Creative Arts Festival | WayWORD

2020

A massive thank you to everyone who came and took part in WayWORD this year - to audience-members, writers, artists, performers, workshop leaders, chairs and compères. It was a huge pleasure to have you here in Virtual Aberdeen. Thanks also to all those at the University of Aberdeen who made this possible, to the festival's BSL interpreter and to Blackwells University Bookshop.

We hope to see you all again in 2021!

WayWORD is a student-led arts festival brought to you by the WORD Centre for Creative Writing, University of Aberdeen. Workshops, author events, panel discussions and performance nights are all FREE and live online, with BSL interpretation.

Register your interest for your favourite events in the programme below to sign up and receive more information!

Performers include Lemn Sissay, Eimear McBride, Leila Aboulela, Koby Adom, Jenni Fagan, Mae Diansangu, Shane Strachan, Sheena Blackhall, Sean Hewitt, Jenn Ashworth, Ayisha Malik, Jayda David, Jenny Sturgeon and Alan Warner.

WayWORD celebrates unconventional forms of artistic expression from comic books and narrative gaming to poetry, novels, spoken word, screenplay, songwriting and comedy – something for everyone.

Download full programme flyer here.

Festival Programme

Pushing out the Boat / Leopard Arts Showcase

Sun, Sep 27

Online Performance Night

Sep 27, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM GMT+1

Online Performance Night

Join us for an evening of performances from writers published on two highly regarded Aberdeen-based literary and arts platforms Pushing Out the Boat and Leopard Arts. From poetry to spoken word to theatre, there is something truly for everyone!

Jenni Fagan in Conversation with Alan Warner

Sun, Sep 27

Online Author Talk/Reading

Sep 27, 4:30 PM – 5:30 PM GMT+1

Online Author Talk/Reading

Noted for her vivid, haunting and rhythmical prose and her lyrical energy, acclaimed writer Jenni Fagan talks to novelist and screen-writer Alan Warner about her newest work, writing life and adapting stories for the screen.

Ayisha Malik

Sun, Sep 27

Online Author Talk/Reading

Sep 27, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM GMT+1

Online Author Talk/Reading

Ayisha Malik is a novelist and short story writer whose debut, Sofia Khan Is Not Obliged, was dubbed (perhaps unsurprisingly) the 'Muslim Bridget Jones.' Her latest book follows the travails of a son trying to carry out his mother’s dying wish to build a mosque in a sleepy English village.

Verbal Remedies – Creative Writing by Medical Students

Sun, Sep 27

Online Author Readings

Sep 27, 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM

Online Author Readings

Students from the University’s Creative Writing for Medics course read from their work reflect on their experiences as aspiring medics in the time of COVID and discuss the importance to of creative expression to their lives and learning.

Make Your Own Zines – Workshop with Olivia Hicks

Sun, Sep 27

Workshop

Sep 27, 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM GMT+1

Workshop

Artist and graphic novel writer and editor Olivia Hicks will facilitate a workshop detailing how to create comics and zines. You will create both visual and verbal content, learning to let your own ideas come to the page, in words and pictures! No drawing skills required – open to all.

More Than Superheroes: Comics, Creativity, and Education with Golnar Nabizadeh

Sun, Sep 27

Online Talk

Sep 27, 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM GMT+1

Online Talk

Golnar Nabizadeh is a Lecturer in Comics Studies at the University of Dundee. Join her for a talk about the series of public information comics produced by her and the rest of the Dundee Comics Team which aim to raise awareness of health and social issues through an innovatively accessible medium.

Lemn Sissay

Sat, Sep 26

Online Author Talk/Performance

Sep 26, 7:30 PM – 8:30 PM

Online Author Talk/Performance

International award-winning poet, playwright, artist performer and broadcaster Lemn Sissay MBE has performed on stages worldwide, his poetry emblazoned on landmarks from Manchester to Addis Ababa. Come meet with him and feel the power of words to alter the world.

Eimear McBride

Sat, Sep 26

Online Author Talk/Reading

Sep 26, 4:30 PM – 5:30 PM GMT+1

Online Author Talk/Reading

Eimear McBride is an Irish novelist and one of today’s most exciting writers. We are delighted to welcome her in virtual form to Aberdeen to talk about and read from her latest book, Strange Hotel, published in February this year.

Nan Shepherd in Music – with Singer-songwriter Jenny Sturgeon and Filmmaker Shona Thomson

Sat, Sep 26

Online Talk/Performance

Sep 26, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM GMT+1

Online Talk/Performance

Jenny and Shona talk about the origins and experience of working on their latest project, which explores Nan Shepherd’s writing, the Cairngorm mountain range, what it means to connect with a wild landscape and to find a sense of place.

Leila Aboulela and Seán Hewitt

Sat, Sep 26

Online Author Talk/Reading

Sep 26, 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM GMT+1

Online Author Talk/Reading

A long-time favourite of Word and May Festival audiences, Leila Aboulela has written short fiction, plays and five award-winning novels, most recently Bird Summons. Seán Hewitt is a poet whose assured debut collection, Tongues of Fire (2020), was the Guardian’s poetry book of the month in May.

UV Arts – Words on Walls

Sat, Sep 26

Online Talk

Sep 26, 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM GMT+1

Online Talk

UV Arts create inspired murals with young people and children in Derry, NI, often on walls where sectarian and paramilitary graffiti had previously been. In this talk they will discuss the impact of words on walls in the context of the Troubles to tell a different story.

