Selsdon library events

There are a few new upcoming library events which are going to be held at Selsdon library. Details of the activities are shown below, in the posters.

One event, an author visit with Phil Taylor, will take place on Saturday 23rd November from 2.00 – 3.00pm.
Phil Taylor will be talking about his new book, called Brian, His Granddad & the Cup of Ages

 

When eleven-year-old Brian Pankhurst has to stay with his grandparents, he’s not exactly enthusiastic. He barely knows them, after all, and they’re a little strange. They’re stranger than he realises, in fact. Very soon after he arrives at their ancient house, Brian starts to feel that something isn’t right. Why has someone sent his granddad a completely blank letter? Why don’t people who go in to the local bookshop ever seem to come out again? What does his granddad mean when he says Brian’s father wasn’t really an accountant? Then Brian wakes in the middle of the night and finds he’s going to have to adjust to three things very quickly: magic is real, monsters are real, and he and his family are in terrible danger…

In addition to this event, there is to be a drama event taking place at Selsdon library, run by Abbie Palache. This will take place on Saturday 7th December from 2.00 – 4.00pm

“I am a storyteller, a storymaker and a story lover. 
Whether it is to an audience of hundreds or to an audience of one, I love to bring traditional myths, legends and fairytales to the 21st century listener. ”

Please find below posters advertising the events
Phil Taylor Poster
Abbie Palache Poster

To book your place for either of these events, please contact:
Croydon.selsdonlibrary@carillionservices.co.uk
020 3700 1017

We hope to see you there!

What is “Reading Activists”?

Reading Activists in the new name for The Reading Agency’s MyVoice project.

Reading Activists is running in 18 regions in the UK and, according to The Reading Agency,  by 2014 there will be:

• 6000 young people running 60 reading hubs in libraries, schools and youth clubs
• 27,500 young people taking part in 760 creative reading and writing activities
• 30,000 young people taking part in online reading activities, of which 6000 will be doing reading-inspired volunteering roles

You can get details on The Reading Agency’s Reading Activists project via their website,  on their facebook page called In the Loop and by following them on Twitter @ReadingActivist.

But, is it for you?

• Are you aged 11 to 19 years?
• Looking for something fun, exciting and creative to do?
• Want to meet other young people to make a difference?
• Interested in putting on events for young people?
• Want to learn new skills and get some work experience?
• Want to meet writers, musicians, artists and other creative people?

Gain new skills and build confidence by becoming a Reading Activist in your local community.

What Reading Activists means to us

We got involved in Croydon MyVoice at Ashburton Library and don’t regret it one bit, although there is always more that can be done! We took along a friend too and we’ve now had experience in organising events, including nail art – which really is NOT our thing, but, hey, you have to go along with the majority vote.

Reading Activists may be operating in your area so take a look and give it a try.

In our next posts we will give details of what we have done in Croydon and how the project has developed.

Creepy London Teen Writing Workshops

Over the next couple of weeks, in April, Croydon Libraries will be holding creative writing workshops as part of the City Reads programme.

Check on the poster below for times in your local library. The image may be difficult to read, so the poster is also attached in PDF form – click on the link to access it!

Click to enlarge…

City read teen writing poster

You can turn up for most events but some require you to book.

Dates are:

• Coulsdon Library –  6th April – 2.30-3.30pm
• Thornton Heath Library  8th April – 2-3pm
• Croydon Central Library – 11th April – 2.30-4pm (ticketed event)
• Purley Library – 11th April – 3-4pm
• Bradmore Green Library – 12th April – 5-6pm
• Selsdon Library -13th April – 3-4pm
• Ashburton Library – 20th April – 2.30-3.30pm ( ticketed event)
• New Addington Library – 27th April – 2.30-3.30pm
• Sanderstead Library – 27th April – 3-4pm
• South Norwood Library -27th April – 3-4pm

All events are free but do book a ticket, if indicated!

Book Lovers Anonymous at Ashburton Library

Ashburton Library will be holding a ‘Book Lovers Anonymous’ event on Saturday 9th February, at 2:30 – 3:30pm, where people who love to read can come along to share books they enjoy and get recommendations.

You can bring up to 3 books to recommend (but do not have to) and, should you wish to do so, could dress up as your favourite book character. This is optional.

This event is aimed at children between 11-19 years old. Refreshments will be served.

Sanderstead Young Writers Group

The weekend is coming, and so is the second Sanderstead YWG! Come along to meet new people and do some creative writing. All meetings are from 3-4pm. The future dates are as follows:

Saturday 15th September 2012

Saturday 13th October 2012

Saturday 10th November 2012

Saturday 8th December 2012

Saturday 5th January 2013

Saturday 2nd February 2013

Saturday 2nd March 2013

Saturday 30th March 2013

Saturday 27th April 2013

MyVoice Word Fest #Croydon

On Saturday 17th November, an event will be held at the Croydon Central Library/Clocktower from 10.30-4.00pm.

There will be at least four workshops of which people will be able to choose two to do. The workshops we are considering so far are: Creative Writing Workshop (possibly on a gothic/romantic theme and including looking at different writers styles and how to write for genres), Manga Workshop, Hip Hop Shakespeare workshop and a Street Dance workshop. These are still to be decided.

The plan is that there will be stalls for people to look at while they are waiting for or between workshops. For example, some of the possibilities we are considering are publishers, authors, book shops, Croydon College, careers advice, nail art, graffiti wall, library information, join the library, book swap and a book give-away. We also hope to have an ongoing art/craft activity that people can drop in and out of.

We have already held a Word Fest meeting at Croydon Central Library to get these initial ideas together, but there is so much more to plan! This is part of the Reading Agency, MyVoice Project in Croydon and anyone aged 11-19 is welcome to get involved.

