Tonight: Elliott Bay Books, 7 pm

Tonight I'll be at Elliott Bay Books in Seattle, at 7 pm, to read from Hild, sign your copies, talk (and talk and talk—I love this stuff!) and maybe drink beer. It will be totally fab. We've got sex, we've got violence, we might even have a bit of Hild II. Join us!

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Future Hild?

From: Terry

I have been blown away by reading "Hild" - and re-reading it many times since this July - and have built up a stack of copies for Xmas presents too.

I have put it on our book club's list but I am writing to ask what the date is for UK publication of the paperback. At the moment "Hild" is in our schedule for April next year.

I'm also looking forward, ravenously, to Volume 2: it is heart-wringing to imagine the future for Cian and Hild. I love - among many other features - the way you foreshadow Hild's leanings towards a community of women long before she becomes an abbess, and your use of background sound [birdsong, the noise of a stream,] to convey the silence that falls between characters when a thing cannot be said, and your use of smell to set a scene or mood. It underlines the intense awareness of the natural world of a character and a culture where life is largely lived outdoors, where noone smokes nor ever has, and...

Anyway, thank you for Hild, now and in the future!

The US paperback came out on Tuesday (October 28). The UK paperback is scheduled for July 9, 2015. I'm guessing it's possible to get it shipped from elsewhere; Blackfriars has already had to reprint the export paperback, so I know it's out there and doing relatively well in places like Australia.

Hild and Cian? Their futures are unfurling as I type. But I can tell you: all is well. At first. But it's history, so things fall apart for a bunch of characters (both those I'm very fond of and those I'm just itching to see suffer), and soar for others (ditto) and there's nothing I can do about that. Some of them (even my favourites, sigh) are just plain doomed. Some, of course, will live relatively happily for a long time. You can either read some history books (or peek at Wikipedia—it can occasionally be pretty good) or you can wait for Hild II.

Meanwhile, I'm delighted that you like the way I've written the world, because that continues. It can be very odd, though, to live in two worlds at once: the 7th and the 21st centuries. Especially when I'm travelling so much. And I find myself resisting some of the trends many historians have taken for granted, e.g. the growing Pauline/misogynist attitude towards women as the Age of Conversion takes hold. Hild will resist, too, in ways not always recorded by monks...

But how successful she believes herself to be, well, you'll have to read the book. And it's not done yet.

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Halloween with Hild at Elliott Bay Book Company, Seattle

When all the ghouls and ghosties are cruising the streets, at 7 pm Friday 31st October, come and join me at the Elliott Bay Book Company for an evening of Hild. I'll be telling you all about the girl and then woman who, 1400 years ago, crammed more spine-tingling experience into her life than we can imagine. Er, except I did, so, hey, forget I said that.

She led an action-packed life: sex, death, grief, joy, terror, exaltation and occasionally exasperation, all before breakfast. Sometimes literally. (Cough.)

And if you're very, very good (or give me enough beer, or amuse me sufficiently, or all three) I might read the tiniest bit of the beginning of Hild II. But might and tiny are the operative words because, well, spoilers...

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HILD paperback is here

 

Out today. Available everywhere. But I particularly want to recommend these Seattle stores:

• Seattle Mystery Bookshop
• Phinney Books
• Third Place Books
• Island Books
• University Bookstore
• The Elliott Bay Book Company
• Eagle Harbor Book Co
• Queen Anne Book Company
• Secret Garden Books

And as I'll be at the following stores in the next couple of weeks (for the full tour info, see the Appearances page), it would be kind of cool if you bought from them, too:

• Charis Books and More
• Kramerbooks and Afterwords Cafe
• Porter Square Books
• Left Bank Books

But if none of those appeal, I also have a list of independents recommended by readers, with all the giant online retailers thrown in.

To whet your appetite, here's the page of all things Hild, with interviews, reviews, info, maps, and miscellany. Enjoy!

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Hild on the big screen?

I think Hild is going to go down as my favorite read this year! Guess I will read it again next year:) And would love to see it on a big screen. Any chance of that ever happening?

Late last year, three or four weeks after the book came out, it was optioned for an enormous sum of money. The producer is well known, respected as one of the kings of literary-novel-to-film adaptation. We had a deal—a hard-negotiated deal memo; I'd had extensive phone conversations with the producer about writers and general story parameters; I'd got the contract—and then, poof, the producer lost his mind and just vanished. Gone. No one knew where he was and there were rumours of him firing half his company.

