Time to start booking your slot for our annual Tinsel Tales open mic event. The first part of the afternoon (2pm-3pm) will feature a performance by the Word Factory hosted by a festively waistcoated Marc Sherland.

Open mic slots (Five minutes each, please time your work beforehand) are available between 3.30 and 5.15pm. Please email me at acclarke6@btopenworld.com to book a slot, or take pot luck on the day (but it helps us a lot if you book beforehand). General theme is the festive season (and its unfestive aspects!), midwinter etc. Both prose and poetry welcome provided you keep in the time limits.

As announced in the last issue that Andy Jackson will be the Federation Makar for 2016-2017, Tinsel Tales event on Thursday 15 December at GoMA Library. The inauguration of Andy as Makar will be at 5.30pm when following Elizabeth Rimmer, who has been such an inspirational and dedicated Makar for the FWS this year, will hand over the Makar shield and Andy will give an inaugural reading. Don’t miss it!