If you can think of anything else or would like to get your ideas across, come to the Word Fest planning meeting on the 8th September in Ashburton Library. The meeting will be held at 2.30pm. We will also be discussing ways we will publicise the event, and design ideas for logos, etc.

If you can’t make the meeting but have ideas to share, add them to this blog and we will take them along!

It is helpful if you can let Liz, the librarian in charge, know that you are coming to the planning meeting so that she can plan for numbers and refreshments. Email her at myvoice@croydon.gov.uk.

We hope to see you there!

Click on the link below to download the official poster. Display it and help spread the word!
word fest planning meeting poster

MyVoice – get involved!

Croydon Central Library held its first MyVoice planning meeting this past Tuesday, allowing 11-19 year olds to really get involved in their local libraries and contribute to the planning of future events. In this meeting, we discussed a few ideas for the upcoming Word Fest (though this name might be changed, as there may be some activities to do with art, etc.)

Some of the ideas people were keen on are listed below:
Manga Workshop
Creative Writing Workshop
Stalls – a number of stalls from publishers/book stores/agencies that support young people
‘What’s Croydon Reading?’ feature in Croydon Advertiser/Croydon Radio
The Hip Hop Shakespeare Company workshopStreet Dance Workshop
Football match reporting
Authors – Workshop? Reading? Debate?
Broadcasting Book Reviews
Reverse the Riots Campaign

It’s not too late to get involved!
If you would like to join us in planning these activities, you can contact Fiona Tarn at Croydon Central Library or email MyVoice@croydon.gov.uk

We will keep you updated with the plans for future MyVoice workshops and events for the Word Fest, on this blog. Feel free to suggest your ideas to us here or on Twitter and get involved.

It would be great if other MyVoice groups could share ideas and activities that were particularly successful.

Croydon Radio and author Diane Messidoro promote MyVoice event at Croydon Central Library

Yesterday, on Croydon Radio, new host Janet Smith interviewed the author Diane Messidoro about her new book, How to Keep a Boy as a Pet, as well as answering people’s questions about writing and talking about libraries in general.

We would like to say a big thank you to Janet Smith for picking up on our post and for reading out the details of Word Fest at Croydon Central Library! to Croydon on her programme.

We found the whole interview very interesting, and the interview can be relistened to here, under ‘The Croydon Arts Show – Extra, on Sat Aug 4th at 11:00 UK’. It is definitely worth a listen.

If you’d like to hear the promotion of MyVoiceUK and the thoughts of Diane Messidoro on the benefit of libraries you can listen at 28 minute in, or click on the audioboo below, made with kind permission from the team at Croydon Radio.

 

Olympic Writing events in Croydon Libraries

Here are a whole list of dates for the August 2012 Olympic-themed creative writing sessions in Croydon. These sessions are for ages 10 – 16. Book now!

PLEASE NOTE: We have found some of the dates advertised on the council website and on posters are wrong. Please check with the library to confirm dates and let us know of you find any other errrors so we can update the blog.  Thank you. 

Ashburton Library
Monday 13th
2.30 – 3.30
(Shirley Road, Croydon, CR9 7AL)

Bradmore Green Library
Friday 17th
4.00 – 5.00
(Bradmore Way, Coulsdon, CR5 1PE)

Broad Green Library
Friday 24th
3.00 – 4.00
(89 Canterbury Road, Croydon, CR0 3HH)

Croydon Central Library
Saturday 11th
2.30 – 3.30
(Katharine Street, Croydon, CR9 1ET)

Coulsdon Library
Thursday 23rd
2.30 – 3.30
(Brighton Road, Coulsdon, CR5 2NH)

New Addington Library
Saturday 18th
2.30 – 3.30
(Central Parade, New Addington, CR0 0JB)

Norbury Library
Thursday 23rd
2.00 – 3.00
(Beatrice Avenue, Norbury, SW16 4UW)

Purley Library
Thursday 2nd
3.00 – 4.00
(Banstead Road, Purley, CR8 3YH)

Sanderstead Library
Saturday 4th NOW Tuesday 7th (see comment below)
3.00 – 4.00
(Farmfields, South Croydon, CR2 0HL)

Selsdon Library
Tuesday 7th  NOW Saturday 4th
2.30 – 3.30
(Addington Road, Selsdon, CR2 8LA)

Shirley Library
Thursday 23rd
4.30 – 5.30
(Wickham Road/Hartland Way, Shirley, CR0 8BH)

South Norwood Library
Saturday 11th
3.00 – 4.00
(Lawrence Road, South Norwood, SE25 5AA)

Thornton Heath Library
Monday 13th
3.00 – 4.00
(Brigstock Road, Thornton Heath, CR7 7JB)

Places are limited to 15 people per session. Book your free place at your local library now!

Croydon Libraries Aug 2012 creative-wrting-sessions poster

Word Fest at Croydon Central Library!

Croydon Central Library will be holding its first MyVoice planning meeting on Tuesday 7th August at 2pm. This is a great chance for young people to get more involved in their local libraries and plan future events to be held there.

MyVoice is a Reading Agency project for children aged 11-19, and welcomes new people to come along. It is already running in Ashburton and Thornton Heath libraries in Croydon.

It would be really helpful to phone in advance so the library knows how many people are coming, but this is not necessary if it is a last minute decision. You can just turn up for this initial planning session to get ideas for creating a Word Fest to be held later this year.

If you are unsure you might like to check out details of what MyVoice has been doing in other Croydon libraries here.

We hope to see lots of people on the 7th!

Ask for Liz or Fiona when you turn up, or drop them an email atMyVoice@croydon.gov.uk