It was awful: the film/tv rights were tied up but there was no money and no communication at all from the producer. I'd turned down two other offers once the deal was—as I thought—done. But then...nothing. And more nothing. My agents talked about suing him. I didn't want that—but I did want out of the limbo I was in. It took months to sort out, but now it's officially over, and (a) I can talk about it, (b) we'll be trying again soon, probably when the paperback's been out a couple of weeks.

I think, all in all, I'd like either a sequence of high-production-value films with the addition of lots of CGI and motion-capture stuff (I can't think how else to give continuity to the actor playing Hild—she goes from age 3 to 66 over the course of the books; I don't think anyone's ever done that). But I could also see it as a premium cable series.

But this setting and story will be a challenge to realise on screen. Oh, not the world per se (HBO and Game of Thrones have shown that amazing world-building is possible, set- and art-production-wise) but the sheer pace and breadth of cultural change inherent in the story. It would require absolutely top-notch writing, and acting, and directing, all produced by someone who is utterly committed to the whole arc. (I'd hate to see done to Hild what happened to Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin novels.) And it wouldn't be cheap. So: a lot of barriers. But, yes, one day I think we'll see it on screen.

Who would play Hild? I've always liked Saorsie Ronan for the part. I believed her in Hanna. My cousin, Clare Higgins, would have made a brilliant Breguswith but sadly I think we now might need someone younger.

But who should play the other parts? I don't know. What do you think?

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"Sucky" a homophobic slur?

From: Victoria

As my journey to be more a sensitive/less hurtful individual continues, I notice that more and more words are offensive to many different marginalized/oppressed groups of individuals. It is easy to ignore these hurtful words if one surrounds themselves with only heteronormative people. Thankfully, I have been introduced to a diverse group of people and had to the chance to engage in dialogues which have made me realize that language is meaningful. I do have to admit, I just read your article "Lame is so gay — a rant." The logic you use to assert that lame is an offensive word makes perfect sense to me. One thing I do not understand, however, is your use of the word "sucky"as a potential synonym for the word "lame" which you say should not be used. This is the second time I have read an article claiming that lame is an offensive word, followed by using "sucky" as an adjective that one should use to describe a situation that they find to be uncool, or whatever. From my understanding, "sucky" is actually a homophobic slur, which originated to debase gay men who performed oral sex…or "sucked" penis. So…sucky is actually just as hurtful of a term. I just wanted to bring that to your attention because I’ve noticed several bloggers arguing against the word lame, while suggesting one swap out that word with another homophobic offensive term. What do you make of this? 

I'm sorry for offending any reader by using sucky in any way that could be construed as homophobic. It was entirely unintentional. But I'll do my best to not make the same mistake again.

What follows is not an excuse—clearly I've upset some people; that's on me; I apologise—but it is an exploration of word use.

I grew up in England, where as a child sucky could refer to, among other things, a bog that sucks you down; an early and mid-20th-C school playtime taunt, "Oh, sucks to you!" which might, in turn, come from either sucking air at the bottom of a glass instead of squash—coming up empty, in other words—or being the runt of the farmyard litter and so sucking on the dirtiest or most inconvenient teat. And so on.

But by the time I was in my teens I understood it also as a reference to fellatio, mainly of the straight variety. Before one of my first radio interviews in this country, in 1995, at an NPR affiliate in Portland, OR, Kelley reminded me: This country has strict rules about certain words (she gave me the usual list) so don't use them! As it would be dumb* counter-productive to use words that would get the interview scrubbed, I agreed. And so when I answered a question about something that, normally, I would describe as "a load of shit" I said, instead, "It sucks." And the interviewer flinched and looked at her producer, who, after a pause, shrugged; Kelley sighed.

We talked about it afterwards. I came away three things. One, you can push the letter of the law where necessary. Two, sometimes it's really not necessary; in the same position now I would use a less inflammatory word, like rubbish. Three, at the time, less than 20 years ago, it sucks, or sucky, was not a queer pejorative.

Obviously language use changes. And, just as obviously, I don't always keep up.

Realising I haven't kept up makes me defensive. When I first read your email I thought, Huh. Just fucking typical: a perfectly gender neutral word is now all about Teh Menz and what they do to each other. Then I laughed at myself for the idiotic response. 

