What’s on in York: Routes to Becoming a Novelist

Acomb Explore Library

October 11th @ 2:30 pm – 4:00 pm

 £3

Explore ways of establishing yourself as a novelist via an ‘apprenticeship’, writing short stories, getting publications in small-press anthologies, becoming involved in writing communities and more.

Join York SF writer Tim Major as he guides you through getting your work published. Tom’s most recent novel is Snakeskins and his stories have appeared in Best of British SF and Best Horror.

Tickets

Acomb small business event

A special event aimed at supporting small businesses outside the city walls is being hosted by City of York Council and the Federation of Small Businesses this month.

The event takes place on Monday 14 October between 5.30pm and 7.35pm at Acomb Gateway Church, Front Street, Acomb, YO24 3BZ.

During the event, Tony Webster will be talking about how his fish and chips shop in Bilbrough has become a must-visit destination for Chinese tourists.

Sally Parker of Pick and Mix Marketing will be presenting a piece on how to make businesses stand out on social media.

The council’s skills team will also be on hand to share how apprenticeships can benefit small businesses.

Carolyn Frank, from the Federation of Small Businesses, said: “York is packed full of small businesses and I welcome the council’s work to further engage with the business community via events like this.

“I hope that businesses will grasp the opportunity to come along and help shape local policy, to network at the event with other business owners, and to explore how we can all work together to make York a better place to do business. No business is too small to have a voice and collectively the small business community across York and its hinterland is vital to its economic development as a world leading city.” 

Cllr Andrew Waller, Executive Member for Economy and Strategic Planning, said: “We really want to support local businesses across York and help them grow and prosper. These workshops are a great opportunity for independent businesses to share their experiences, and talk through how we can better support them, and where appropriate to use this evidence to lobby for changes to help the high street to thrive.”

For information on how to register, click here

What’s on in York: Sarah Maine – Women of the Dunes

Fulford Library

October 10th @ 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm

 £5

Women of the Dunes was Waterstones Scottish Book of the Month in March 2019.
Join author Sarah Maine as she talks about her award-winning novels and their rugged atmospheric Scottish settings.

Sarah Maine was born in England but grew up partly in Canada, returning to the UK for university where she studied archaeology. She now works as a freelance researcher, lecturer and writer, combining an interest in the past with a love of travel and an outdoor life. She is the author of three historical novels set in Scotland, The House Between Tides, Beyond the Wild River and Women of the Dunes.

Tickets

What’s on in York: “Hungate – The First 2000 Years” Peter Connelly Lecture

16th October

6:15 pm – 7:45 pm

Venue: Friargate Meeting House, Castlegate, York YO1 9RN

 £10.00

The archaeology of Hungate, York has provided evidence for at least 2000 years of continuous human connection to this low lying parcel of land nestled in the Foss valley.

During his talk Peter will trace these connections from the use of the area as a Roman cemetery on the edge of Eboracum, through the organised development on the fringes of Viking Age Jorvik and onwards across time to the start of the 20th century when Hungate was called home by a large working class community.

By illustrating the perspective of the last 2000 years, Peter will reveal how certain choices in the past have influenced the development of the Hungate, we see today. He will finish his talk with a personal view of how contemporary decisions, may influence the development of Hungate in the future.

Tickets

What’s on in York: The moment that gets you in – Poetry workshop with John Foggin

York Explore Library

October 3 @ 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm

 £15

“Everything ..depends on the quality of the moment; whatever kind of poem it is, it’s the moment that gets you in.” Clive James

A poetry workshop that will offer moments to ignite your own poems, and help you to find your own
A fast moving practical workshop which will focus on memory – of sight, sound, touch and empathy as the basis for re-imagining those moments that are significant, around which a poem can grow.
You’ll explore the elements that dramatise a poem – the who, the where, the when, the what and the why – and use imaginative memory to recreate and share them.
In two packed hours you’ll do five or six writing tasks; you’ll be offered lines to start you up, and structures to keep you going; if you want to you’ll have a chance to share some of your writing, and to recognise when you’ve created those moments that ‘get you in’.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re an established writer or a beginner. When we look at that blank page, we’re all equal. You won’t have time to worry about it.

John Foggin is a prize-winning poet, and writer about the teaching of writing.
His work has appeared in The North, Magma and The interpreters house, and in anthologies including The Forward Book of Poetry [2015, 2018].
In 2016 he was a winner of the Poetry Business International Pamphlet Competition judged by Billy Collins.
He has published five pamphlets and two collections of poetry. His new pamphlet Dark watchers is published by Calder Valley Poetry [June 2019].
More than 75% of his published poems started life in workshops; he says that if he didn’t go to them he probably wouldn’t sit down and write.

The workshop is presented in partnership with York Literature Festival

Tickets

Archaeology conference is back in York!

City of York Council and the York Archaeological Forum are set to host its annual conference, with this year’s event focussing on ‘’Discovering Anglian York: Digging in the Dark’.

The popular conference will take place on Saturday 16 November at West Offices on between 10am and 5pm.

The event provides an overview of current knowledge and recent archaeological discoveries.

The speakers reflect the varied membership of the forum with representatives of local archaeological contractors and specialists, the University of York and University of Huddersfield and York Museums Trust, including:

  • Dr Mary Garrison (University of York) Alcuin and York: Evidence for a Central Place
  • Ian Milsted (York Archaeological Trust) When 2 + 2 = 5: Looking for the Anglians under York Minster
  • Dr Andrew Woods (York Museums Trust) Interpreting the Coinage of Anglian York
  • Professor Julian Richards (University of York) & Dave Haldenby (Independent Researcher) The End of Anglian Yorkshire: the Scale and Impact of Viking settlement
  • John Oxley (City of York Council) 30 Years Old and Still Going… Where Next for the York Deposit Model?
  • Professor Richard Morris – open discussion (University of Huddersfield)

Places cost £15 with a number of limited reduced-fee student places available for £5 each via: www.york.gov.uk/info/20214/conservation_and_archaeology/2027/annual_archaeology_conference

Cllr Andrew Waller, Executive Member for Economy and Strategic Planning, said: “York is one of Britain’s great historic cities and it’s fascinating to hear all about the archaeological work that is being carried out in York and to learn more about some important recent research.”

John Oxley, City of York Council Archaeologist, said: “York is one of the leading archaeological cities in Europe. This conference brings together experts who will cast new light on life in the city during the Anglian period. Others will tell us how this information is being shared and how it will be used to shape the future of the city. It is sure to be a very exciting and informative day.”