Novel Voices online with Ellah Wakatama

Sarah-Clare Conlon, Literature Editor

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Novel Voices- Natasha Brown and Jarred McGinnis in Conversation with Ellah Wakatama

12-26 April 2021

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

Author Jarred McGinnis
Author Jarred McGinnis.
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Novel Voices, the five-part online series featuring Ellah Wakatama in conversation with 10 debut authors helping to shape 2021’s literary landscape, continues afoot: Cherie Jones and Nekesa Afia are in the hot seat on 12 April followed by Natasha Brown and Jarred McGinnis on 26 April. The writers will discuss their craft and the journey to shaping their first, published full body of work. Chosen from big and indie publishing houses alike, the writers in the series have been paired together based on thematic similarities in their work, and for each event they are invited to explore the influences, experiences and structures that helped in the shaping of their narrative tone, voice and approach.

Cherie Jones and Nekesa Afia are in the hot seat on 12 April followed by Natasha Brown and Jarred McGinnis on 26 April. The writers will discuss their craft and the journey to shaping their first, published full body of work.

Since February, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Manchester’s Centre for New Writing and Editor-at-Large at Canongate Books Ellah Wakatama has welcomed Meng Jin, author of Little Gods (HarperCollins), and JA Mensah (Castles From Cobwebs, on Salford’s Saraband), US-based authors Namina Forna (The Gilded Ones) and Justin Deabler (Lone Stars), and scientists Catherine Menon, whose debut Fragile Monsters is out on 8 April with Viking and already garnering rave reviews, and Victoria Princewill, publishing In The Palace Of Flowers in paperback this May.

Next up is twenty-four-year-old Canadian author Nekesa Afia, a publishing student who has just finished her undergraduate degree in journalism and English. Her debut novel, Dead Dead Girls, is set in 1920s Harlem and features Louise Lloyd, a young black woman caught up in a series of murders. It marks the start of annew historical mystery series, and Nekesa says: “I’m obsessed with history, with special attention to the golden age of Hollywood (along with just before and after), and the prohibition era.”

She’s joined by Barbados-based lawyer and writer Cherie Jones, whose debut How The One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House follows in the tradition of Zadie Smith and Marlon James, and is described by The Guardian as “intensely compelling”. Longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2021, it follows four people in the Caribbean each desperate to escape their legacy of violence in “paradise”, and Waterstone’s calls it “a multi-generational novel of rare skill and precision”. Cherie studied Creative Writing at Sheffield Hallam University in 2015, winning prizes for her collection of inter-connected stories set in a small community in Barbados, Water For The End Of The World, and her story ‘Bride’, which took first prize in the Commonwealth Short Story Competition.

The final Novel Voices this spring sees Ellah Wakatama chatting to writers Natasha Brown and Jarred McGinnis. Described by Booker Prize-winning Girl, Woman, Other author Bernardine Evaristo as “a stunning new writer”, Natasha Brown developed her novel Assembly after receiving a 2019 London Writers Award in the literary fiction category. Having studied Maths at Cambridge University, she has spent a decade working in financial services and now her debut is out at the start of June with Hamish Hamilton. Described in the blurb as “blistering, fearless and unforgettable, a literary debut from an astonishing new talent in British fiction, for fans of Raven Leilani, Claudia Rankine and Jenny Offill”, Assembly is “a story about the stories we live within – those of race and class, safety and freedom, winners and losers. And it is about one woman daring to take control of her own story, even at the cost of her life”.

Jarred McGinnis has also been showered with celebrity praise: Irvine Welsh says of his debut, The Coward, “You won’t find a more uplifting read in these dark times.” Published by Canongate in July, The Coward is “a compelling and darkly humorous exploration of what it means to come to terms with a broken body, rebuild a broken relationship and find love when it seems like there is no hope” and is “about how the world treats disabled people”. Based in London, American Jarred McGinnis has been commissioned for BBC Radio 4 and his fiction has appeared in journals in the UK, USA, Canada and Ireland. He has been associate writer for writer development agency Spread The Word, a mentor for The Word Factory, a fellow of the London Library’s T S Eliot Emerging Writer Programme, a Writer-in-Residence for First Story and co-founder of The Special Relationship literary evenings series.

