REVIEW: ANDY WILLOUGHBY’S ‘TOUGH’

REVIEW: ANDY WILLOUGHBY’S ‘TOUGH’

By Stella Backhouse || Ghosts stalk the pages of Andy Willoughby’s 2004 collection Tough. They catch you in the opening poem and lead you through Whitby’s vanished whalebone arch […]

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January 2021: Online Literary Events

January 2021: Online Literary Events

Finally – 2021 has arrived! Sadly, this COVID-19 pandemic has not yet been resolved, and the challenges of making sure arts events still happen – safely – are on-going. Here is the good news: the HCE magazine team have created another list of literary open mics, events and workshops, to help you plan for the weeks ahead. […]

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INTERVIEW: FIRE & DUST MEETS LAURA POTTS

INTERVIEW: FIRE & DUST MEETS LAURA POTTS

HCE booked Laura Potts as the headliner for December’s Fire & Dust poetry night, knowing her words would magically transport us out of this crazy year, if only temporarily. We caught up with her after the Fire & Dust gig, to ask a few questions…

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INTERVIEW: FIRE & DUST MEETS MOLLY TWOMEY

INTERVIEW: FIRE & DUST MEETS MOLLY TWOMEY

Molly has been selected for Words Ireland’s National Mentoring Programme 2020 and is currently under the guidance of Grace Wells. In 2020, Molly was one of two poets from Cork, Ireland who participated in the annual international poetry exchange between Cork and Coventry (UK). She wowed the crowd with her words […]

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REVIEW: NIGEL HUTCHINSON’S ‘THE HUMBLE FAMILY INTERVIEWS’

REVIEW: NIGEL HUTCHINSON’S ‘THE HUMBLE FAMILY INTERVIEWS’

Reviewed by Stella Backhouse || Hutchinson embraces a variety of forms. At the collection’s heart are two extended sequences of modified found-poetry, ‘The Humble Family Interviews’ and ‘Accidents of this Game’. Around them are arranged stand-alone poems about nature, fragments, time and art – indeed, it’s a collection notably rich in artistic inspiration […]

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REVIEW: JANE BURN’S ‘ONE OF THESE DEAD PLACES’

REVIEW: JANE BURN’S ‘ONE OF THESE DEAD PLACES’

By Stella Backhouse || I have a lot of sympathy for Jane Burn’s lament for a lost industry and a lost way of life in her 2018 collection One of These Dead Places. But though Burn clearly loves the valley of her birth, I’m not sure how much it loves her back. […]

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December 2020: Online Literary Events

December 2020: Online Literary Events

Here is the good news: creative communities across the UK, and all around the globe, are STILL plugging the void in our lives with some amazing virtual events! No need to be gloomy like the weather. Let’s stay virus-free AND enjoy our favourite gigs! […]

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ART EXPOSURE INTERVIEW: NEIL J. CATLEY

ART EXPOSURE INTERVIEW: NEIL J. CATLEY

ART EXPOSURE INTERVIEW: HCE MEETS NEIL J. CATLEY   Interviewed by Raef Boylan     Neil J. Catley is a freelance street and architecture photographer based in Coventry, UK. Known around the city for avidly capturing its iconic landmarks with his camera,...

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You Write and You Learn: Tips for Fellow Aspiring Authors

You Write and You Learn: Tips for Fellow Aspiring Authors

By Eve Volungeviciute || Writing tips are so prominent and sought after they have their own section at bookstores. How to structure a scene, how to create compelling characters – there are do’s and don’ts for pretty much everything writing related. […]

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