly the beginning of a longer project.

Jean McNeil is from Nova Scotia, Canada, but has lived in London since 1991. She’s published ten books and her work has won several international awards. She’s Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia.

Julia Bell is Senior Lecturer on the MA Creative Writing at Birkbeck, University of London. She’s written three

novels and is the co-editor of the bestselling Creative Writing Coursebook and the recent anthology of stories The Sea in Birmingham. www.juliabell.net

James Friel’s most recent novel is The Posthumous Affair. He is Programme Leader for the MA in Writing at Liverpool John Moores University Centre for Writing.

16: Short Fiction: Got a Story? 19-24 May

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Tutors: Mavis Cheek and Francesca Rhydderch Guest: Cynan Jones Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

Whether you’re starting to write fiction, or working on an existing project, this intensive but fun course will give you a creative shot in the arm. With group workshops each morning and one-to-one tutorials in the afternoons it will explore key aspects of the fiction writer’s toolbox including character, setting, progressing the story, tone and dialogue.

Mavis Cheek is the author of fifteen novels. Pause Between Acts won the She/John Menzies first novel prize. She’s been reviewed as “Jane Austen in modern dress, taking dead aim at complacency”. She’s taught creative writing since 1990.

Francesca Rhydderch’s short stories have been published in magazines and anthologies, and

broadcast on Radio 4. Her debut novel, The Rice Paper Diaries was published in 2013. For six years she was the editor of New Welsh Review, and she now works as a freelance editor.

Cynan Jones is the author of The Long Dry, Everything I Found on the Beach, Bird, Blood, Snow, and The Dig, all short novels.

17: Fiction: Where to Start? 4-9 August

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Tutors: Aly Monroe and Andrew Williams Guest: Hanna Jameson Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

Whether you’ve already started writing a story or would like some tips on how to begin, this course will help you find the approach to plotting a great crime novel. During the course you’ll be taught how to develop characters that are convincing, and use setting and atmosphere in an effective way.

Aly Monroe, author of the Peter Cotton series, was shortlisted for the 2010 Ellis Peters Award, and was awarded the 2012 Historical Dagger Award. She also teaches writing workshops and is writing consultant to research groups at the Open University.

Andrew Williams worked for 20 years as a senior producer writing and directing award winning

historical documentaries for the BBC. He’s written two best selling histories and four historical thrillers. His latest, The Suicide Club, will be published later this year. www.andrewwilliams.tv

Hanna Jameson drafted Something You Are when she was just seventeen, and by twenty-one had written two sequels. In 2013 she was shortlisted for the CWA John Creasey Dagger Award for debut crime novel of the year.

18: Crime Writing 11-16 August

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Tutors: Manon Steffan Ros and Bethan Gwanas Guest: Jac Jones Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

Bring your favourite children’s books and an idea for a children’s story, and through group work and one-to-one sessions, Bethan and Manon will help you get started. The renowned artist, Jac Jones, will be joining us to talk about illustration. You’ll leave the course with a short story or the beginning of a novel – and confidence and a smile.

Bethan Gwanas’ novels for adults, teenagers and Welsh learners are bestsellers. She’s won the Tir na n-Og Prize for best children’s book twice. Bethan is often seen on S4C, presenting programmes on gardening and being green.

Manon Steffan Ros writes novels for children and adults. She’s won the Tir na n-Og Prize twice. In 2013, her novel, Blasu, won the fiction prize at Wales Book Of The

Year. Manon writes songs and performs under the name Blodau Gwylltion.

Jac Jones has been illustrating children’s books since the mid 1970s. He won the Tir na n–Og Award several times, and in 2012 he was awarded the prestigious Mary Vaughan Jones Prize to acknowledge his outstanding contribution to the field of children’s literature in Wales.

19: Writing for Children 8-13 September

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Tutors: Zillah Bowes, Asher Tlalim and Jane Corbett Guest: Chris Pow Fee: £1,750 per person - participants will be selected. Please contact us to receive full details on how to apply.

Whatever your background in documentary film-making, this practical course will help you develop your creativity and find fresh ideas in your work. During the course, you’ll make a short film poetry exercise in response to a written poem of your choice. In the first week, tutorials will focus on developing your idea and shooting your short film, and during the second week, on editing it.

