Gifts

Christmas approaches. If you're looking for a unique gift that will last all year long, why not give that special literature lover in your life a subscription to New Welsh Review? Four beautiful issues a year, delivered direct to their door – comprising hundreds of pages of the very best writing from Wales and further afield. Or why not treat yourself by pre-booking this antidote to the New Year blues? Visit our subscriptions page to find out more.

Picks of 2010

The year is old. And so I weigh up the fortunes of what's passed. A human impulse, perhaps. Of the type that Larkin would have endorsed and mocked equally. More fun instead is to draw up an inventory of books that thrilled me in 2010. It's been an interesting year for titles from Wales and Welsh writers this year. I'm looking forward to seeing what achieves consensus among the Wales Book of the Year judges for 2011 (Deborah Kay Davies, Francesca Rhydderch and Jon Gower), who will draw from the well of 2010 to find the winner of £10,000 and considerable kudos. The longlist of ten will be announced in March.

Overall, of those books eligible for the prize I've read, my impression has been one of quality more condensed than in previous years. Equal richness, but less dilution across the output. To me it has seemed that there are clear outliers.

With the caveat that I am missing a month (December)... and can't possibly read everything... and this judge's decision is final and no further correspondence etc... I'd like to put forward my own list. The work that has charmed, sometimes delightfully infuriated or provoked incredible envy – and otherwise made the fact that I spend all my scant available time reading books instead of learning how to cook seem utterly sensible, not to mention a true privilege. It's also heartening to note that this is no Welsh-wash. A number of these titles would have appeared on my list even if it was opened out to the world beyond. So, then, in no particular order:

True Things About Me - Deborah Kay Davies (Canongate) – this title, alas, ineligible

What the Water Gave Me - Pascale Petit (Seren)

Diamond Star Halo - Tiffany Murray (Portobello)

Fireball - Tyler Keevil (Parthian)

Jilted City - Patrick McGuinness (Carcanet)

West: A Journey Through the Landscapes of Loss - Jim Perrin (Atlantic)

Of Mutability - Jo Shapcott (Faber)

On the Third Day - Rhys Thomas (Doubleday)

Into Suez - Stevie Davies (Parthian)

Uncharted - Jon Gower (Gomer) – this title, alas, ineligible

True, some are more consistent than others. While two are absolutely exceptional. But all offer fresh approaches in asking the old questions. And it's all in the questions – at this time more than ever.

I'd heartily recommend all of the above as stocking fillers which will – aside from engendering pleasure – support writers and the houses that publish them, especially if you buy or order from your local, hardworking indie bookshop.

Bursaries from Academi 2011

If you've ever wondered just how you'll manage to finish that novel, collection of poetry or creative non-fic while negotiating the burdens of the day job or childcare, consider applying for an Academi bursary to 'buy time' for writing – applications are now open. The process is a competitive one – weighing up need with talent – but bursaries are available for unpublished writers, as well as those who are well established in the field. The scheme has an excellent track record for spotting and supporting talent, with many past recipients going on to publish acclaimed works as a result. You must be permanently resident in Wales for the proposed duration of the bursary in order to apply. Visit the website here to find out more.

New Welsh Review 89

It won't be long before the next issue of New Welsh Review is ready and waiting, featuring the best new writing from Sheenagh Pugh, Philip Gross, Niall Griffiths, Robert Lewis. Paul Henry, Lorraine Mariner, Tim Liardet, John Redmond, Francesca Rhydderch, Tiffany Atkinson and more. Don't miss out!

You can renew your subscription online here or ring us with your credit card details on 01970 628410. As an extra bonus, when you renew your subscription you can nominate a friend, relative or colleague to receive two complimentary issues, to spread the word about New Welsh Review. If you're not a subscriber yet, why not take advantage of our introductory offer: four brilliant and beautiful issues delivered straight to your door, post free, and all for £19.

As a subscriber you can enter our prize draws and have a chance to win some fabulous literary prizes: subscribe before the end of August and you could win the complete longlist for the Dylan Thomas Prize, see our website for more details.

Heatwave but no haitus

You may be forgiven for thinking I've gone on holiday. Not a bit of it. I've been hard at work in the heat, shaping up Issue 89. And what a good issue it looks. Published in August, 89 features new writing from Niall Griffiths, Robert Lewis, Philip Gross, Francesca Rhydderch, Sheenagh Pugh, Tim Liardet, Paul Henry, Lorraine Mariner, Tiffany Atkinson and more. Plus stunning photography from Rhodri Jones, and our rigorous review pages.

