Saturday 16 December 2023

Nottingham's New Library

 Nottingham's new and long-awaited Central Library opened on November 28th 2023. Take a look:











Friday 1 September 2023

Writing and Literature Courses

27 Creative Writing and other Literature Courses for 2023


Creative Writing - Polish your Writing Skills - Online Course
11 September - 16 October 2023, Mondays: 9:30am - 11:30am, FREE - £36

Learn about different elements of writing such as narration, description, dialogue, voicing internal thoughts and action. Discover how to draft and edit, and write with purpose.


Creative Writing - Short Stories for Beginners - Mansfield Central Library
11 September - 16 October 2023, Mondays: 1pm - 3pm, FREE - £36

This course is a relaxed exploration of short stories, including writing practice. It includes finding story ideas and creating characters, as well as how to structure and develop your stories. 
Details and booking


Creative Writing - Exploring Nottinghamshire Writers – Mansfield Woodhouse Library
2 September - 17 October 2023, Tuesdays: 2pm - 4pm, FREE

Develop your creative writing skill by exploring the work of Nottinghamshire authors from different eras and cultures.
Details and booking


Creative Writing - How to Write for Children - Newark Buttermarket
12 September - 17 October 2023, Tuesdays: 2pm
- 4pm, FREE - £36

This course is for anyone who wants to understand more about children’s books. It provides the opportunity to try your hand at writing for different ages and reading stages.


Creative Writing for Beginners - Online Course
13 September - 18 October 2023, Wednesdays: 1pm - 3pm, FREE - £36

The course is for people who want to try out creative writing for the first time. We will focus on short writing exercises using pictures, different topics and prompts.
Details and booking


In Other Words - Developing your Poetry Writing - Beeston Library
14 September - 19 October 2023, Thursdays: 1pm - 3pm, FREE - £36

The course is aimed at beginners and those who have done some poetry writing but are not consistently published and will focus on developing learners’ skills so that they become more confident and are able take their poetry writing to the next level.
Details and booking


Creative Writing for Beginners - Newark Buttermarket
14 September - 19 October 2023, Thursdays: 2pm - 4pm, FREE - £36

This course is for people who want to try out creative writing for the first time. We will focus on short writing exercises, and also use images and prompts to kickstart your writing.
Details and booking


Grammar and Punctuation Explained - Online Course
14 September - 12 October 2023, Thursdays: 9:30am - 11:30am, FREE - £30

If you could never understand the difference between a colon and a semi colon, or between their and there and they’re, then this is the course for you!
Details and booking


Creative Writing - Polish Your Writing Skills - Arnold Library
15 September - 20 October 2023, Fridays: 6pm - 8pm, FREE - £36

You will learn about different elements of writing such as narration, description, dialogue, voicing internal thoughts and action. They will look at the use of language in detail, considering how to draft and edit, and write with purpose.
Details and booking


Creative Writing - I Can See a Rainbow - Newark Buttermarket
19 September - 17 October 2023, Tuesdays: 10am - 12pm, FREE - £30

This course offers you the opportunity to use colours to start and develop poetry and/or prose.
Details and booking


DH Lawrence and Nottinghamshire - Eastwood Library
21 September 2023, Thursday 10am - 12pm, FREE - £30

Discover DH Lawrence’s time in Nottinghamshire, from his childhood in Eastwood and his education in Nottingham, to his many other links to various places within the county.
Details and booking


Exploring Nottinghamshire's Literary Locations - Arnold Library
23 September - 14 October 2023, Saturdays: 10am - 12pm, FREE - £24

Nottinghamshire is awash with literary locations from the Arboretum to the Zara building. In this course you’ll discover many of the places that have influenced the life and work of our writers.

Details and booking


Creative Writing Taster (ReNew) - Newark Buttermarket
28 September 2023, Thursday 10am - 12pm, FREE

Work with our skilled writing expert to create your first piece of prose or a poem based on the theme ‘Where would I like to be in 2 years’ time?’
Details and booking


Byron in Nottinghamshire - Burton Joyce Library
10 October 2023, Tuesday 10am - 12pm, FREE

Take a look at the poet Lord Byron’s connections to Nottinghamshire. We explore why, as a boy, he first came to Nottingham, and explore his links with Newstead, Annesley, Southwell, Newark and Hucknall.
Details and booking


DH Lawrence in Nottinghamshire - Arnold Library
17 October 2023, Tuesday 6pm - 8pm, FREE

Discover DH Lawrence’s time in Nottinghamshire, from his childhood in Eastwood and his education in Nottingham, to his many other links to various places within the county.
Details and booking


Creative Writing - Exploring Nottinghamshire Authors - Ravenshead Library
21 October - 11 November 2023, Saturdays: 10am - 12pm, FREE

