On This Day She Book Trailer!

366 women, one for every day of the year, doing it. #SheDidIt @OnThisDayShe Find out more details and pre-order links here: http://onthisdayshe.com/wp/on-this-day…

 

 

Pushcart nomination!

The lovely people at Reflex Fiction (looking at you, Dave) have nominated my flash story, Get Gone - which won 2nd prize in their Spring contest - for a Pushcart Prize! So very nice to have some lovely news to share, and a great way to start 2021. You can read the story here >>

Kickstart your writing - from January!

I'm going to be running my 2 hour Zoom Kickstart Your Writing workshop on the first Monday of every month from January, 7pm UK time: a mix of reading, discussion & writing exercises to get you writing, from poems to stories, non-fic & hybrids! It will cost £20 per workshop, you can sign up for as few or as many as you like, with a discount for 3 or more - and there will be free places available for those who need them.

Everyone welcome, beginners and more experienced writers who need a bit of a firmly gentle shove! Email tania@taniahershman.com to sign up.

My own shop on Bookshop.org

You may have heard of a brand-new online bookselling initiative, Bookshop.org, which not only sells books but raises funds to support local bookshops! It's a brilliant way to make sure we don't lose these vital booksellers, so please do use it for your book-buying needs. Publishers can have their own shops too - my fantastic publisher Nine Arches has one.

 

But not just that - authors can also set up their own virtual shop, which I have just done, so that, as well as buying signed copies direct from me through www.taniahershman.com, you can now buy a selection of my books through my own shop on the new UK Bookshop.org website - as well as browse an ever-growing list of books that inspire my own writing, from octopuses to short stories, poetry and hybrids! And I received 10% of any book sales through my shop, which is a real boost to authors, especially those of us published by small presses. Happy shopping!

On This Day She - The Book!

 

On This Day She: Putting Women Back into History One Day at a Time will be published by John Blake Books in February 2021. Co-written by me, Jo Bell and Ailsa Holland as a spin-off from our hugely successful OnThisDayShe Twitter account, it features 366 stories of women throughout history. Pre-order now from your favourite independent bookshop, here are a few links:

Bookshop.org https://uk.bookshop.org/books/on-this-day-she-putting-women-back-into-history-one-day-at-a-time/9781789462715

Hive: https://hive.co.uk/Product/Tania-Hershman/On-This-Day-She--Putting-Women-Back-Into-History-One-Day-At-A-Time/25091920 

Waterstones: https://waterstones.com/book/on-this-day-she/tania-hershman/ailsa-holland/9781789462715

Foyles https://www.foyles.co.uk/witem/lgbt-gender-studies/on-this-day-she-putting-women-back-into,tania-hershman-ailsa-holland-jo-bell-9781789462715

Book Depository https://www.bookdepository.com/On-This-Day-She-Tania-Hershman/9781789462715?ref=grid-view&qid=1604915667672&sr=1-8

Amazon: https://amazon.co.uk/This-Day-She-Putting-History/dp/1789463637/

 And find out more details here.

Celebrating Libraries for National Libraries Week

 

 

"I wake up dreaming of libraries..." 

 Listen to my love letter on the RLF's latest podcast to two of Manchester's glorious libraries for National Libraries week: Manchester's Central Library and The Portico, it's privately-owned sister just a few minutes' walk away. https://rlf.org.uk/showcase/wa_episode289/ #LoveLibraries #LibrariesWeek

and what if we were allowed to disappear...

So, my book, 'and what if we were all allowed to disappear'... is about to disappear! It's a limited edition, so when it's gone, it's gone. If you're in the mood for a sparkly gold particle-physics-inspired hybrid book, grab one from my delicious publisher here, or you can grab a signed copy direct from me, while stocks last! Click here for Paypal details.

Happy National Poetry Day!

 

Happy #NationalPoetryDay! Would you'd like to purchase some poems? Buy signed copies of my latest pamphlet (published by Live Canon) directly from me - with a special deal if you buy pamphlet + my collection, Terms & Conditions, and I'll donate £1 to Samaritans. All the details are here: http://taniahershman.com/wp/books/

Hybrid writing Arvon-at-home Online Masterclass

I'm delighted to be giving another Arvon-At-Home online masterclass - this time in Hybrid Writing! Break out of your box and join us wherever you are, Sep 22, 7-9pm UK time - free places available, please ask. Details here: https://arvon.org/writing-courses/courses-retreats/arvon-at-home-masterclass-hybrid-writing/…

5 Day Short Story Challenge - Aug 10-14

In April the Arvon Foundation ran a 5-Day Short Story Challenge using daily prompts that I’d written to guide you through the drafting of a new short story. Over two thousand people took part, and there were such enthusiastic responses, it was a joy to see! I ran it again in May – but if you missed it – or if you did it already but would like another week of daily writing nudges – here’s your chance! I’m running it again myself, using the same prompts, from Monday August 10 – Friday August 14. Every day you will get an email with a writing prompt and reading material to kickstart your imagination.

The cost to sign up is £5 – half of which is to provide me with a small amount of income, and half I will donate to Refuge, a charity which helps women and children experiencing domestic violence, something which has only increased during this lockdown. I am also offering several free places. Click here for more details and to sign up by Sunday August 9.