Dirty Protest: on the hunt for new plays...

Having trouble getting your play read? Not famous enough for the big guns? A bit too edgy for the rest? Or just never sent that big idea to anyone? Then fear not. Dirty Protest is here.

If you have a play that needs a little help standing up, and would like to workshop it with professional actors, Dirty Protest can help. We're looking for a full-length play, to produce a staged reading of – along the lines of our last full-length staged reading, The Bells of Shoreditch. We plan to offer 2-3 days workshopping the play before rehearsing, and staging in front of a paying audience.

We are looking for a play with more potential than polish, that has minimal staging requirements, with a realistic cast size, and around 1 hour in length. As ever, we operate on a shoe-string.

Send your plays to info [at] dirtyprotesttheatre.co.uk by 20 June.

Hay Round One - Dmitry Bykov and Rachel Trezise

Opening weekend at the Guardian Hay Festival 2010 and the weather on Saturday was pretty desperate. Last year, we’d been blessed with Mediterranean temperatures. The turnout had been fantastic and the vibe superb. I was worried. British weather has always had a crucial part to play in writers’ fortunes. It’s a defining factor in audience numbers. Thankfully, Hay festival-goers are a plucky bunch. The site was packed, books were clutched and spirits were high, even as the rain poured and the wind... Oh how it blowed.

I was here this year to interview the masterful Dmitry Bykov, a legend in his native Russia – brilliant, controversial and a Renaissance man (poet, novelist, playwright, biographer, print and broadcast journalist, social and political commentator) – and the wonderful Welsh novelist Rachel Trezise who, at the tender age of just 32, has garnered acclaim and awards aplenty (among which, the 2006 Dylan Thomas Prize and a place on the Orange Futures List) with work which includes fiction, playwriting and reportage.

Rachel joined me to discuss her remarkable novel set in the Welsh valleys, Sixteen Shades of Crazy, which explores the effects on the lives of three women when they encounter the English stranger in town – sexy, dangerous, drug dealer Johnny. It’s commendable for its razor-sharp wit, its combination of depth and sheer readability, and for its uncompromising take on how women fit into the social economy of deprived areas. Rachel’s experiences on the British toilet circuit with cult Welsh rockers Midasuno – which resulted in her Dial M for Merthyr – had provided the spark of inspiration to look at the flipside. In Sixteen, it’s not the band (The Boobs) that gets the treatment but the ladies in their lives. It’s a book that offers a window on the darker side of life and the inherent dangers of provincialism. As such, the valleys provide a fitting backdrop. But, as Rachel told us, the narrative could apply to so many disenfranchised areas across the UK.

Dmitry talked to me about his Living Souls, an elegant translation by Cathy Porter of his satirical dystopian fiction in the russian, Zh.D. Dmitry was everything I had hoped he would be, and everything his satire had suggested. He told the audience that his novel was much like himself: ‘big and intelligent’. But beyond the humour, Dmitry outlined the seriousness of his purpose. A man against dogma and alert to the dangers of identity and nationalism, and mindful of the warnings – and endless, tragic repetitions – of history. A packed-out audience, dark material and much laughter. Next Sunday, I’ll be back to talk to Trezza Azzopardi and Jon McGregor.

Living Souls by Dmitry Bykov (translated by Cathy Porter) is published by Alma Books. Sixteen Shades of Crazy is published by Blue Door.

New Welsh Review at Hay 2010

New Welsh Review will have a strong presence at Hay this year.

On Saturday 29th May at 1pm: Small Wars and Laughter with Rachel Trezise and Dmitry Bykov in conversation with Kathryn Gray

Living Souls is a comic masterpiece set in a futuristic Russian dystopia. Sixteen Shades of Crazy imagines a contemporary South Walian Stepford-Llaregub. Book tickets here.

On Sunday 6th June at 5.30pm: Intimacy with Trezza Azzopardi and Jon McGregor chaired by Kathryn Gray

The Song House is about language and music, memory and place; Even The Dogs is an intimate exploration of life at the edges of society; littered with love, loss, despair and a glimpse of redemption. Book tickets here.