Develop your creative writing skill by exploring the work of Nottinghamshire authors from different eras and cultures.
Details and booking


Creative Writing - Fireside Stories - Online Course
6 November - 11 December 2023, Mondays: 9:30am - 11:30am, FREE - £36

Considering atmospheric stories told around a fire, you will create your own fireside story.
Details and booking


Creative Writing Short Stories - Next Steps - Mansfield Central Library
6 November - 11 December 2023, Tuesdays: 1pm - 3pm, FREE - £36

If you want to find out what it takes to write a publishable short story, this course is for you.
Details and booking


Getting Cosy with Poetry - Bingham Library
7 November - 12 December 2023, Tuesdays: 10am - 12pm, FREE - £36

As the blazing days of Autumn give way to the longer nights of winter, we often reflect on the seasons: what it means to the natural world as it prepares to rest, and what it means to us. 
Details and booking


Creative Writing - Writing a Children's Story - Newark Buttermarket
7 November - 12 December 2023m Tuesdays: 2pm - 4pm, FREE – £36

This is an intermediate course. It is helpful to have done the previous Inspire course How to Write for Children.    
Details and booking


Creative Writing Next Steps - Online Delivery
8 November - 13 December 2023, Wednesdays: 1pm - 3pm, FREE - £36

This course will help build on foundations from the beginners' course or for those who already have some experience in writing and need a refresher. Come and try techniques used to “keep a reader interested”. This course will also help you with your writing ability as a hobby or for publication.
Details and booking


Getting Cosy with Poetry - Southwell Library
9 November - 14 December 2023, Thursdays: 10am - 12pm, FREE - £36

As the blazing days of Autumn give way to the longer nights of winter, we often reflect on the seasons: what it means to the natural world as it prepares to rest, and what it means to us. 
Details and booking


Byron in Nottinghamshire - Ravenshead Library
9 November 2023, Thursday 10am - 12pm, FREE

Discover the poet Lord Byron’s connections to Nottinghamshire. We explore why, as a boy, he first came to Nottingham, and explore his links with Newstead, Annesley, Southwell, Newark and Hucknall.
Details and booking


Creative Writing - Short Stories for Beginners - Stapleford Library
9 November - 14 December 2023, Thursdays: 10am - 12pm, FREE - £36

Do you want to write short stories but don’t know where to start? Or have you  been writing short stories for a while yet would appreciate a helping hand?  This course is a relaxed exploration of short stories, including writing practice.  The course includes finding story ideas and creating characters as well as how to structure and develop your short stories. 
Details and booking


Creative Writing for Beginners - Next Steps - Newark Buttermarket
9 November - 14 December 2023, Thursdays: 2pm - 4pm, FREE - £36

This course is for people who want to try out creative writing for the first time. We will focus on short writing exercises, and also use images and prompts to kickstart your writing.
Details and booking


Creative Writing - Fireside Stories - Arnold Library                       
10 November - 15 December 2023, Fridays: 6pm - 8pm, FREE - £36

Join this course and consider atmospheric stories told around a fire, looking at origins and development, to create your own fireside story.
Details and booking


Exploring Detective Fiction - West Bridgford Library
11 - 25 November 2023, Saturdays: 10am - 12pm, FREE - £18

Do you enjoy detective stories? Would you like to learn about the history of detective fiction and discover new sleuths? If so, don your deerstalkers and join a published crime writer for an enjoyable exploration of detective fiction, from the early days of real crime and the introduction of the detective novel to modern crime thrillers.
Details and booking
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Saturday 26 November 2022

In Search of James Prior

In the new publication from Spokesman Books, In Search of James Prior, Ailish D’Arcy has rediscovered one of the great Nottinghamshire writers, 100 years after his death.

In this study, James Prior emerges as an accomplished poet and novelist with a body of work that has been neglected for too long, a man who made a contribution to the study of Notts dialect that is unsurpassed.

On Saturday 26th November 2022, Bingham erected its first ever blue plaques. Prior’s two Bingham homes, on Fisher Lane and The Banks, now proudly mark where he lived and wrote his great novels between 1891 and 1922.

There’s also an exhibition inside Bingham Library.


In the course of her research Ailish has discovered Prior’s remarkable contribution to the recording of dialects. Her journey began after attending an Inspire course on Nottinghamshire’s literary locations at West Bridgford Library, a course that is being repeated in January 2023.
Ailish D'Arcy with John Baird

Publisher Tony Simpson reading from Forest Folk

It was on Mapperley Road near the centre of Nottingham that Prior was born. His first major novel, Renie, opens in Bingham (Bawton), and the local connections keep coming.

