Have you been inspired by a song?

Was it a tune that drove you to tears, then to the page?

Or perhaps an adventure centred around a killer gig?

Well then, we want your  short stories, poetry, music journalism, essays, photography and artwork!

Forest Publications Presents …

This Next One Goes Out To… is our homage to the relationship between literature and music.

Submissions should generally be less than 5000 words.

Send work to:submissions@forpub.com

Please send photos and artwork as high-res images

Deadline: October 30, 2010

Forest Publications has always enjoyed the relationship between music and literature. Both The Golden Hour Book 1 and The Golden Hour Book 2 have included a cd featuring artists like John Crave, Le Enfant Bastard, Withered Hand, Francois & the Atlas Mountains, & Billy Liar. Each month, we produce  The Golden Hour  which takes place in the Forest Cafe, Edinburgh. The Golden Hour is an event that combines readings, bad jokes, music, funny jokes, dancing and visual rubbish in a cabaret setting. Readers have ranged from relatively unknown, untested writers to those with international followings like AL Kennedy and Michel Faber. Many of our musicians friends have gone on to claim critical and commercial success. Forest Publications has been generously funded by the Scottish Arts Council. To learn more about The Golden Hour visit http://forpub.com/goldenhourevent/

To read about The Golden Hour in the news visit: http://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4136769 & http://www.theskinny.co.uk/article/9911 … olden-hour

From Monday the 27th of September, South Queensferry Library will be my poetic home away from home.

I’ll be semi-based in South Queensferry hosting free poetic events and workshops! The month will also feature a display with my favourite poetry collection. You can come and meet your Reader in Residence and join our Nothing But the Poem workshop on Monday 27 September at 19.00. It should be a brilliant month so come along to any of the TOTALLY FREE events mentioned below or feel free to pop into the library and see what excellent poetry books are on offer!

Nothing But the Poem

Mon. 27 Sept. 19.00 – 20.00

Fancy a poetry chat? Nothing But The Poem is a relaxed and informal way to meet and discuss poems. Moderated by ECL / SPL Reader-in-Residence Ryan Van Winkle. * We read a poem * We discuss the poem * Only the poem we’ve read. * No Jargon * No experience needed * Nothing to fear * Nothing but the poem.

Chatterbooks

Wed. 13 Oct. 15.45 – 16.45

A poetry afternoon for kids with writing games and activities!A poetry afternoon for kids with writing games and activities!

Poems Aloud

Wed. 13 October 19.00 – 20.00

Do you have a favourite poem? Do you love hearing poems read aloud? Come to our poems aloud session where we’ll be sharing the poems we carry with us, in our hearts and even in our pockets. Bring any poem you’d like to hear and share and we’ll read a few from our roving poetry collection.

Poetry Month also features a unique poetry display of our favourite and most accessible collections.

New Podcasts for Your Hungry Ears

Anyone who was in Edinburgh this August knows — it is the cruelest and busiest month — full of events, parties, and culture (high and low low low). However, during that time Colin Fraser and I still managed to rock out a few poetry podcasts for you and there is loads of audio still to get on the electric air. See our latest work below and – please – subscribe so you don’t miss conversations with Paul Muldoon, Mandy Haggith, Andrew Greig and Vicki Feaver. All coming up soon. But now — check out these hot episodes featuring music by Trio Verso, comedy by David O’Doherty, and musings with Mario Petrucci. And don’t forget to let us know what you think. It gets lonely out here.

	Chris King of Poetry Scores Ryan chats with Chris King via Skype, about Les Murray, Ece Ayhan, Stefene Russell, how to score a poem, zombies…
	Mario Petrucci Scientist, thinker and poet Petrucci unravels an engaging discussion with Ryan on poetry, poetics, science, the challenges of pushing the boundaries in poetry and much else…
	Brian Johnstone Poet and former director of the StAnza poetry festival, discusses the highlights of his StAnza career, what he thinks makes a good poetry festival, his own work and his creative improvisations as part of jazz-poetry combo Trio Verso.
	David O’Doherty David O’Doherty chinwags with Ryan about jazz, literature, comedy, the pressures of working in the creative industries, good stand-up, his favourite poetry and much else…

The Last Read of August

And it is going to be a totally amazing one. Firstly, it is at the legendary Speigaltent at the Book Fest. Second it is to celebrate the Rodge Glass edited anthology of killer new Scottish Fiction titled “The Year Of Open Doors” and as such with have one of Scotland’s finest readers — The Alan Bissett. Plus — there will be music from Burnt Island & Adrian Crowley.

Monday, 30 August, 8pm – Edinburgh International Book Festival, Speigal Tent — FREE

The Year Of Open Doors:Final Night

Here’s a Taste of Adrian Crowley

<httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUtawMJxLiw>

And Don’t Forget

My poem is in The Year of Open Doors — a very excellent collection of new Scottish Fiction. Do Buy the Book. It is quality. It features great new stories from people like:

Alan Bissett

Sophie Cooke

Kirstin Innes

Kapka Kassabova

Anneliese Mackintosh

Kevin MacNeil

Duncan McLean

Aidan Moffat

Suhayl Saadi

Tawona Sithole

&

Ryan Van Winkle (That’s ME!)

