Celebrate the publication of great weather for MEDIA’s latest anthology, Suitcase of Chrysanthemums - a fearless and dynamic collection of poetry and short fiction - at London's famed Poetry Cafe.
Join us for readings by UK and NYC contributors and award-winning special guests Martin Ouvry, Puma Perl, Mary Raffaele, Gayle Richardson, Joolz Sparkes, Chris Stewart, and Roddy Williams.
Hosted by Jane Ormerod.
£5/£3 concessions on the door
Submissions open for the 2019 anthology in October. This is a fabulous opportunity to learn about an independent press looking for new voices.
Martin Ouvry lives in London. A writer, musician, and teacher, Martin is a Wingate Scholar in literature and was a Hawthornden Fellow. His work has been published in a range of anthologies and magazines including Esquire, New Writing (Picador, London), and The London Magazine. He is writing a novel with the generous support of Arts Council England.
Puma Perl is a New York performer, producer, and a widely published poet / writer. She’s the author of two chapbooks, Belinda and Her Friends and Ruby True, and two full-length collections, Retrograde (great weather for MEDIA, 2014) and knuckle tattoos. She is the creator and curator of Puma Perl’s Pandemonium, which merges poetry with rock and roll; as Puma Perl and Friends, she performs with some of NYC’s best musicians. Puma is a recipient of a 2016 Acker Award in the category of writing, and of two New York Press Association Honorable Mentions (2015 and 2016) in recognition of her journalism. Interview
Mary Raffaele: Rock and Roll Juggernaut, Writer, Animal Lover, Friend, Sister, Daughter, Ex-Girlfriend, Nerd, Fagwoman. "My name is Mary but everyone calls me Raff or Raffaele. Raised in Michigan, moved to New York in the 80's. I'm a former metal queen and used to sing for Cycle Sluts from Hell. I've slung drinks, managed clubs, wrangled fashion numbers, now I manage a promotion company with a store and art gallery attached. And of course write."
Gayle Richardson has appeared in the great weather for MEDIA anthologies, I Let Go of the Stars in My Hand and The Careless Embrace of the Boneshaker. Some of her recent work can be found in the Australian poetry journal, Uneven Floor. Originally from Kent, Gayle currently lives in Suffolk. During the day, she is a freelance writer. By night, she is mostly wine or vodka.
Joolz Sparkes is published in Magma, Brittle Star, South Bank Poetry, Persister’s Zine, Loose Muse, and Paper Swans Press. She was Poet-in -Residence at Leicester Square tube station, shortlisted for Bridport Poetry Prize and featured at Ledbury Poetry Festival. In 2018 she was awarded Arts Council funding for Research and Development of London Undercurrents – a joint project with the poet Hilaire, which uncovers the voices of women, real and imagined, who have lived in Battersea and Islington over many centuries.
Chris Stewart is the smartest stupid person you’ll ever meet and is turning his life into a text-based adventure. He is an alumnus of Apple and Snakes’ “Public Address” and has performed at numerous festivals across the United Kingdom including the Cheltenham Poetry Festival, Turku Poetry Week, and the T-Junction International Literary Festival. His poems, film / poems, and stories have appeared in Freak Circus, Atticus Review, Outdoor Photography, and Bop Dead City amongst others. Chris lives in Yorkshire and—as seen on television—owns a marble bust that looks just like him.
Originally from North Wales, Roddy Williams now lives in London. His poetry has appeared in The North, The Frogmore Papers, Magma, The Rialto, Envoi, and is upcoming in The Stand. Last year his work was included in the great weather for MEDIA anthology The Other Side of Violet. Winner of the Bruce Brown Poetry Trophy, Roddy was also shortlisted for the Bridport Prize in recent years. He's had two plays performed in London, is currently working on his first novel and is a keen surrealist photographer, printmaker and painter. He is married with one cat.
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