Ripple and Flood features Caythorpe and Hoveringham (both renamed) in a story about Prior’s beloved river, the “smug and silver Trent”.

Forest Folk is set around the Blidworth countryside during an eventful period of history that covers the Napoleonic Wars and Luddite riots.

Hyssop, his weakest book, is set in Burton Joyce.

A Walking Gentleman, which includes a ramble that passes through Notts, is the story of a gentleman who decamped on the eve of his wedding, making escape from the “madding crowd” and encountering many strange adventures on the way.

Fortuna Chance features Sherwood Forest.

Prior's grave

In Search of James Prior is available from Five Leaves Bookshop and The Bookcase in Lowdham, priced £7.

Bingham finally pays tribute to Prior






Wednesday 16 November 2022

Exploring Detective Fiction

A new Inspire course starts Sunday 20th November at West Bridgford Library.

Here's the LINK to book your place

Do you enjoy detective stories? Would you like to learn about the history of detective fiction and discover new sleuths? If so, don your deerstalkers and join a published crime writer for an enjoyable exploration of detective fiction, from the early days of real crime and the introduction of the detective novel to modern crime thrillers. 

What will be covered on the course?  

  • You’ll be guided through the history of this most popular genre. Whilst looking at the life and work of the most famous crime writers, we’ll also feature groundbreaking novels as you get to share your favourites, discussing different books and characters, including TV crime dramas.  
  • Beginning with the origins of detective fiction, from Edgar Allan Poe’s Dupin and his influence on that most famous of detectives, Sherlock Holmes, through the interwar years of Britain’s Golden Age, of Christie et al., and America’s Hardboiled PIs like Philip Marlowe, to today’s best-sellers, we will investigate the characteristics of the great detective novel in all its forms, and consider why the genre remains so widely read and appreciated. 
Week 1 - British Detectives
Week 2 - American Detectives
Week 3 - The Rest of the World (translated crime fiction)
Week 4 - Notts crime novels/novelists

Cost: Free to £24




Sunday 30 October 2022

Adult Reading Scheme

Inspire are offering adults free 1-to-1 

help with their reading


If you are interested in joining the
scheme, please visit THIS link or speak to a member of staff at your local Notts library.


1 in 6 adults* in England never learnt to read when they were younger. 

There may be many reasons for this, but the good news is that it’s never too late to learn and there are people who can help. By learning to read, adults improve their employment opportunities, confidence and self-esteem, and general well-being. Many adults are also motivated by wanting to be able to read with their children or grandchildren and there's now help to develop these skills.

How it works

Inspire will match a local adult who wishes to improve their reading to a volunteer coach and arrange for them to meet each week in one of he Notts libraries to work through a reading manual designed for adults. You would start with the basics and then as your confidence grows you'll be given more support to access some of the beginner reading books from the libraries.

Who is it for?

This scheme is suitable for any adult who wants to learn to read English. Whatever a person’s starting point they will go back to basics and work at their own pace.

This scheme is not intended for adults learning English as a second language, Inspire would instead recommend one of their Inspire Adult Learning ESOL courses as being more appropriate.

Where would it be held?

Readers and coaches will meet in one of the Notts Inspire libraries. Currently the scheme is offered at

A weekly hour-long, 1:1 session will take place in a quiet corner of the library. Readers will not be over-looked but there will be other people around.

If there are any additional requirements, these will discussed this with both the reader and the coach before the first session.

How long will it take?

Reading sessions will take place for an hour each week at a time that suits the coach and reader.

Inspire will initially set up the sessions for 10 weeks and then review this. Some people may complete the course in as little as nine months for others it may take longer.

Tuesday 16 August 2022

Charles Birkin #NottsWriters

Sir Charles Birkin (1907-1985)

Born in Nottingham in 1907 - and grandson of the former High Sherriff of Nottingham, Sir Thomas Birkin, owner of the Birkin Lace Company - Sir Charles Birkin launched the career of many a horror writer and, in the 1960s, he did much to keep the genre alive in Britain.



Birkin is associated with Ruddington Grange, a mansion made famous under the Birkins’ ownership when monkeys roamed freely inside. It was later occupied by Frank Bowden (founder of Raleigh) who sold it to Thomas Farr (founder of Home Ales). Its land is now home to the Ruddington Grange Golf Club.


Charles Birkin was educated at Eton (1921-26) before working as an editor for the London Publisher Philip Allan, developing their Creeps Library of titles, a series of anthologies which began with Creeps in 1932, for which he included stories of his own under the alias Charles Lloyd. Birkin acquired and published many collections including the debut of the US sci-fi writer Edmond Hamilton, and the first published story from William F Temple (a leading sci-fi writer of the ‘40s and ‘50s), in addition to the many reprinted works from the likes of Tod Robbins and Russell Thorndike. The popular Pan Book of Horror series later pulled stories from Creeps which was one of the few magazines of the era to feature horror.


