Over the weekend, two of our Ignite authors brought their work to Wolverhampton Literature Festival, and showed that it’s possible to share the magic of great writing and engage an audience even in an online event. One day, people, all Zoom meetings will be like this.
On Saturday, Ian Elmslie delivered his one-man show based on his book A Marvellous Party. The show lets us into the world of someone lucky enough to meet his heroes – Quentin Crisp, Ian McKellen, Armistead Maupin among others – and reflects on the progress made by the LGBT community, as well as the challenges it still faces. This is perfect storytelling, done with a wink and a smile, and a wonderful ability to bring characters to life. Fringe festivals, literature festivals, and festivals which celebrate all things LGBT, book this show!! You’ll laugh, you’ll be moved, you’ll be uplifted, and – trust us – when Ian declares “I’m boggin’!” you’ll believe Lily Savage is in the room.
Emma Purshouse is the poet laureate of Wolverhampton, which meant launching her debut novel Dogged at the city’s literature festival simply had to be done. In a one-hour Q&A on Sunday evening, Emma covered the process of writing a novel, her experiences as a working-class woman writer, and read short excerpts from the book while managing not to give too much away. No spoilers! Quite the achievement. This event was recorded, and is one of many now available on the festival’s ‘on demand’ channel, which you’ll find here. You’ll need to sign in and create an account, but it really is worth it.