Zillah Bowes is an award winning film-maker and poet. She trained at the National Film and Television School, where she currently teaches. www.zillahbowes.com

An Israeli Film Academy Award winner, Asher Tlalim has run many workshops on Film Poetry. He’s been the screenwriter, editor and director of many of his films

which have been shown at film festivals across the world.

Jane Corbett is a screen-writer and novelist, who’s written award-winning screenplays for film and TV. She currently teaches at the National Film and Television School. www.janecorbett-writer.com

Chris Pow is a senior tutor in sound design and mixing at the National Film and Television School.

20: The Language of Film Poetry 31 March – 12 April

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Tutors: Kate McAll and Lynne Truss Fee: £600 per person (single room) / £500 per person (shared room) - participants will be selected. Please contact us to receive full details on how to apply.

Writing for the ear offers the most intimate relationship a scriptwriter can have with their audience. This course offers insights into the industry, including finding and working with a producer, the commissioning process and pitching radio proposals, as well as practical experience of developing ideas and characters, and writing scenes. Participants will write a piece of radio which will be recorded with actors, and mixed with sound effects and music to broadcast standard.

Formerly an Executive Producer at the BBC, Kate McAll has produced a diverse range of drama and documentaries for Radio 3 and 4, including Torchwood, and The Diary of Samuel Pepys. She’s the winner of the Sony Gold Award, The Sandford St Martin Award and the Mind Media Award.

Lynne Truss is a globally best-selling author, newspaper columnist, broadcaster, and dramatist, both on stage and radio. She has many BBC Radio credits to her name including A Certain Age, Westwood, Cold Calling, and her long-running series, Inspector Steine.

21: Writing Radio Drama 2-8 June

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Introduction to New Approaches

Literature Wales, in partnership with S4C, is delighted to introduce a new skills development programme for writers from and in Wales. Through two residential courses at Tŷ Newydd and followed by mentoring opportunities, writers will be supported to develop the tools and attributes specific to adapting prose for TV and narratives for gaming.

Through introductions, tutorials, mentoring and practical tips, participants will acquire the skills and expertise to write adaptations, and also to submit proposals.

S4C is dedicated to the production of high quality contemporary Welsh writing, and skills acquired on these courses will be of advantage for participants applying for commissions.

Full details, including guest speakers, mentors and tutors will be announced in the spring on Literature Wales’ and S4C’s websites.

Supported by Creative Skillset and S4C

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Fee: £600 per person (single room) / £500 per person (shared room)Participants will be selected. Please contact us to receive full details on how to apply.

With the ever-growing popularity of novel adaptations such as Game of Thrones, The Hunger Games, Submarine and Martha, Jac a Sianco, S4C is eager to encourage development is this field, with the intention of commissioning adaptations, creating original and ambitious TV series and films.

Tutors, guests and more information to be announced soon on the Literature Wales and S4C websites.

In partnership with S4C and Creative Skillset Cymru.

22: Adapting the Novel for the Screen 15-21 September

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Fee: £600 per person (single room) / £500 per person (shared room)Participants will be selected. Please contact us to receive full details on how to apply.

The games industry now represents over 50% of the download market, generating more revenue than the combined might of the music, film and TV industry. How can established Welsh writing talent enter this exciting new sphere of creativity transferring their skills into a new world and arena?

Tutors, guests and more information to be announced soon on the Literature Wales and S4C websites.

In partnership with S4C and Creative Skillset Cymru.

23: Game Mad 17-21 November

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Tutors: Huw Aaron and Matt Sewell Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

Join Matt and Huw on a journey to the meeting point of words and pictures. No preparation required, just a love of drawing, some imagination and a sense of humour. Projects will include graphical storytelling, sketching from nature, illustrated texts, cartooning and storyboarding, all gently prodded along by the pencil-wielding facilitators. Partici-pants will leave the course with bulging sketchpads, screen-prints, comics, and a large bucket of inspiration to go on and do some more.