I'm guessing we all go through some version of this, though: to feel vulnerable about being corrected in public and getting cross as a result. It's a human failing. I am absolutely not above it (sigh). But I've been an idiot a lot in my life, and it no longer worries me; I tend to get over it fast. However, understanding of that vulnerable-to-defensive-to-angry reaction is something that informs my own approach when bracing someone about a word that they think is perfectly harmless. It's the reason that I try to speak in informational and impersonal mode rather than being accusatory. (Try being the operative word: I have failed spectacularly on occasion.) Good people tend to feel bad about hurting others through their own ignorance. They also feel bad when they think that someone believes they hurt another knowingly. So I try not to provoke that response. I want people to be their best selves, not their defensive worst.

Having said all that, you did it very nicely: carefully, respectfully, and unapologetically. You're the first person to talk to me about this. I hear you: Some people now, here, today think/feel that sucky is a homophobic slur, and so its use upsets them. Just as lame used as a pejorative pisses me off.

So I'll delete sucky from the list and I'll try to remember not to use it. Please feel free to remind me if I slip—because I probably will; new habits can be hard to integrate. But, again, I apologise to any I've upset by using the term.

Thanks for letting me know.

* See comment below.

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UK Trip II: London

After our whirlwind (and beer-saturated) few days in Yorkshire Kelley and I were feeling a bit used (though pleased with ourselves) by the time we got to London. So the serenity of the hotel in Holborn was a lovely surprise. This was waiting in our room:

The photo is a bit blurry because, well, I was a bit blurry. We were so tired that we just unpacked, tottered down to the restaurant, and then went to bed.

The restaurant was a rather odd but—that night at least—just what we needed. I ate delicious smoked salmon followed by chicken, accompanied by a very reasonable bottle of Rioja. All chosen from something they called their pre-theatre menu. I took this pic of Kelley, who was grinning at something luscious she'd seen on said menu. Or maybe just at the thought of getting to bed at a reasonable hour :)

The next day was an event I'd been looking forward to for an age, at King's College London. (Also a fantastic breakfast featuring mackerel. Oh, I love mackerel.)

King's is one of the two founding colleges of the University of London and—depending which way you squint—possibly the third oldest university in England. (Seriously, there's a whole Wikipedia article on this, "Third-oldest university in England debate." Academics are... Well, before my recent trip I would have said Academics are weird, but it turns out that in some ways I am scarily attuned to their world-view.)

So, anyway, last year I was invited to sit on a round-table discussion about medieval history and fantasy but I couldn't get a plane ticket. This time I was determined to do whatever it took—walk the continental US and swim the Atlantic—to be there. The people who made it happen were Professor Clare Lees (whose name you might recognise from her wonderful collaborative texts about early Anglo-Saxon England, particularly as it pertains to issues of gender, language, and place, many of them written or edited with Gillian Overing, see, for example, Double Agents and A Place to Believe In—both of which I'm proud to say I own), her graduate student Carl Kears (who will soon be Dr Carl) and also Dr Josh Davies. Many, many, thanks to them; they did a bang-up job.

First of all, the event was held in a gorgeous room, the River Room, taller than it was broad or deep (though no dimension was insignificant), with a magnificent view of the Thames. The acoustics were brilliant—if you were singing plainchant. Given that I was planning a dramatic reading of the beginning of Hild, which unfurls quietly and wouldn't benefit from reverb, I used a microphone. The audio was almost wholly academic, a mix of storied Professors, working archaeologists, historians, and students of every stripe, with a smattering of readers from other walks of life.

It was SRO with lots of people having to sit on the floor at the front.

Clare introduced me, then I read, then we talked about a few things—Bede's agenda, for example—then I answered questions. These were mostly about Hild, but also my research, my writing, and (the inevitable) When's the next one?! Then I signed books.

I was there about two hours (there was wine...) then there was a truly marvellous dinner for about ten people. Or maybe it was eight (I'd been talking for about five hours; I was not keeping track of details). The conversation ranged from the cost of education, to politics, to gender and power, to Mandeville's Travels. It was everything I'd hoped for. A truly wonderful evening. I can't wait to do it again.

The next day, we went across the city to Queen Mary University London. QMUL a very different venue from King's, much more recent (Edwardian) and with a different focus. But I enjoyed it just as much. Instead of a huge room with sweeping views, I was in an intimate (seating for 30) cinema with bright pink seats on a serious rake. I sat on a comfy sofa, beer in hand, and chatted with Matt Jacobsen (who organised everything perfectly) about Hild, and Aud, and Ammonite, and more. The audience were students: film students, creative writing students, history students. I had a great time. I felt as though I could really help some of them with issues they were wrestling with.