Get Gone - 2nd Prize

I'm delighted that my flash story, 'Get Gone', is 2nd prize-winner in Reflex Fiction's Spring 2020 flash contest! Here's a snippet:

Get gone, girl, she snarls and the girl, who never knows what she might be getting, goes. Galloping across roads, the girl feels herself small, feels herself dissolving. Giant clouds at the level of her shoulders try to make her laugh but the girl is not amused. Get gone, she herself says to the clouds, and to the snails that line the way, watching. Girls and snails never mix, this she knew from early on. 

Gathered in to herself later, after a day or week...

You can read the whole story here. 

New audio poems - octopuses, insects and John Clare!

It's been a week of audio poems for me this week - first, I was a guest on the octopus-themed episode of Radio 3's The Verb last Friday, where I had the enormous thrill of reading four poems inspired by Peter Godfrey-Smith's book, 'Other Minds: The Octopus and The Evolution of Intelligent life - in front of Peter himself! I have been told I don't come across as a completely hysterical fan girl, but you can judge for yourself, it's a really fun programme hosted brilliantly, as ever, by Ian McMillan, and with the excellent Kate Fox and Matthew Welton. There was a lot of giggling, something very necessary right now. You can listen here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000k3dl

And from octopuses to insects...I love being asked/commissioned to write new work, especially when it's inspired by something completely unknown to me. I didn't know the poet John Clare's work at all, so really enjoyed it when I was given free rein to respond to his poems with my own poem for the new Thunder Mutters podcast. I discovered John and I share a fascination for insects; I have a poem in my collection about the fire ant. So I decided to talk to John about it... through poetry.

"Dear John...
I am interested
in your choice of insect
names: tiny
loiterers, happy units.."

It's at 10 mins 28s but do listen to the whole, magical Thunder Mutters podcast!

Octopuses on The Verb

I'm a guest on this week's thrilling octopus-themed The Verb on Radio 3, reading some of my new octopus poems - from my collection-in progress, 'Still Life With Octopus' -  inspired by Peter Godfrey-Smith's book, 'Other Minds: Octopuses and the Evolution of Intelligent Life' - and chatting with Peter himself, as well as the fantastic Kate Fox and Matthew Welton! You can listen to the programme here

No I do not tango

I recorded another poem for the #internationalpoetrycircle, "No, I Do Not Tango", from my Nine Arches Press collection, "Terms & Conditions".

 "I have stepped off
that dance floor, and I am
relieved. Every part of me
is mine..."

 #LiveAloneAndLikeIt

Online 8-week flash fiction course

I am delighted that I'm going to be teaching an 8-week online flash fiction writing course through the excellent London Lit Lab - it's open to both new and experienced writers, anywhere in the world. The course will start on July 23rd. Places are limited, and there are two subsidized places available. More details here - come flash with us!

5 day Short Story Challenge

In April the Arvon Foundation ran a 5-Day Short Story Challenge using daily prompts that I’d written to guide you through the drafting of a new short story. Over two thousand people took part, and there were such enthusiastic responses, it was a joy to see! If you missed it the first time – or if you did it already but would like another week of daily writing nudges – here’s your chance! I’m running it again myself, using the same prompts, from Monday May 11 – Friday May 15. Every day you will get an email with a writing prompt and reading material to kickstart your imagination. 


The cost to sign up is £5 – half of which is to provide me with a small amount of income, and half I will donate to Refuge, a charity which helps women and children experiencing domestic violence, something which has only increased during this lockdown. (I am also offering several free places, see below.)

Click here for more details and to sign up!

Zoom online flash fiction workshop

How about a flash fiction online workshop to get the juices flowing? I'm running a 2-hour online flash fiction workshop for Arvon on May 28th, 11am - 1pm. It's open to all, no experience necessary, you'll end up with at least 3 new story drafts, so come and play! Booking details here:  https://www.arvon.org/writing-courses/courses-retreats/arvon-at-home-masterclass-flash-fiction/

Zooming in

I have a piece today on Marina Benjamin's excellent new blog, 'Zooming In', about what I'm reading & noticing now that I'm staying so much closer to home. Here's a taster:

Barak and I had five days’ hard riding northwards since then, the roads in a bad state after that wet summer of 1541.

                     

 Since the start of the lockdown, I have read three, and just started my fourth C J Sansom novel. The quote above is taken from the third, Sovereign. They’re set in the 16th century, and they’re crime thrillers featuring his trusty lawyer, Matthew Shardlake, and, in this book and the next, Shardlake’s assistant, Jack Barak. This is not, as anyone who knows me will tell you, my usual preferred reading material. What is it about the situation we find ourselves in that has drawn me to it? ...

Read the full piece here >> 

Poetry Video: Play

I thought I'd read you another poem, and this time I figured out how to do it without having to hold the phone! Here's a little reminder of something we all need to do: 'Play', from my

Live Canon pamphlet, 'How High Did She Fly'. #InternationalPoetryCircle

Stay-at-home Festival

I hope you are all safe and well. As all events in the outside world are being cancelled, I'm delighted to be taking part in the Stay At Home Online Festival: I'm doing an online reading from my new books at 2pm on Monday April 6th, and taking part in a panel on the creative process at 12pm on Thurs April 9th, and there are loads of other brilliant events already happening. Details here!  Come join in!