Dragon news

Successful Writers' Day at the Dylan Thomas Centre

Thu, 01 Jul 2010 11:30:00 BST

The creative writing departments of Swansea University and Trinity University College, Carmarthen, in conjunction with the Dragon Innovation Partnership, recently held a successful day of discussions and readings to a packed out audience at the Dylan Thomas Centre.

This was the first time such an event had been held outside the University, and it provided an opportunity for students and the wider community of Swansea and Carmarthen to enjoy a day of discussion about writing and publishing, to learn more about the creative writing departments of both universities, and to meet with key figures in the industry.

The event featured prominent names from the publishing industry in Wales, including Dominic Williams from Parthian Books and Gwen Davies from Alcemi Press, as well as Euan Thorneycroft from AM Heath, who told delegates about about his role as top London agent. The established poet and singer-songwriter Paul Henry finished the day with a special music and poetry performance, followed by a book signing.

The organiser of the event, Dr. Fflur Dafydd of Swansea University said:

“It really was wonderful to see the academic community and wider communities of Swansea and Carmarthen brought together by this event, and the audience was a wonderful combination of aspiring and published writers, book lovers and critics, as well as those interested in the more commercial side of publishing.

“Hopefully delegates will have made useful contacts during the day, which will help give them a start in the publishing world.

“We’re now hoping to be able to run this as an annual event.”

The event was sponsored by the Dragon Innovation Partnership, and also featured key contributions from the staff of the creative writing departments of both universities – Professor Stevie Davies, Dr. Jeni Williams, Dr. Fflur Dafydd, and Nigel Jenkins – who talked about their own experiences of publishing in Wales and beyond.