Somewhere Else member, Iris Anne Lewis, has been highly commended in the  Wales Poetry Award competition for her poem ‘In, Over, Through, Off’. Judge Gwyneth Lewis said, ’This poem is very tightly woven, the tension is right, the pacing impeccable. A stunning poem.’

The Wales Poetry Award is an international competition to find the best in contemporary poetry. The winner was Kathryn Bevis with ‘Translations of Grief’. The Award ceremony, which took place on Zoom, was recorded and will be available on the Poetry Wales website soon. In the meantime, you can read all the shortlisted poems here or by clicking on the image above.

Literature lovers are in for a treat with the new monthly ‘Writers in the Library’ event in Cirencester Library. This brand-new venture is the brain-child of Frank McMahon, the author of two well-received poetry collections. Frank said “There is a wealth of literary talent in Cirencester and its surrounding villages and through ‘Writers in the Library’ we are planning to bring local writers and readers together in a welcoming environment. Members of the public, writers or not, can bring their own work or that of other authors to read fiction, non-fiction and poetry to an informal, friendly audience.”

Set up with the enthusiastic support of three Cirencester writers groups, each session will feature a short reading by a guest author followed by an Open Mic, where both beginner and experienced writers are welcome to share their work or read a favourite piece in a supportive environment.

Located upstairs in Cirencester Library, sessions will run for an hour on the second Monday of each month at 2pm. Tea and coffee will be available. The first event takes place on Monday June 12^th at 2pm. Please come along. You will be sure of a warm welcome.

For more information, contact Somewhereelsewriters@gmail.com.

This month’s poem, Patinage, is another piece of writing included in “Off the Wall” – the group’s anthology published last year and still available from Somewhere Else Café Bar at 65 Castle Street.

Linda Dyson has led a varied life in several countries, and has been writing since she was seven, when she composed her first poem – about hollyhocks – and by the age of nine she wrote the beginning of a novel in an exercise book. She says she hasn’t stopped writing ever since!

It may be warm this month, but Linda’s poem will transport you to the cool of the ice skating rink, and we hope you will find the descriptions it presents will fill your mind’s eye with refreshing and graceful images as we look forward to an English summer.

You can read Linda’s poem here