Matt had prepared very well. It was essentially a staged interview, a very good one. We explored all kinds of things, some of them new to me, but intriguing. I had a good time, and came away thinking a lot about class and education, and how teaching works.

That's the place I was in when we met two friends for dinner, both academics at different points in their career. So as well as the usual personal things, and books, we talked about the UK and US education systems and, again, how teaching works. I find I'm getting more interested in that. One day I probably do something about it. But, hey, as usual today is not that day.

The next day, Thursday, Kelley and I went to the offices of my esteemed publisher, Blackfriars. (At least they are esteemed by me; they're very new—Hild was their first hardback—so there simply hasn't been time to become esteemed by the rest of the world, yet.) Blackfriars are part of Little, Brown, with spiffy offices on the Embankment. There was Champagne, decent stuff, which I happily sucked down while talked to a bunch of editorial, managerial, web, print, and production people who all said very nice things about Hild. My biggest surprise was how startlingly young everyone was. I mean, really really young. I'm so used to having business conversations with people in their forties and fifties that it was quite odd to talk about it with those in their 20s. I'm not sure I did a very good job of getting over my startlement, though to be fair by this stage I was getting very, very tired, and I had two more things to do that day.

The first was my signing at Forbidden Planet. I'd never been there before and wasn't entirely sure what to expect. Here there was no beer or wine, but there was tea and biscuits, which is what I needed at that point so it worked out perfectly. A zillion people showed up, lugging tons and tons of books, including some I'd never seen before, like the Polish versions of Warhammer stories. Wow. It was very cool. Anyway, I talked and talked. One sadness: I didn't get time to talk to everyone who showed up to the extent I would have liked.

Then it was on to another dinner, this time with two people we'd never met (and who had not met each other) but whom we'd worked with in various capacities over the web and to whom we felt very kindly disposed. We had a great time, sadly cut short by each them having to run for different trains, and us having to get to bed.

We did, finally, get to bed—but had to be up at 4:45 am to pack and make the early Heathrow to Seattle flight. The fight was an interesting experience in and of itself in which we ended up being given a bottle of Taittinger by a cabin attendant for doing a favour for her and a fellow passenger. We got no sleep, of course, and I couldn't really eat the food, so by the time we got back to Seattle I was a bit out of it. We had time to have a cup of tea, eat some chicken, and change into fresh (ish) clothes and hoof it to the Washington State Book Awards.

I won, and made a half delirious speech referencing the Four Yorkshiremen sketch, specifically: Getting up before anyone else had gone to bed... By the time we finally got to bed I'd been up 27 hours on top of a cumulative sleep deficit. I'm still recovering.

It was a great trip. I'd do it again in a hot second. Just not, y'know, for a while. Except, oh...

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In six days: Hild paperback!

The paperback of Hild is out on Tuesday, 28 October. You can pre-order it from a variety of places. I urge you to support your local independent book shop wherever that might be (see this handy international list of independent book shops recommended by readers) but if you can't or won't, there's always Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and IndieBound.

It's a delicious-looking book, much friendlier to the hand than the hardcover and exactly the same inside. Even the single copy-editing error.

Six days, people. Just six days! And not long after that I begin the paperback tour. 

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UK Trip I: The North

A couple of years ago I was at a party with a few Clarion West students, several of whom—amazingly, delightfully—were from the north of England. We all instantly (if very temporarily, in the way of parties) bonded: lasses from the north. We grinned at each other and swapped stories of effete southerners, and northern culture. We talked of how we knew were were heading home when we we driving up from Heathrow and/or London and saw those motorways signs that say The North.

This trip was no different. Kelley and I were tired and bleary from jet-lag but I saw that sign and my heart opened like a flower.

The next day was my birthday. We spent it with my family—Dad, two sisters, sister's sweetie—first at a Yorkshire lunch at a pub carvery (meat! vegetables! beer!) then tea and tasty squashy things sitting in the sunshine overlooking the lake at Roundhay Park (I had flapjacks, made Yorkshire style, with treacle). Lovely.

The next day, work started. First, the Central Library at Stockton-on-Tees, which is a 90-minute drive north from Leeds. I didn't know what to expect; I'd never done a UK library event before. I knew the organisers had worked hard to get an audience but I also knew they were a bit worried about low attendance numbers. So I decided that as long as there were more than 10 people, they'd get the whole thing (but not the Full Monty which, er, has taken on very particular meaning these days...): two readings, lots of chat, full Q&A. Meanwhile, I sat back and gazed at North Yorkshire as we drove through it.