Huw Aaron is a Cardiff-based cartoonist and illustrator, and the author of Welsh-language comic book Llyfr Hwyl y Lolfa. He’s a regular contributor to Private Eye, The Oldie, and The Spectator, illustrator of children’s books and creator of comic strips.

Artist and author Matt Sewell is an avid ornithologist, regular contributor to the Caught By The River website and author of the bestselling books Our Garden Birds and Our Songbirds. He’s illustrated for Barbour, The Guardian, The V&A, Levis and painted walls for Helly Hansen, Puma and the RSPB.

24: Illustrating Narrative 18-23 August

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Tutors: Philip Gross and Carole Burns Guest: Huw Vaughan Williams and Paul Edwards Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

This week of poets, musicians and artist collaboration will see what creative processes happen when words encounter other art forms. And how can we push it over the edge to where surprising things might happen? On this course we’ll be joined by a visual artist and a musician.

Philip Gross has published ten novels for young people, collaborated with artists, musicians and dancers, and is a Professor of Creative Writing at the University of South Wales. www.philipgross.co.uk

Carole Burns is one of the founders of the Imagistic project bringing flash fiction, poetry and world-class art together in performance and on the page. www.caroleburns.com

Huw Vaughan Williams is a double bass player and a jazz musician, who’s studied at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.

Paul Edwards is a senior lecturer in Fine Art at Lincoln University. His work has been exhibited around the world.

25: Where Words Meet Music and Silent Image 25-30 August

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Tutors: Damian Walford Davies and Richard Marggraf Turley Guest: Kathryn Simmonds Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

This course for both new and experienced poets explores how to construct compelling voices drawing on a range of materials, techniques and forms. From historical source materials to dialect, from visual stimuli to the cues of space and place, and from the ‘found’ to the assembled, participants will be introduced to a poetry of thrown voice in which they will hear their own selves echoing.

Poet, librettist and literary critic, Damian Walford Davies is the author of several poetry collections. He was Head of the Department of English and Creative Writing at Aberystwyth University, and is now Professor of English at Cardiff University.

Richard Marggraf Turley won the Wales Book of the Year People’s Choice Award

in 2010, and in 2007, he won the Keats-Shelley Prize for poetry. He teaches in the Department of English and Creative Writing at Aberystwyth University.

Kathryn Simmonds has published two books of poetry, Sunday at the Skin Launderette which wonthe Forward Prize for Best First Collection, and The Visitations.

26: Throwing Voices: Writing Beyond the Self 21-26 July

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Tutors: Rhian Edwards and Luke Wright Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

Learn how to take your poetry from page to stage with two of the UK’s best-loved live poets. Through a series of work-shops and one-to-one sessions we’ll look at story, musicality, imagery, form and performance techniques to help you create poetry that captivates audiences of all kinds.

Rhian Edwards’ first collection of poems Clueless Dogs was shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection in 2012, and won Wales Book of the Year Award in 2013. Rhian was awarded the John Tripp Award for Spoken Poetry 2011, winning both the Judges and Audience award, making her Wales’ best performance poet.

Luke Wright is a poet and broadcaster, whose work is regularly featured on TV & radio. He’s the author of seven poetry stage shows and the curator of the Latitude Poetry Arena, one of the largest poetry events in Europe. His debut collection, Mondeo Man, was published in 2013.

27: Poetry Aloud! 28 July – 2 August

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Further information about this course will be available soon on Literature Wales’ website. Fee: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

To coincide with the centenary of the First World War, commemorations and readings of war poems will feature in the course programme throughout the next four years. This was the war to end all wars, the final great conflict. But history tells us differently.

Each autumn over the next four years, we’ll invite writers and artists to Tŷ Newydd, to respond to this collective memory of war and conflict.

Through residential courses at Tŷ Newydd, talks and evocations at Yr Ysgwrn - the home of poet and young soldier Hedd Wyn (Ellis Humphrey Evans, 1887-1917) and other various events, we’ll invite new voices to develop responses.