Check Out Cargo Publishing’s Website for News, Contests, Videos and all things Open Doorsy — See you at the Gig!

10 at 10 at the Book Festival — FREE

I was proud to be asked by the lovely Book Festival Peoples if I would read a few poems on the last, final, ultimate day of the festival. I’ll be doing just a short little thing  — 10 minutes of poetry at 10 am. It is free and the last reading I’m going to doing in Edinburgh for a while. So, please come, because it would be brilliant to see you and to hang out in Charlotte Square one last time this August.

Where: Edinburgh International Book Festival — Charlotte Square, Edinburgh

When: 30 August, 10am

How much: FREE!

Any Good: It will be the best I’ve  got.

The Golden Hour in Stornoway, 4 Sept!

Check Out This New Book! On sale in t he forpub.com shop!

Now available for a bargainous £2 is the fifth issue from Forest Publications’ Chapbook Series, Volume 2: a collection of poems entitled, Mosquitoes by Krystelle Bamford.

From The House at Westerly, Rhode Island

The house was the sea.
Or a ship on the sea.
Or a deer-blind
deep in the woods.
From the deck, they watch bitterns
skulk at the hem of vernal pools,
while green-heads
bomb through the dusk.
He is a wooden Indian
and she is a corn-husk doll.
He stormed the beaches
and she had a thousand sad children.  Read more!

Product details

• Title: Vol.2 Iss.5 ‘Mosquitoes’
• Author: Krystelle Bamford
• Pamphlet: 12 pages
• Publisher: Forest Publications (18 July 2010)
• ISBN-13: 978-0956338891
• Amount: £2

GET YOUR COPY TODAY from the FOREST PUBLICATIONS STORE!:

THE GOLDEN HOUR goes to the EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL BOOK FESTIVAL!

August 25th, 2010
9pm
Highland Park Spiegeltent in Charlotte Square
Free! Free! Free! (With Free Drinks and all sorts too!!!)

Featuring:

Ryan Van Winkle – Reader in Residence at the Scottish Poetry Library

&

Surprise Book Festival Guests

With Music From:

Withered Hand – intense, eccentric, bittersweet and very wry original songs.

The Sea, The Sea – lyrical lushness from Jed Milroy and Hailey Beavis featuring bouncing bluegrass licks and double bass band.

&&&&

Black Diamond Express ‘are like the fastest train of the Lehigh Valley Railroad… a nine-piece band soaked in poetry, myth and bourbon.’ (Mark Edmundson, The List). The Black Diamond Express live and perform in Edinburgh.

Come get UNBOUND with us!

(and check out the other hot free events on as part of the Unbound series at the Edinburgh International Book Festival.)

Naked Reading at Naked Brunch

That’s right — in the history or dumb things I’ve agreed to do, this would be one of the dumbest. I’m reading naked at the Naked Brunch. You ask: What is the Naked Brunch — well, pretty much what it says it is except with art, music, poetry, clowns, comedy and burlesque. You can read more about it here (and buy tickets if you think it sounds too embarrassing to miss. But, remember, you’ll have to be naked too!). I was invited to read by Natalie Bak, who is super lovely and has a great event planned for you with delicious food from Henderson’s. Plus, our friend, Baba Brinkman (who does all that great hippy-hoppy stuff) will be there and I’m pretty sure he’s quite fit. If nothing else, it will be an experience. I hope you are all too hungover to attend. Here are other events where I will (probably) not be naked.

Where: C Central, North Bridge

When: Sunday, 22 August, 11am

Cost: £10.50

The official blurb:

Eat. Drink. Bare all! A celebration of collaboration and the human form. An invitation for festival participants to unite and share their most intimate details. Encounter life as art and feast on a collision of naked performance including circus, dance and comedy. Pay tribute to artists brave and bold through music, movement, mastication and naked networking! Be a part of an experience to remember – certain to stimulate the senses and inspire your creative juices! Brunch included. Warning: nudity non-negotiable.

Ryan Reading at SALT Gig 23 August – 6.30pm – Free

I’m happy to be joining the gang from Salt for a free reading at UTTER! The show will be MC’d by Rob “The Hurt Machine” Mackenzie and feature other spectacular Salt poets with silly nicknames (I made up) like: Simon “The Barracuda” Barraclough, Julia “Can’t Touch This”  Bird, Isobel “Iron Tongue” Dixon, Mark “Golden Boy” Granier, Rob A. Mackenzie. Andrew “Keys” Philip, Eleanor “Wolverine” Rees, and Ryan “Never Had a Nickname” Van Winkle.

My book – Tomorrow, We Will Live Here – comes out from SALT in November (start saving now everybody) but check out their amazing stock and support poetry by visiting their website.