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Do Not Go Gentle excitement and teasers

So only one sleep to go until Do Not Go Gentle kicks off and I'm been gathering all my books together and getting excited about all the wonderful writers I'll be chatting to around and about (mostly in Dylan Thomas' old house in Uplands). I thought I could get you a little bit excited too... so here are some lines or paragraphs from their latest books and some links... book your tickets, see you there! FRIDAY 1ST NOVEMBER On Friday we'll be opening the festival with Dylan Thomas' granddaughter Hannah Ellis at 5 Cwmdonkin Drive at 5pm. At 6pm we'll be previewing Parthian's special 21st birthday anthology Rarebit , with 4 new talents from the 21 writers involved reading their stories. Here are the first couple of lines from each of these... 'Onwards' by Dan Tyte:  You take a left at the bar nobody could ever remember the name of, the one where the waiting girl wore her hair up and her guard down, where the pool table sloped into the top ri

On Not Going Gentle for National Poetry Day at 5 Cwmdonkin Drive– review

A pleasant nod from Natalie Holborow in her review blog of her National Poetry Day jaunt at Dylan Thomas' birthplace: '   Susie Wild followed with an impressive collection of poems and a glowing stage presence, speaking to the audience with an intimacy that brought the room closer together and maintaining the cosy atmosphere.' Read the blog in full here:  http://thesirenswansea.wordpress.com/2013/10/08/on-not-going-gentle-for-national-poetry-day-at-5-cwmdonkin-drive-review/ Come join us for more intimate literary events at Do Not Go Gentle, 1-3 November.

Witch Doctors and Rarebits and Not Going Gentle.

Hello It's been a while, hasn't it? This is what happens when you get a proper job, see. So... I've been up to some things. Things like editing beautiful books for Parthian Books.   Craig Hawes  brilliant collection of short stories The Witch Doctor Of Umm Suqeim  has been printed. I think I am beaming like a proud Mum out of shot. On general release from October 1st! We had a little launch party with family and friends at Monkey in Swansea on Sunday evening. Craig said some nice things, I blushed. His book is on general release from 1st October. Craig and I were also joined by Sian Preece to talk about how to win short story competitions in our session at the Rhys Davies Short Story Conference the day before. There were lots of fab people on the bill including Will Self, Clare Keegan, Cynan Jones, Alex Clark and the brilliant Edna O'Brien -- If I am that awesome at 82 I'll be happy, and it is good to remember that if I my long life line tells the

THE STAGE REVIEW | DIARY OF A MADMAN

Diary of a Madman Published  Tuesday 28 May 2013  at  10:46  by  Susie Wild Based on a short story by Nikolai Gogol, Robert Bowman’s one-man show charts the unravelling of 40-something civil servant Poprishchin in 1830s Russia. Sharpening pencils for His Excellency, he is schoolboy impish when describing the beautiful object of his affection: “Her dress was white like a swan, and when she looked at me it was like the sun shining - I swear it.” Robert Bowman in Diary of a Madman Photo: Katy Stephenson First performed in Chapter in 2011 as a development piece funded by the Arts Council of Wales, Diary of a Madman was created using the Michael Chekhov Technique and sees Poprishchin move down a scale of emotions from naively quixotic through a spat of psychosis giggles - can dogs write? Could this handwriting be described as ‘doggy’? Could he be the next King of Spain? - to a dark and surreal place. Illness meant that Bowman was croaky and performing under par to start with.

THE LAMPETER REVIEW | NO LAUGHTER AFTER MIDNIGHT

'Boxes lined the lounge and the hall and built a cardboard city across the spare bed. It wasn’t as if she wanted them there, not really, but she didn’t know what else to do.'  I've a brand new story, 'No Laughter After Midnight' in the new Lampeter Review: http://issuu.com/lampeter-review/docs/7_issue

THE STAGE REVIEW | THE BLOODY BALLAD

Had a wonderful time at The Bloody Ballad in Newport on Saturday. You can read my review over on The Stage website, here's an extract: The Bloody Ballad featuring Mary and the Missing Fingers Published  Monday 25 March 2013  at  10:57  by  Susie Wild The Bloody Ballad is a gloriously grotesque rockabilly riot of a night out based on Mary Maid of the Mill, an old Welsh Romany folk tale by Abram Wood about a girl who gets betrayed by her lover and then goes on a revenge killing spree. Using live music theatre, Gagglebabble (Lucy Rivers and Hannah McPake) have created a unique, playful, immersive work in which the wrong-side-of-the-tracks Mary - “a girl with a dark past who’s had one hell of a week” - shares her gory story through words and song and invites you to sing along. [...] Read the review in full on The Stage website The show is touring until the end of August (Edinburgh stint) and Gagglebabble are back with a new show in the Autumn too. See the trailer and

Western Mail: Women writers head Welsh book lists for 2013

Abbie Wightwick, WalesOnline Mar 16 2013 What’s will we be reading this year? Abbie Wightwick asks industry insiders to look to the future and predict the trends for 2013 (With my Parthian hat on, I predict your reading in this feature as part of the Western Mail's Books Special) Read more: Wales Online http://www.walesonline.co.uk/showbiz-and-lifestyle/books-in-wales/2013/03/16/women-writers-head-welsh-book-lists-for-2013-91466-32989996/

Parthian Appoints Two New Editors: Susie Wild and Alan Kellermann

Two editors will be joining the Parthian editorial team in the new financial year. Editor and writer  Susie Wild  has extended her role to general editor with Parthian and is currently working on a list which includes sparkling new fiction debuts by  Craig Hawes ,  Dan Tyte  and  Carly Holmes . She is also the editor of an innovative range of memoirs which starts Dorothy Al Khafaji’s  Between Two Rivers , an honest, funny and moving story of Baghdad life from the perspective of a young woman from England, transplanted into another culture by love and family, and then in 2014 by Michael Oliver’s innovative  Sunbathing in Siberia: A Marriage of East and West in Post Soviet Russia .  Read the article in full on the Parthian website. Also see interview with me in The Bookseller on 8th March.

In with the new...

Hello Folks, I know I've been a bit quiet on the blog front lately, that is because I've taken a bit of a break from performing to spend time on writing and various efforts in self improvement. So here is a quick update for you... I got myself a new motto... Other new things: 1. New hair. I got bangs. I like them. 2. New job. I've been appointed as Editor at Parthian Books. I am super pleased about this and looking forward to working with our authors on splendid lists in 2013 and 2014. 3. Mr Man got a lot of brownie points this week. Not only did he take me out for champagne on hearing that I got the job, he also sent me flowers. He's a keeper. Which is a good job because... 4. We've signed up for another year on our house. 5. In my bid to learn something new every month... I started yoga in January, and begin crochet next week. My plans to learn to bake have been delayed slightly, but I get to do my OMB class in March and have been

Five things you have to try in Swansea's live music venues

I ♥ Swansea. You should too. I wrote a little Top 5 music venues snippet  for @visitwales ... " There’s stacks to see and do in Swansea. And it’s no surprise that lots of local people are busy writing stuff about them: places to eat and drink, spots for shopping, sights and sounds and more. So we put this page together to showcase the best. It’s a guide written by people who love where they live. We hope you find it as inspiring as we do…" http://www.visitwales.co.uk/short-breaks/city-breaks/swansea/