In partnership with Snowdonia National Park and Cadw

28: War and Trauma in Poetry 10-15 November

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Tutors: Ed Holden and Aneirin Karadog Fee: £450 per person (single room) / £375 per person (shared room)

A week of experimenting with and challenging the traditional form of delivering poetry. Deconstruct poems into words, reassemble stray words from shopping lists into poems. This course will explore the definition of muse, and look into exciting new ways of creating and performing poetry. Expect highbrow hip-hop, Justin Bieber lyrics turned into Psalms, and English cynghanedd.

Aneirin Karadog is the current Bardd Plant Cymru (Welsh-language Children’s Poet Laureate). He won the poetry category at Wales Book of the Year in 2013 for his first collection O Annwn i Geltia. He’s an experienced performer with a hip-hop background, and a familiar face on S4C.

Ed Holden aka Mr Phormula has performed as a hip-hop artist across the world, and has been featured on Charlie Sloth’s Radio 1 UK Rap Anthems and on a Rap Britannia documentary. Ed runs youth workshops inspiring students of all ages and abilities to be experimental with words.

29: Deconstructing the Poem 1-6 December

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Tutors: Aneirin Karadog and Martin Daws Fee: £275 per person (single room) / £220 per person (shared room)

A course especially for educators. In 2013 Martin Daws and Aneirin Karadog attended the Preemptive Education conference in New York, run by Urban Word, for poetry and spoken word educators. The conference examined critical issues that affect today’s youth, while providing creative and practical resources to address them. Martin and Aneirin will share their experiences from New York and from the hundreds of workshops they’ve run across Wales and beyond.

Aneirin Karadog is the current Bardd Plant Cymru (Welsh-language Children’s Poet Laureate). He won the poetry category at Wales Book of the Year in 2013 for his first collection O Annwn i Geltia. He’s an experienced performer with a hip-hop background, and a familiar face on S4C.

Martin Daws is the current Young People’s Laureate for Wales and leads community and youth workshops across the country. He’s an established performance poet and spoken word artist, who’s performed across the world including at The Nuyorican Poets Cafe Slam.

30: New Approaches to Poetry in Education 13-15 June

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Health and Wellbeing

Literature offers people a voice and a powerful medium for self-expression. Writing and reading creatively can improve mental wellbeing and encourage the development of emotional insight.

Tŷ Newydd’s innovative outreach programme continues to work with hard to reach and marginalised groups including people with dementia, people with mental health difficulties, young carers, young people from disadvantaged areas, unemployed people and older new writers. The aim of these projects has been to remove barriers to creative freedom with words and to enable these groups to access the kind of opportunity for self-expression that Tŷ Newydd has always offered.

Over the past two years we’ve delivered these creative workshops and projects within a variety of settings including mental health centres, empty shops, care and nursing homes, hospitals, schools and other youth provisions and have worked with partners including Age Cymru, Bangor University, Barnardos, Youth Services, Library Services, The Reader Organisation, Community Music Wales and Action for Children.

The development of knowledge and expertise in the field is becoming increasingly important, and for a number of years Tŷ Newydd has run a pioneering course in Creative Writing in Health and Social Care, more recently developing further opportunities for writers to gain knowledge in specialised areas such as Writing and Dementia, Writing and Mindfulness and Shared Reading. Over the next few years we’ll be creating more advanced and specialised opportunities for writers to train in the field, including the development of accreditation.

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Tutors: Jill Teague and Mariel Jones Fee: £435 per person (single room) / £380 per person (shared room)

This experiential course will offer an opportunity to practice mindfulness and a range of therapeutic writing approaches through the interactive use of poetry, prose and guided meditation. We’ll explore ways of integrating mindfulness and writing into everyday life with a view to promoting personal creativity, self-compassion and wellbeing.

Mariel Jones works for the Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice at Bangor University. She’s an accredited member of the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists, and offers individual therapy to include mindfulness one-to-one with clients.

Jill Teague is a poet, writer and Certified Poetry Therapist. She’s Assistant Director of The International Academy for Poetry Therapy, New York, and trains potential poetry therapy practitioners. She’s received numerous awards for pioneering work in the field of poetry therapy.