It was early evening, and the sun was setting in a mostly clear sky. Dales on one side, the edge of the Yorkshire moors on the other. Green valleys falling away to the horizon in the west, cow-specked hills in the east, lines of drystone walls hundreds of years old—all drenched in the golden slanting light peculiar to northern latitudes. I could have stared for hours. I was just lost, so lost I forgot to take any pictures. Kelley got one, towards the end of the journey but it doesn't really capture the heart-stopping view.

The event was fabulous. A gorgeous room—lots of windows, brightly-coloured and comfortable furniture, a good sound system—and a great audience: forty or fifty readers, all smart, all terrifically well-informed and fiercely proud of their northern heritage. And there was wine. Plus—and this part was definitely the cherry on top—two nuns, Sisters of St Hilda no less. What followed was long, passionate conversation on culture, history, language, bias, religion, gender. I'll remember it for a long time. The nuns, who had shown up looking for a fight (I was messing with their saint, and they hated the US cover with that mail coif) ended up thoroughly approving—we bonded over Bede's various biases—drinking a lot of wine, and buying a book. In fact, I sold a lot of books (the organisers told Kelley it was the most hardcovers they had ever sold at one event) so everyone was very happy. Also, we got back to the hotel just in time for last-orders with my UK editor, who had driven up from London. All in all, a brilliant evening.

The next day was the Calderdale Central Library, in Halifax. Again there was wine—yay! I approve of this UK trend—and again I liked the audience, but there were fewer of them, about 20 I think, and they were less forthcoming. I suspect much of their unwillingness to open up in public was a direct result of the room: a low-ceilinged basement. The organisers had worked very hard to make a great evening, though, and the people themselves were very chatty as individuals afterwards. High point for me: my niece was there, which was lovely. And I sold some hardbacks—so it was pretty cool. Also, there were many representatives of reading groups there, which bodes well for the paperback.

Then it was an editorial lunch followed by a sisterly night on the town during which Kelley ate something called Yorkshire Blue, a cheese, and I drank Ilkley Black, a beer:

Another family lunch. Then a wonderful, many-hours-many-beers-many-conversations party at my sister's house. I felt a wee bit fragile the next day but had no time to dwell on it because it was time for my big event, the Ilkley Literature Festival.

The whole trip would have been worth it just for that. For the official account see the write-up in the festival blog. I'll just say my family—a lot of family; I have an aunt who lives in Ilkley—took up most of the front row and they beamed during the whole thing. It was first time my father has even seen me perform and he told me he was very proud indeed.

Then one last dinner on the way back to Leeds, and one last morning coffee with my family before heading down to London for the next set of people and events: King's College London, Queen Mary University London, and Forbidden Planet.

To Be Continued...

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HILD paperback!

Hild will be out in paperback 28 October from Picador. I just spent a very satisfying ten minutes trying to decide where to put the Washington State Book Award sticker.

It's a lovely-looking thing. I admit to being impressed by myself when I looked at all the quotes and the back cover copy. I'm grinning all over again...

This one deserves a good home. I'll send it to the reader who suggests the best review quote that isn't on the book. (You can find lots of same—but not all; I got a bit overwhelmed—here if you need inspiration. But the quote doesn't have to be here for you to use it.)

Or, hey, awards make me feel generous: I'll also send a copy to the reader who has the best idea of where to put that sticker. (Where to put it on the book. Just behave...)

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HILD wins the Washington State Book Award

photo of WSBA finalists by Vicki Platts-Brown

Last night Hild won the Washington State Book Award for Fiction. Here's a photo of me with other finalists and winners of Poetry and History/Non-Fiction and Biography/Memoir, plus the Scandiuzzi Children's Book Awards. Winners are the ones with the red ribbons added to this badges. You can't see mine because it's clipped to the bottom of my sweater (under my right hand) but I was definitely wearing it. (Finalist and winner info here.)

At the point where this photo was taken I'd been up for 24 hours straight and things were getting a wee bit surreal.

Kelley and I had woken up in London at 4:45 a.m. UK time, packed, got on a plane, flown to the US, eaten something, changed into mostly clean clothes, then I'd won an award, read a bit of the book to the packed Microsoft Auditorium, signed a bunch of hardcovers and galleys and paperbacks* and programmes, met some lovely people and talked to a zillion more, and drunk two beers. I'm smiling here but an hour later I was beginning to see two of everything.

It was a long, strange, occasionally marvellous (and sometimes seriously hard) kind of day. Kelley and I were given a bottle of Taittinger on the plane by a cabin attendant for doing a favour for her and a fellow passenger but were too out of it to drink it after the awards. It's chilling in the fridge right now.

