Place Writing Festival 2017 at Manchester Met

Sarah-Clare Conlon, Literature Editor

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Place Writing Festival 2017

31 May-1 June 2017

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

Bruce Guenter / flickr
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It’s a way off yet, but this brand-new two-day festival, exploring writing about place, is bound to be a sellout, so book your free ticket now. Site-specific projects and writing about places and spaces are getting ever more popular, from ‘new nature writing’ to urban psychogeography. Public festivals and new publishers have been picking up on the trend (as has the Manchester Writing School at Manchester Met, with the introduction of a new MA/MFA course on the subject), and writing about place has come to occupy a prominent position in contemporary literary culture.

This two-day event, in the old Cornerhouse building, will celebrate contemporary place writing through a combination of author events, interactive workshops, panel discussions and even walks, and all are welcome to sign up. Aimed at anyone with an interest in the relationship between place, language and creativity, the event will also introduce you to the new MA/MFA in Place Writing at the Manchester Writing School. So pack your pen and paper, and don those sturdy shoes – let’s go exploring!

Where to go near Place Writing Festival 2017 at Manchester Met

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These regular talks in both Manchester and Knutsford unpack the meaning and significance of Elizabeth Gaskell’s writing.

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Elizabeth Gaskell’s House has been lovingly restored; you can now sit at her desk, see where Charlotte Brontë hid behind the curtains, and have tea in the downstairs café. The Pankhurst Centre is also nearby.

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