Crash Course in Street Art - Live Tutorial with KMG (Katie Guthrie)

Sat, Sep 26

Online Workshop

Sep 26, 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM GMT+1

Online Workshop

KMG is a mural artist and illustrator, based in Scotland, whose artwork has graced the walls of Aberdeen many times (as well as cities across the globe). In this online tutorial she will teach you the fundamentals of street art, covering all the basics.

Doric Performers meet 'Scotland The What?'

Fri, Sep 25

Online Performance Night

Sep 25, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM GMT+1

Online Performance Night

Join us for an evening of Doric delight hosted by Mae Diansangu, with guests Sheena Blackhall, Shane Strachan, and young North-East singer Ellie Beaton, followed by comedy sketches and songs performed by students, inspired by comic trio of UoA alumni 'Scotland the What?'

Jenn Ashworth

Fri, Sep 25

Online Author Talk/Reading

Sep 25, 4:30 PM – 5:30 PM GMT+1

Online Author Talk/Reading

Jenn Ashworth was born in Preston and studied at Cambridge and Manchester. Her novels include A Kind of Intimacy, Cold Light, The Friday Gospels and Fell. Her latest work, Notes Made While Falling, is a memoir told in a series of essays.

Queer Creators Panel with Rowan Heggie, Ana Hine and Shane Strachan

Fri, Sep 25

Online Panel Discussion

Sep 25, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM GMT+1

Online Panel Discussion

Featuring three young Scottish artists and poets, this panel explores the intersections between queer experience and creative work. Chaired by Dr Tim Baker (University of Aberdeen), with questions put forward by students.

BSL in Theatre - an Interpreter's Perspective

Fri, Sep 25

Online Interview/Talk

Sep 25, 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM

Online Interview/Talk

Lisa Li is a BSL / English interpreter. She will introduce audiences to BSL interpretation through her experiences interpreting within theatre and performance art.

Found Poetry Workshop

Fri, Sep 25

Online Workshop

Sep 25, 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM GMT+1

Online Workshop

Found poems are created by reorganising words and phrases found in other types of literature. In this workshop you'll get to have some fun working with newspaper articles and books, arranging words and phrases to create your own found poem. A perfect intro into writing poetry – no experience needed!

Narrative & Gaming: Dungeons & Dragons Workshop

Fri, Sep 25

Online Workshop

Sep 25, 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM GMT+1

Online Workshop

Dungeons and Dragons is a role-playing game; however, on a fundamental level, it is story telling. Join Darwin McNeill and Jakub Ivanecky, your Dungeon Masters for the game, on a beginner friendly exploration of the free world of dungeons and dragons - where you can create your own story.

From Page to Screen with Koby Adom and Alan Warner

Thu, Sep 24

Online Panel Discussion

Sep 24, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Online Panel Discussion

A panel discussion featuring Koby Adom, director of acclaimed BBC drama Noughts + Crosses, adapted from a series of novels by Malorie Blackman, and Scottish writer Alan Warner (Morvern Callar, The Sopranos) on adapting literature for TV, cinema and theatre.

The Next Generation - Creative Writing Postgraduates

Thu, Sep 24

Online Author Readings

Sep 24, 4:30 PM – 5:30 PM GMT+1

Online Author Readings

Postgraduates from the University's popular Creative Writing programme read from their work.

Black Lives Matter: Women and non-binary performance night feat. Jayda David

Wed, Sep 23

Online Performance Night

Sep 23, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM GMT+1

Online Performance Night

Jayda David headlines this showcase of black women and non-binary artists. Through the medium of spoken word, this event features activists speaking truth to power and spreading the anti-racist message of the global Black Lives Matter movement.

'Untold Stories' Virtual Tour with Aberdeen Women’s Alliance - ONLINE

Wed, Sep 23

Online Event

Sep 23, 4:00 PM – 5:30 PM GMT+1

Online Event

Aberdeen Women's Alliance will take you on a virtual tour around the Granite City uncovering hidden stories associated with Aberdeen: from its links with slavery, to the visit of Ida B. Wells, from unconventional artists to supposed witches, confirmed suffragettes and suppressed queer voices.

ABOUT

WELCOME to WayWORD! 

We’re delighted to announce a fantastic programme of literary and cross-arts events, brought to you by University of Aberdeen as part of its 525 celebrations. Together with a dedicated group of students (of subjects ranging from arts and humanities to medicine), the WORD Centre for Creative Writing has devised an exciting line-up of poets, novelists, playwrights, artists and performers for readings, performances, workshops and discussion panels. Due to COVID-19 the festival is mostly taking place live online, with BSL interpretation throughout. From Lemn Sissay to Eimear McBride, Leila Aboulela to Shane Strachan, from Jenni Fagan, Koby Adam, Sean Hewitt and Sheena Blackhall to Ayisha Malik, Jenn Ashworth, Jenny Sturgeon and Alan Warner, there is plenty to entice audiences of all ages and interests. 

Besides established authors and new talent, the festival focusses on more unconventional forms of artistic expression: whether your thing is Comic books and Dungeons & Dragons or novels, screenplays, rap, film, songwriting, poetry or comedy... there is something here for everyone. WayWORD is here - and WORD is back. Spread the WORD!