Mancunian Ways Anthology
In collaboration with Manchester Poetry Library
& Manchester City Of Literature
Supported by Arts Council England
With poetry by Lemn Sissay and Jackie Hagan
Submissions open: March 14th - June 16th (11.59pm GMT) - deadline extended!
Genres: Poetry, photography and art
Open to UK residents (and expats who feel a strong connection to Manchester).
Outline:
We are looking for poetry, art and photography which embody the spirit of Manchester and paint a picture of the changing city. We want rousing celebrations of resilience (in the light of the Manchester Arena bombing), showcases of talent throughout history (Manchester’s inventors, artists, scientists and dreamers) and creative explorations of the city’s diversity.
Manchester and Greater Manchester have areas packed with character and we want you to bring each one to life. There are many sides to cities - while you may choose to focus on the Northern Quarter's artistic coffee shops and graffiti designs, Castlefield's canals and atmospheric libraries and cathedrals, there are many aspects of the city which might be perceived as less aesthetically pleasing, but nevertheless, form an important part of the city! For example, Piccadilly Gardens and the rise of homelessness, Northern Rail (and understandable commuter rage) and some would even say the accent! So, we are open to humour, we welcome Northern grit and we seek a new perspective on the city, from the people who make it a home.
What could you focus on?
Dialect, Accents and Languages
With a population of 2.5 million, Manchester is the most linguistically diverse city in Western Europe with 200 spoken languages.
The People
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Manchester has the largest student population of any city in Europe, home to over 100,000 students.
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Football fans. Manchester is home to four premiership football teams including Manchester United and Manchester City. In 2013 the sport has brought in a whopping £330m worth of economic benefit to the region.
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The music lovers: the world famous Halle Orchestra and many rock groups including Joy Division and Oasis are from here.
The History
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Leader of the Suffragette movement in the early 1900s was Emmeline Pankhurst, a Moss-Side born, Manchester native.
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Alan Turing performed some admirable and world-changing tasks during his life, including breaking the German Enigma code during World War Two and helping defeat Nazi Germany. He was a mathematician and pioneer of theoretical computer science, inventing the first computer and changing the way we communicate with each other through his work at the University of Manchester.
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Manchester gave the world a real science breakthrough. Here, the atom was ‘split’ for the first time ever by Ernest Rutherford and the first ever modern computer – known as the ‘baby’ – was also built.
How to submit:
You must have purchased a book (in any format) from the Fly on the Wall Shop since September 2019. To prove this, please either forward your confirmation email, outline the transaction number or quote the month and the book purchased.
Unfortunately we do not have any free submission slots left available.
The submissions email is and we will acknowledge your entry within 3 weeks. We will aim to get back to you with a final decision by the end of June. Though we will not be able to give detailed feedback, we will indicate if you were long listed or shortlisted!
As with our ecopoetry anthology, 'Planet in Peril', all ages are encouraged to enter their photography, art and poetry! Young creatives may enter their work themselves or ask a parent, guardian or teacher to enter work for them.
Successful contributors will receive a copy of the book and an invitation to perform or present their work at the launch event, expected to take place in October.
Photography:
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You may enter up to 5 photographs.
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They may have been previously published as long as you retain copyright.
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You may wish to send via a Dropbox link or wetransfer – alternatively, upload low resolution files to your email and we will request the high resolution images if selected.
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Please note, in order to be published, your images should ideally be 300dpi/2MB or above.
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Photographs may be landscape or portrait. The final product will be portrait.
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Please enter your submission via one email if possible.
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Provide a short 3rd person biography and the country and region you are submitting from. E.g. (United Kingdom, Greater Manchester.)
Art:
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You may enter up to 5 artworks.
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They may have been previously published as long as you retain copyright.
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You may wish to send via a Dropbox link or wetransfer – alternatively, upload low resolution files to your email and we will request the high resolution images if selected.
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Please note, in order to be published, your images should ideally be 300dpi/2MB or above.
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Artwork may be landscape or portrait. The final product will be portrait.
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Ideally, your entries will not be photographs of physical art pieces, as this will not do justice to the quality of your work.
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Please enter your submission via one email if possible.
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Provide a short 3rd person biography and the country and region you are submitting from. E.g. (United Kingdom, Greater Manchester.)
Poetry
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You may enter up to 5 poems.
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They may have been previously published as long as you retain copyright.
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Maximum line length per poem is 80 lines. No word count.
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Please put poems in one word doc or PDF, with each poem starting on a new page.
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Please enter your submission via one email if possible.
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Provide a short 3rd person biography and the country and region you are submitting from. E.g. (United Kingdom, Greater Manchester.)
FAQ
Do I have to live in Manchester?
Not at all, you just have to have a connection to it emotionally (the city means something special to you!)
Is there a lower age limit?
We have published creatives as young as 8 years old previously. This seems a good guideline, but we will judge photography, art and poetry from those under 18 with a consideration of the standard of work for their age, to make the process as fair as possible.