Come join us! And for more details on the festival programme click here.

New Welsh Review 88

New Welsh Review 88 will be published in a few weeks. Featuring truly fantastic writing from Ruth Padel, Damian Walford Davies, Nii Ayikwei Parkes, Samantha Wynne-Rhydderch, Pascale Petit, Richard Collins, Mary-Ann Constantine, Siân Melangell Dafydd, Sarah Broughton, Ben Wilkinson, Russell Celyn Jones – and more. Plus, rigorous reviews of the very best new books.

If you're not yet a subscriber, visit our subscriptions page to enjoy a year of fantastic original critical and creative writing for just £19.

Planet Magazine - Editor vacancy

Planet is calling for applications for the post of Editor of Planet. An exciting opportunity. Details, including job description and how to apply can be found by visiting the Planet website.

Offers

We hope all our readers are enjoying the current issue of New Welsh Review. Renew you subscription before the end of March and we'll send you a £5 book token: you help us by a speedy renewal (let's face it, it saves on admin!) and we give you a little something back to say thank you.

You can renew your subscription online here or ring us with your credit card details on 01970 628410. As an extra bonus, when you renew your subscription you can nominate a friend, relative or colleague to receive two complimentary issues, to spread the word about New Welsh Review. If you're not a subscriber yet, why not take advantage of our introductory offer: four brilliant issues delivered straight to your door, post free, and all for £19.

As a subscriber you can enter our prize draws and have a chance to win some fabulous literary prizes, see our website for more details.

National Theatre Wales

National Theatre Wales featured in The Guardian.

New Welsh Review 87

New Welsh Review 87 will be out very soon, with some great writing from, among others, Tishani Doshi, Lloyd Jones, Menna Elfyn, Dai Vaughan, Sarah Corbett, Andrew McNeillie, Deborah Kay Davies and Tom Bullough.

Make sure your subscription is up to date and you can also enter our prize draws: you’ve a chance of winning a copy of Welsh Time from Gregynog Press if you send us your name by February 26th. Welsh Time is a fabulous prize – beautifully crafted and hand bound in quarter leather the book is one of a limited edition of 75. The book celebrates Emyr Humphrey’s work from the past 50 years alongside Paul Croft’s hand-printed lithographs. Welsh Time would normally cost you £320: subscribe now from only £19 for 4 issues and this wonderful book could be yours.

Sleep Furiously wins Guardian's Best First Film Award

Read the story here. Read Peter Bradshaw's review here.

Education, Education, Education

Sarah Waters and others on the teachers who inspired them in today's Guardian.

Synecdoche, Adamsdown

As everyone with a good dictionary knows, a ‘synecdoche’ is a literary term where the part stands for the whole and vice versa. It is also a play on words for Schenectady in a film by Charlie Kaufman.

I had been looking forward to watching Synecdoche, New York – his film starring Phillip Seymour Hoffman – for some time, as I had missed its theatrical release, but I had the chance to watch it over Christmas. It’s not obvious festive viewing and wouldn’t compare favourably with, say, It’s A Wonderful Life when it comes to all-round holiday entertainment. In fact, my wife burst into tears at the end and said that it had been unfair of me to put her through it without advance warning.

It’s the story of a middle-aged theatre director called Caden Cotard, who wins a grant or ‘genius award’ from a prestigious philanthropic foundation at the very point where his life begins to fall apart. He is filled with doubt about his latest production. His wife leaves him and takes their child away with her. Afflicted by a variety of mysterious ailments, he believes that he is going to die. There is a particularly affecting moment where Hoffman peers into a toilet bowl and prods a recent evacuation with a spatula.

With the proceeds from his grant, Cotard embarks on a project filled with ‘real honesty and truth’. He builds a replica of his own neighbourhood in a huge warehouse, casts himself as a character and spends the next thirty years of his life rehearsing an enormous ensemble cast in a play based in the minutiae of his life. The play is never performed and Cotard dies friendless and alone, rejected or abandoned by the people he cared for most.

Becoming a poetic meditation on the sense of death in life, the film even underlines this by naming its central character after Cotard’s Syndrome – a psychiatric condition whereby the victim holds the delusional belief that he or she is dead. Kaufman described it like this: ‘I was trying to present a life, with its moments of nothing. There is something that happens to people when they get old, which is that they get sidelined. There isn't a big, dramatic crescendo and then their life is over. They're forced out of their work, the people in their lives die, they lose their place in the world, people don't take them seriously, and then they just continue to live. And what is that? What does that feel like? I wanted to try to be truthful about that and express something about what I think is a really sad human condition.’

