Writing Archives - Page 3 of 6

Moniack Mhor writing weekend

Posted on March 5, 2016Leave a comment

I’m having a whale of a time here at Moniack Mhor with my friends in the G2 writers’ group.

It is a real joy to be in such a special place, with its hugely important place in supporting Scottish writing. I have been progressing my sequence Tales From The Dartry Mountains. Getting the chance, with other writers, to write and talk through ideas is great. Serious writing, serious eating, serious evenings of fun.

20160304_160155 — The view from my bedroom windae

Of course, procrastination is our constant friend: I do things like take lovely photos and write posts about Moniack Mhor for my website. Get back to work, Charlie!!

You can find out mmore about the work of Moniack Mhor by looking in their website. If you ahven’t had the chance to be here, you should. The whole place is geared to supporting our writing and the staff here are focussed on making it as useful as possible. Great place.

Opportunity with Creative Scotland: peer reviewers being sought

Posted on February 16, 2016Leave a comment

Creative Scotland is looking for writers and other artists to become peer reviewers for their funded projects.

It is part of their overall programme of evaluation of the work through their development of an Artistic and Creative Review Framework to create an open dialogue with our Regularly Funded Organisations (RFOs) around the artistic and creative quality of their work.

How does it work?

The Framework is designed to help Creative Scotland, the sector and stakeholders to support a culture of continuous improvement and to better understand how we consider quality and excellence across the wide range of work that we fund. We will do this through a process enabling 3 perspectives on the work of the 118 RFOs:

Self Review (by the RFO)
Creative Scotland Review (by Creative Scotlandâ€™s Lead Officer for the RFO)
Peer Review (by independent, relevant expertise from the sector)

Interested? Go to their website for more information.

Football poems from Scotia Extremis in week 4

Posted on February 15, 2016Leave a comment

Scotia Extremis has another two poems this week,. These are not simply football poems, but evocations of life as we live it together, as a town or a nation, against others only in the sense that we are for ourselves.

This time, the poems are in celebration of two of Scotland’s greatest players: the artist that was Archie Gemmill and and the brilliant battler that was Billy Bremner. From two distinct poetic voices: Harry Smart and Graham Fulton.Â

The poems are intense and hearfelt. More great stuff from Scotia Extremis.

More lovely poems from Scotia Extremis

Posted on February 9, 2016Leave a comment

Another pair of beauties this week in Scotia Extremis.

From two Makars, no less: Christine de Luca is Edinburgh’s and Elizabeth Rimmer, the Federation of Writers in Scotland’s.

Both poems are great, each a reminisce of distant and recent cultural icons: Celtic Connections and The White Heather Club. You’ve got to love the humourous way Christine and Elizabeth take it on: humour and pathos. Ideal.

WP_20150808_012 — Elizabeth, Charlie and Sally at Mugstock. July 2015.

To add to the moment, here is a photo from the inaugural Mugstock Festival last year: Elizabeth Rimmer, Charlie Gracie and Sally Evans after our poetry reading there.

Scotia Extremis: exploring the soul of Scotland

Posted on January 29, 2016Leave a comment

Check out Scotia Extremis, a new project from Andy Jackson and Brian Johnstone. This brings together poetry and poet’s voices from all over Scotland for 2016, with new work each week.

The first poems, from Ryan Van Winkle and Roseanne Watt are on the site now: beautiful words to kick off a great project.

I’m delighted to be playing a small part in, so look out for a poem from me over the next few months.

Here’s what Andy and Brian say on the Scotia Extremis site:

Scotia Extremis: Poems & Poets

This poetry project explores the soul of Scotland through an examination of extremes.Â Each week we will publish a brace of poems on a particular Scottish theme â€“ peopleÂ (past and present), places (real and imagined), culture (high and low) and customsÂ (ancient and modern).

The project will last one year, from Burns Night 2016 to Burns Night 2017. ThoseÂ invited to participate are either poets from Scotland (though not necessarily livingÂ there) or poets resident in Scotland (though not necessarily Scottish).

Writers have been invited to contribute poems inspired by themes drawn up by theÂ editors Andy Jackson (an Englishman based in Scotland for over twenty years) and Brian Johnstone (a nativeÂ Scot, long resident in the country), and while the list of themes reflects the interests and obsessions of the editors, it is hoped that it also picks out some of the most telling strands of the nationâ€™s DNA.

Dartry Mountains and the Scottish Writers’ Centre

Posted on January 3, 2016Leave a comment

I’ve been particularly focussed recently on developing my sequence of Donegal and Leitrim poems (currently known as “Tales from the Dartry Mountains” in my head). They have been bubbling away for years as family stories, myths, beautiful landscape and the politics of an area full of ferment.

For 2016, to help my focus, I am also resolved to go more often to the Scottish Writers’ Centre. First up is Jane Archer on short story writing on Tuesday night, 5th January. Should be a blast, so get yourself along.

Poems published in Poetry Scotland

Posted on December 20, 20151 Comment

Delighted to have poems Stale Croissants, Edinburgh Cafe and The Basket Maker published in the latest twin edition of Poetry Scotland.

poetry scotland.jpeg — Charlie Gracie in Poetry Scotland

Poetry Scotland is a great support to Scottish writing.

It is always a joy to read the variety of work that Sally Evans publishes there from established and new poets.

Buy ‘Good Morning’ in Galloway

Posted on December 1, 2015Leave a comment

If you are down Galloway way, you can now get your very own copy of Good Morning, by Charlie Gracie at the Bakehouse, Gatehouse of Fleet.

The Bakehouse is an excellent centre, run by then reknowned poet, writer and director Chrys Salt and her husband Richard. They do so much there to support a thriving literary scene.

Buy Good Morning

Posted on November 7, 2015Leave a comment

You can buy Good Morning from this website using PayPal ….

The number of outlets to buy Good Morning is increasing all the time. It includes:

King’s Bookshop, Callander
Berrydin Books, Berwick, England
tell it slant – poetry bookshop run within The Project Cafe, Renfrew Street, Glasgow
The Bakehouse, Gatehouse of Fleet
The Four Masters Bookshop, Donegal Town, Ireland
Good Press, Saint Margaret’s Place, Glasgow
Hillbillies Bookshop, Gairloch, Wester Ross
Kesley’s Bookshop, Haddington
Aye Aye Books, Centre for Contemporary Arts, Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow
West Mosside Centre, Thornhill, Stirling
An Lanntair Arts Centre, Stornoway, Isle of Lewis
The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool
Resonate Arts House, Alloa
The Village Store, Thornhill, Stirling
The Emporium Bookshop, Cromarty
Kilmadock Development Trust and Information Centre, Doune, Stirling
Waterstones, Stirling

The range of superb shops and other outlets selling Good Morning by Charlie Gracie and other brilliant poetry is increasing all the time: follow this link to get more updated information.

Emergency re-stock of ‘Good Morning’ at West Moss-side

Posted on June 20, 20152 Comments

West Moss-side ran out of copies of my poetry collection, Good Morning, last week as Forth Valley Open studios ended on Sunday. An emergency trip was required to save the day.

A wonderful range of painting, printing, jewellery-making and other art was on display and, as usual, the standard was beautifully high.

Kate Sankey runs West Moss-side as a mixed traditional organic farm and a high-quality venue for group meetings, seminars, educational visits, craft workshops, staff away days and training events.

You can stay there too, in one of Kate’s West Moss-side yurts. Check it out! It’s great!!