Expect a more meaty blog post early next week about our amazing (and amazingly busy) UK trip. Right now I'm not entirely sure which way is up...though I do know it's all wonderful.

* A box of Hild paperbacks was waiting for me on the doorstep when I got home—they hit the shelves October 28. And I have to say, they look fabulous. More about that next week.

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Tonight: Forbidden Planet

Tonight's the last gig in the UK, at Forbidden Planet. Come and get your book signed and say hello.

Thursday 9th October
Forbidden Planet London Megastore
179 Shaftesbury Ave, London WC2H 8JR
6:00 - 7:00 pm

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Tonight: Queen Mary University London

Last night I was at KCL, talking about Hild, history, and gender. Tonight it's Queen Mary University, only it will Hild, history, and genre. So come on down...

Wednesday 8th October
Queen Mary University London, School of History
Arts Two Building, Mile End Road, Rm 4.14, E1 4NS
5:00 - 7:00 pm

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Tonight: King's College London

This is something I've been looking forward to for an age. Last year I was invited to a roundtable discussion but couldn't get a last-minute flight. This time, it's all set.

I'll be in conversation with Professor Claire Lees about Hild, history, and gender. I might also read the first bit of HILD II—and it's free! So do join us.

Tuesday 7th October
King's College London
River Room, Strand Campus
6:00 - 8:00 pm

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This week: London!

After a fab time in Yorkshire Kelley and I will be spending the next few days in London. I have three events:

Tuesday 7th October
King's College London
River Room, Strand Campus
6:00 - 8:00 pm

Wednesday 8th October
Queen Mary University London, School of History
Arts Two Building, Mile End Road, Rm 4.14, E1 4NS
5:00 - 7:00 pm

Thursday 9th October
Forbidden Planet London Megastore
179 Shaftesbury Ave, London WC2H 8JR
6:00 - 7:00 pm

I hope to see you there. Bring your questions, your comments, your books. There will be lots of opportunity for chat and signing. Bring your friends—bring everyone! The more the merrier. It will be a blast!

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Tonight: Ilkley

This afternoon/evening I'll be in Ilkley at the fabulous Literature Festival. I'll be talking to Gweno Williams about Hild. I think the event is just about sold out, but if you interested, it might be worth checking just in case.

Sunday 5th October
Ilkley Literature Festival
St Margaret's Hall, Ilkley LS29 9QL 
4:30 - 5:30 pm

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Feeling my roots and loving it

I took this photo yesterday afternoon, tootling about in Leeds. It is beautiful. I wish I'd got a photo on Wednesday evening driving north to Stockton-on-Tees. The sun was setting over the valleys of Yorkshire--Hild's native heath, and mine. It was golden hour; cows and pasture and stone walls lit like like honey.

In Hild's time there wouldn't have been tarmac'd roads. The cows would have been smaller, and fewer, the walls non-existent--probably. But the rise and fall of the land would have been the same.

And the Stockton Central Library was lovely: a sunlit room, bright comfy chairs, and wine! There were plenty of smart, engaged readers, two of whom were nuns, Sisters of St Hilda.

We had a great evening. We talked about Bede, and gender, and politics, and hagiography, about how and why I chose to write about Hild, about the historical socio-economic divide between North and South.

Northern identity is becoming a clear theme of these events. It was true at the Calderdale Central Library in Halifax, too. I find that about half an hour into the evening the slight American overly evaporates from my accent and I become quite Yorkshire.

Tomorrow I'm in Ilkley at the Literature Festival--more Yorkshire. And last night I was in a bar drinking Ilkley beer, and Kelley ate Yorkshire Blue cheese. I am feeling my roots, and loving it.

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Tonight: Halifax

If you happen to be close to Halifax tonight I'm at the Calderdale central library. Join us—and bring everyone you've ever met! It will be a fine evening.

Thursday 2nd October
Calderdale Library
Central Library, Northgate, Halifax HX1 1UN 
7:00 - 8:00 pm

This blog has moved. My blog now lives here: http://nicolagriffith.com/blog/

Tonight: Stockton-on-Tees!

Tonight I'm at the central library in Stockton-on-Tees. Come on down!

Wednesday 1st October
Stockton-on-Tees Library
Church Rd, Stockton-on-Tees TS18 1TU
7:30 - 8:30 pm

This blog has moved. My blog now lives here: http://nicolagriffith.com/blog/