First Story Festival, Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford

Malorie Blackman: children's laureate

Yesterday was the First Story Festival at Lady Margaret Hall in Oxford. I walked up to Norham Gardens in the early morning mist from the station, meeting memories at every turn, and ready for a day of workshops and talks. There was an inspiring address by the young poet Caroline Bird, who talked about writing as being a gift to somebody - all writing, she said, may help someone understand something about themselves in a way that they hadn't before. Which is a very nice way of putting it. Some First Story alumni spoke about their experiences, and the work that First Story does (including one of my own, from St Augustine's, which made me proud), which was very moving.

William Fiennes interviewed the children's laureate, Malorie Blackman (or Marjorie, as Kate Fox later accidentally called her): she spoke warmly and enthusiastically about her love of reading, and what led to her becoming a writer. She received over eighty rejections, but kept going - a fine message of resilience. It was very revealing to hear her talk about her career: when she was at school, she wanted to be an English teacher; she wanted to do English and Drama at Goldsmith's, but was told that "black girls" don't read English, they become secretaries. I found that immensely shocking - it was perhaps only twenty or thirty years ago, and it made me wonder how much of that sort of thing still goes on. In any case, it gave her the will to wish to succeed; after going into Computer Sciences, she began to write, and has now produced over sixty novels - including the best-selling Noughts and Crosses series. I think she'll make a fine laureate.

I did two workshops, with a boys' school from Bradford, and my own school, St Augustine's in Kilburn: both produced some fine and interesting work.

In the afternoon, the magnificent Kate Fox (poet and comedian: see her website here) whipped up the crowd of 600 students into a roar of appreciation ("imagine One Direction in your bathroom giving you a private concert", which caused equal and opposite reactions). There were readings from students, and a final exhortation from Malorie Blackman to read, and write.

Many writers took part in the workshops, including Charles Cumming, Frances Wilson, Raffaella Barker, Mark Haddon, Betsy Tobin and others; the train home to London was particularly merry.

It's an exciting start to another year of First Story fun and wonder. Well done to all who took part.

The Coincidence Engine by Sam Leith: Party

The literary great and good collected in Daunts Marylebone last night for the launch of Sam Leith (pictured)'s debut novel, The Continuum Transponder. I mean The Coincidence Engine. Attended by journos, hacks, a bearded Sebastian Faulks, and sundry other types wot have written books and so on (including Amanda Craig, Charles Cumming (so tall!), Louise Doughty, Lynn Barber and every literary editor the world has ever seen) the party went along rather swishingly. Sam's editor, Michael Fishwick, gave a speech in which he demonstrated how the idea for the book had come up over a lunch (those were the good old days); the book itself is about a man who invents a machine that can manipulate probability. If you had chained all the people in the room to typewriters for eternity I wonder what we would have produced? Sam's book has been chosen as a Waterstones Eleven debut, which is marvellous news. His new baby is also scheduled to be born on the same day as his book. I suggest 'Coincidenta' if a girl, 'Douglas' (after Adams / Coupland) if a boy. Congratulations to Mr Leith, his book, and his new family member.

A trailer for the book (dread practice, but now seemingly necessary) is below.

My First Birthday

Quick! Whilst he's (you know who I'm talking about - The Boss) looking the other way I'll try and get a word in edgeways. Hello and welcome! I'm Philip Womack's Blog - Hah! He won't like that - he hates the word blog, flits around calling it 'Web-log', as if anyone does that. He's been using / misusing / desecrating me for one whole exact year now. He's a good enough master, on the whole; still, he hasn't done anything to celebrate my first birthday... He might at least have got me a re-design. Is that too much to ask? Sometimes I dream about becoming more than a mere, simple, clod-hopping blog. Perhaps one day I could, like chrysalis to butterfly (doesn't that just sound like something HE'D write), become a website - or, dare I even think it, a multi-platform user-friendly interface... Excuse me for a second, I am sorry. I'd better be quick. I can hear him rummaging around in the drawer looking for a pen. Imagine - he still uses pens!

You might think that I'm quite articulate for a one-year-old, but we blogs grow up fast. I now have 27 'followers' - twenty-seven! - only one of whom is related to The Boss, and only twenty-six of whom were physically bullied into following. I have had over 1,500 visits a month. My visitors are unpredictable in their likings; though most of them (don't tell The Boss this) tend to be searching for Philip Womack, quite a lot of them stumble across me by accident (I won't mention exactly what words you were searching for. I'm not that kind of blog).

In the past year The Boss has written on anything from A A Milne to Zurich; I've allowed him to indulge his penchant for classical literature and to show off about everything he's been writing. He's written a book called The Liberators, which was published just before I was born, and which he has been systematically and endlessly promoting; he's continued to write for The Daily Telegraph, The Literary Review and The Financial Times and sundry other papers, and has just started being involved with Port. He's visited several schools; his book's been reviewed in papers from the School Librarian to the South China Post. It's been an exciting year - for him, at any rate; I just look on from the sidelines and think about being a server.

These, then, are the top five things you've been looking at. There appears to be no rhyme or reason in them:

1. The Trinity Six by Charles Cumming: Party

2. The Afterparty by Leo Benedictus: review

3. I'm Late, I'm Late... Christian Marclay's The Clock

4. Books of the Year: Final Day: Children's Books

5. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One: Review

You've also displayed a fondness for Adam O'Riordan, Zadie Smith, Ned Beauman, and Robert Saxton (the poet).

He's found a pen - he's coming back - look, I'd better go - but hey, I for one am glad that I've had so many visitors, and maybe I can persuade some of you to follow me without The Boss sending round the heavies. See you all soon...

Love from

Philip's Blog
xx

(PS The picture is of a Black Box by Liza Campbell. It's called Fatty Had a Party and Nobody Came. Let's hope that some of you come to mine...)

The Trinity Six by Charles Cumming: Party

Last night brought hordes and hordes of people to Daunts on Holland Park for the launch of Charles Cumming's new spy thriller, The Trinity Six. I've never seen so many people in the shop: at least one wine glass was broken (not that there are always wine glasses in Daunts, of course: it is a book shop, after all; one of the wine glasses might possibly have been broken by me, but I'm not confessing...) In attendance were Damian Lewis, Belinda Stewart-Wilson (who bought The Liberators! Which has been reprinted and has a weirdly shiny plasticky new cover about which I am weirdly excited!) and Dominic West, lending a thespian gloss to the affair; also sundry writers, including Liza Campbell and Raffaella Barker, with whom I spent a happy twenty minutes chatting, wedged into a corner behind the cookery books (so many cookery books!). Charles spoke charmingly, apparently having forgotten to bring his speech with him. The book looks marvellous - it's about the Cambridge Spies, and has apparently already been reprinted. It was an enormously amusing party, and it carried on round the corner for quite some time, and I managed not to break any more glasses. Click below to buy the book: there'll also be an interview with Mr C in this Saturday's Daily Telegraph, so look out for it.