The Novel Voices events are presented in partnership with Creative Manchester and the Centre for New Writing, in association with Blackwell’s Bookshop. Tickets are £3 or free for students and you will be sent a link to join the online events when ticket sales end at 5.30pm on the day.

Where to go near Novel Voices online with Ellah Wakatama

Hern Food
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Restaurant
Hern

This produce-driven bistro in Chapel Allerton, Leeds, prides itself on cooking with the only finest ingredients and his headed up by Cordon Bleu-trained chef Rab Adams.

Indie Makers
Leeds
Shop
Indie Makers

Indie Makers, located in Leads’ corn exchange, trades in art and gifts from independent makers across the UK.

Plant Point
Leeds
Shop
Plant Point

Plant Point is designed to help you bring the jungle into your urban or suburban space. The home of beautiful plants in Leeds.

Leeds
Restaurant
Eat Your Greens

Eat Your Greens is a vibrant, organic restaurant bringing a hint of European flair to the city’s plant-based dining scene.

Sela opened in 2004 with an idea to provide quality imported beers from around the world, fun cocktails to compliment the beer selections and a stage for the region’s finest and most talented musicians to play on.Over ten years later, we’re still all about the beer, cocktails, live music and pizza!We carry over a selection of over thirty different beers spanning the globe from Pickering with The Great Yorkshire Brewery’s Yorkshire Blackout, to New York with a selection from Brooklyn Brewery, and Belgium with longtime Sela favourite, Vedett.Our cocktails change regularly too. Our best-sellers are joined by fun, new offerings and our pizza menu is regarded as one of the best the city of Leeds has to offer.As for the live music, Sela has had not only the great and the good from the region. Local funksters, The New Mastersounds are regular visitors and we stage the amazing Mojah Reggae Band for their weekly Wednesday residency.  Our other long running programming incl
Leeds
Restaurant
Sela Bar & Pizzeria

Sela Bar is a cosy Leeds basement spot with live music, great drinks, and a cool, laid-back, atmospheric vibe.

Leeds Beckett SU
Leeds
Restaurant
Leeds Beckett Student Union

Leeds Beckett Student Union hosts big-name artists and supports students through events, live music, and a vibrant campus venue.

Located on Cardigan Fields Leisure Park, Vue Leeds Kirkstall is a nine screen cinema with almost 2000 seats. There's ample parking and the cinema is surrounded by various restaurants and entertainment facilities, making for a great evening out!

Watch the latest film releases and enjoy the industry-leading Sony 4K Digital screens, boasting spectacular picture quality, along with enhanced audio quality courtesy of Dolby 'Profound Sound'. Stepped SuperVue seating means you will never miss a second of the action while VIP seating guarantees you an extra touch of luxury whenever you want to upgrade.

Three of the nine screens showcase the newest 3D releases while Vue Classical brings the latest stage sensations to the big screen, and parents can save as they go with Family Tickets and Kids AM screenings offering great value for money.
Leeds
Cinema
Vue Cinema – Leeds Kirkstall Road

Located on Cardigan Fields Leisure Park, Vue Leeds Kirkstall is a nine screen cinema with almost 2000 seats. There’s ample parking and the cinema is surrounded by various restaurants and

Restaurant 2
Leeds
Café or Coffee Shop
Empire Café

Empire Café is located in Leeds’ ‘home of day dining’- Fish street!

Restaurant
Leeds
Restaurant
Phranakhon

Phranakhon Thai Tapas is a revolutionised Thai dining restaurant with a combination of European indulgence and authentic Thai tastes.

Restaurant
Leeds
Restaurant
Wen’s

Wen’s is a family owned Chinese restaurant specialising in authentic, home cooked cuisine.

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