The film is also an extraordinary, hallucinatory, multi-textured piece of work and that rare thing – an intelligent, allusive and innovative American movie. Some people will love it, most people will hate it, but barely anyone could be unaffected by it.

Writing rarely inspires envy or jealousy in me, but I must admit I’d be quite happy with Charlie Kaufman’s work appended to my CV. He is the most distinctive American film maker since David Lynch and my identification with the film was absolute.

One reason is that a few months ago I was given a Creative Wales Award by The Arts Council of Wales to develop my ‘creative practice’ as a theatre director.

If you’re wondering, it’s just the same as ‘a genius award’.

So, if you end up passing through Adamsdown in the decades ahead, that’ll be me.

Or, at least, someone looking a bit like me.

Guest blogger – Simon Harris

Over the next few months, Simon Harris will be dropping in to blog for us. Simon is a Cardiff-based director and dramatist. He was Artistic Director of Sgript Cymru, the first Wales Fellow on The Clore Leadership Programme and a Creative Wales Award winner in 2009.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to all our readers. We'll be back and in the swing of things soon enough, with some contributions from a new guest blogger, as well as news and views.

Looking ahead to the spring issue, some great contributors and work to relish, including Menna Elfyn, Tom Bullough, Lloyd Jones, Tishani Doshi, Sarah Corbett, Siriol Troup, Gary Owen, Peter Finch, Isabel Adonis, Dai Vaughan and Deborah Kay Davies. The issue will be published at the beginning of March, so do look out for it.

Whose voice is it anyway?

Over the past few blogs, I’ve been thinking about the different elements I’ve had to consider as I write my biography of the woman who was briefly married to a ‘Screen Giant of Electric Intensity’ (New York Times); from questions of identity to how much a biographer should reveal of themselves. One aspect I haven’t written about – probably because I find it the most troublesome – is the ‘voice’. Recently, I read some interviews with ghostwriters who discussed how they managed to locate the ‘voice’ of their ‘ghostee’ (as they call them); Hunter Davies (Gazza - My Story; Wayne Rooney – My Story So Far; Prezza – Pulling No Punches) described himself as being a ‘ventriloquist, trying to capture the character of a person, but it doesn't have to be their exact words, just words and phrases and a style that accords with their received image'. Another, Pepsy Dening (Fern, My Story, by Fern Britton; Learning To Fly, by Victoria Beckham; Extreme, My Autobiography, by Sharon Osbourne) said, ‘A successful autobiography is one where the "voice" is unique, the story fresh and the emotions true. Just setting down what the subject chooses to tell me will never achieve that. Clichés, banality, point-scoring and psychobabble are discarded. What is retained is detail, quirkiness, feeling and truth.'

Although I can’t help thinking you’re halfway there if you’re literally pretending to be someone else, there is something in the fact that you can’t simply mimic or reproduce the language of your subject and hope that it sounds authentic – because it won’t – as anyone who’s ever typed up verbatim conversations between people on buses will know. There has to be something between capturing the ‘sound’ of someone – as you must in an autobiography – and the ‘essence’ of them as you ought to in a biography. One, which I think beautifully portrays the fundamental nature of the person by finding the appropriate means of telling their story, is Ian Hamilton’s In Search of J. D. Salinger written after Salinger famously sued Hamilton for unauthorised use of letters in the original biography. Undeterred by the fracas, Hamilton wrote a new version which he described as telling you ‘just as much about Salinger, in fact more, than the earlier, banned version did'. It did more than that – it raised key questions about the whole business of 'biography' – what is it for? Why do we write it? Why do people want to read it?

Back to the voice; what Hamilton did was to find a new way of interpreting the material which enabled the reader to gain a different understanding. I have experimented with several voices during the writing of my book until hitting upon one which seems the most appropriate way of illuminating the remarkable, much maligned, woman I’m writing about. In the end it was her voice which opened the door: curious, unpredictable, intelligent, savvy and absolutely clear about who she is – Anna Kashfi, whose major claim to fame (or in her case infamy) is that she was briefly married to Marlon Brando.

Sarah Broughton

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