At Philip Allan, Birkin published the early short stories of John Steinbeck, The Pastures of Heaven (1933), but the contract had lapsed before Steinbeck become a big seller. Philip Allan’s greatest success came with the steamy novels of Winifred Mary Scott and Pamela Wynne, then, in 1936, Birkin had his own book published, Dark Spawn, a collection of his Charles Lloyd stories.

During the Second World War he served as a Captain in the Sherwood Foresters and married the Australian actress Janet Johnson. Their son, John Birkin, directed/produced many TV comedies including Mr. Bean, French and Saunders, and Harry Enfield's Television Programme.

It wasn’t until 1963 that Birkin resumed his writing career after being contacted by Hutchinson (Stanley Middleton’s publisher) requesting new stories. Nearly 100 stories followed, in seven collections, from The Kiss of Death (1964) to Spawn of Satan (1971). They now fetch quite a fee, though they come with a warning, Birkin writing of murder, rape, torture, mutilation and concentration camps. His prize-winning story Fairy Dust was admired by Noel Coward, and, according to Mike Ashley (not that one), writing in 1999, “invokes the darker side of Peter Pan and Never-Never Land.”

There's a warning on the cover: 'Not For the Squimish!'







In the early 1970s Birkin lived in Cyprus, fleeing after the Turkish invasion, an experience he reflects upon in A Low Profile (1977). Birkin and his wife retired to Sulby on the Isle of Man.



Wednesday 13 April 2022

Cecil Roberts #NottsWriters

To celebrate the launch of Follow the Moon and Stars here's a new series on #NottsWriters:  

Cecil Roberts (1892-1976)

“At 15, with a mother and myself to keep, I began writing,” said Roberts after his father died suddenly. Working as a weights and measures inspector he learned to operate a typewriter, using it to type out poems and articles. In 1912, after winning the annual Henry Kirke White prize with his long poem The Trent, Roberts had five books of verse published in five years, then, “I had a living to earn with my pen, and turned to more remunerative work,” he said.

Reflecting in later life, he wrote: “The beginning was tough but I was never a beatnik nor saw any merit in the kitchen sink” (he hated Sillitoe’s Saturday Night and Sunday Morning). “In this marvellous world all my writing has been an expression of joy in the journey.”

After work as a war correspondent, and alongside work as a journalist and editor at the Nottingham Journal (he welcomed Graham Greene to Nottingham), it was the success of his first novel Scissors (1923) that launched his career as a novelist.


“Scissors is the nicest boy in English fiction,” wrote Israel Zangwill.


Spears Against Us (1932), the story of the downfall of an old Austrian family, is one of his most famous novels.



The other huge seller being Victoria Four-Thirty (1937) about a world-famous composer, a honeymooning couple, a novelist in search of a plot, a German film star and a young crown prince, who are among the disparate group of travellers on a journey to Europe.

John Betjeman wrote: “Many a more pretentious author could take a lesson from Mr Cecil Roberts. He writes with a trained journalist’s gift of readability…he can tell a story.”

Don't be put off by the cover, this is a Nottingham novel.

A Terrace in the Sun (1951) is about a small boy, a miner’s son, who became a famous artist. The book was a success but Roberts regretted not calling it A Nottingham Lad as there was so much of his early life in its pages. 


He always referred to the book as his 'Nottingham novel' despite the book’s opening and narrator being on the once swanky Mediterranean coast. If you’re interested in Nottingham (of course you are) then this is well worth a read.


David and Diana (1929) also features Nottingham and Goose Fair (the book's US title).


His three “Rustic” nonfiction books, an odyssey of the countryside, include
Gone Rustic (1935) about Roberts beloved Pilgrim Cottage, Gone Rambling, and Gone Afield, which tells of the common events and local legends and history around the Cottage. 



Other non-fiction books are
And So to Bath (1940) and And So to Rome (1950), they city he made his home.


There are three “Pilgrim Cottage” novels too:
Pilgrim Cottage (1933), The Guests Arrive (1934) and Volcano (1935).

Pilgrim Cottage presents a picture of Russia in the first enthusiasm of the revolution, contrasted with traditional England.

Cecil Roberts was a snob and a proper name-dropper, but it’s for good reason that he had a room named after him at Angel Row’s Central Library and he was the first Nottingham novelist to become a Freeman of the City. His novels often skillfully blend history, information and romance. If we ever enter another lockdown, try his five volume autobiography, too, when Roberts' incredible memory comes into its own.