31: Mindfulness and Therapeutic Writing 9-13 June

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Tutors for both courses: Victoria Field and Graham Hartill Guest for the full course: Larry Butler Fee for taster course: £220 per person (single room) / £180 per person (shared room)Fee for full course: £550 per person (single room) / £450 per person (shared room)

There’s a growing body of evidence to suggest that creative writing and reading can promote health and wellbeing. On this course, participants will explore the different ways writing can be used to promote better health and wellbeing.

Playwright and poet Victoria Field is a Poetry Therapist. She’s a former director of Survivors Poetry and has chaired Lapidus, the UK’s organisation for reading and writing for health and well-being.

Graham Hartill is co-founder of Lapidus. He’s been a writer in residence at HMP Parc Prison for seven years, and teaches Creative Writing for Therapeutic Purposes for the Metanoia Institute.

Larry Butler co-founded the Poetry Healing Project and Survivors’ Poetry Scotland. His collection of poetry, Butterfly Bones was published in 2008.

32 & 33: Writing in Health and Social Care Taster Course: 4-6 March Full course: 22-27 September

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Tŷ Newydd arranges courses for primary and secondary schools, as well as for universities. The aim is to give children and adolescents the confidence to explore their talent.

Tŷ Newydd is a place where young people are given:

- Time, space and confidence to explore their potential as writers in an inspirational environment.

- Close and continuous attention from professional writers.

- Encouragement to develop creativity in their own unique way.

- The emotions of excitement, joy and love of words inspired by the magic of Tŷ Newydd and its surroundings.

- The opportunity to feel, respond and share through writing.

Spending time in this creative atmosphere to concentrate on writing is a valuable experience in developing pupils’ writing skills, the ability to express themselves, and also their development of social skills.

Contact Tŷ Newydd on 01766 522811 for more information about courses for groups of children and young people.

Schools

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Activities will include meet-the-author sessions, workshops to engage schools, and exclusive performances. It will also be available for local reading, writing and poetry groups to use as a regular meeting place. The Literature Lounge’s life began in 2011 as a pop-up shop in Cardiff, and has since toured empty shops, taking literature to communities across Wales in fun and accessible ways.

We hope to bring a mobile version of the Literature Lounge into towns, villages, schools and festivals across Wales soon.

If you have a local reading or writing group, or would like to bring a group of young people to work in the Literature Lounge, please contact Tŷ Newydd for more information.

The Literature Lounge

Welcome to The Literature Lounge, a dedicated and flexible space within Tŷ Newydd. A sister room to the planned new Literature Lounge at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff Bay. The two venues will be closely connected in style and content, featuring a varied programme to inspire and encourage people of all ages to read and enjoy literature.

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Tŷ Newydd is a creative space for writers, but it’s also a place for visitors from the local community and from further afield.

We’ve commissioned a series of intricately designed and crafted benches and sculptures celebrating Welsh literature, and we invite walkers, adventurers and explorers to use these. The benches will be named after and dedicated to some of our most influential literary figures. Iwan Llwyd, Wil Sam, Dylan Thomas and R.S. Thomas will be the first ones, and there will be more to follow.

For families, we’re developing a poetry treasure hunt here at Tŷ Newydd. A path to follow, objects to find and interpret, connections to make while enjoying the stunning surroundings and gardens. This will be open to all in Spring 2014.

In 2014 we will have our own Christmas market with stalls and traders, musicians and poets, performances and workshops. While you visit the Christmas market, writers and musicians from four Celtic regions will develop a collaborative piece of work in the house. Something truly unique in collaboration with the new Pontio venue in Bangor. More details will be announced in the summer.

Discovery

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From this year, two Welsh-language festivals will be held at Tŷ Newydd. In the spring, Gŵyl Ddrama Wil Sam (a drama festival) celebrates the life of the dramatist and local character Wil Sam. His plays, known for their witty and unique voice, have been performed widely on stage, television and the radio.

Festivals at Tŷ Newydd

In the autumn, Gŵyl Farddoniaeth Tŷ Newydd (a poetry festival) celebrates the art of cynghanedd, the unique Welsh strict metre verse which was briefly introduced into the English-language poetry scene by poet Gerard Manley Hopkins. It’s a festival full of talks, discussions, performances and poetic duels.

Information about these festivals and other seasonal celebrations will be available on: www.literaturewales.org

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