Intro

Way back before the pandemic we got a grant from Hull City Arts for an exchange between writers from cities that had always been linked by maritime and fishing culture – Hull and Reykjavik. However, it wasn’t until 2022 and a nudge between partners in the UNESCO Cities of Literature network that we were able to finalise plans.

In March 2023 Squad writers Jay Mitra and Lydia Marchant spent three days in Reykjavík with Icelandic novelist Ingólfur Eiríksson. We walked, talked, met people, sat in hot pools, saw the sights and got insights into the things we did as writers and activists that were the same, and the things we did differently.

In June that year Ingólfur came to the UK. We walked, talked, visited The Deep, sat on trains. Jay, Lydia and Ingólfur began to share the work had written with each other and publicly at Wrecking Ball Music and Books in Hull and at Stockport Central Library as part of the Manchester Festival of Libraries. Now we are sharing it with you – a poem from a novelist, a short story from a playwright and a travelogue from a poet – with a bonus poem too.

While all this was going on a Squad alumni won a prize and generously donated some of it to us. With the donor’s involvement, we decided to create an International Residency – basically £1000 for a Squad writer to spend time somewhere they hadn’t been before and wouldn’t be able to without this bit of help.

The first recipient – we hope to keep it going if we can find another benefactor – was Katie (Tom) Walters. Coincidentally, they wanted to use the money to go to Iceland too. Their lifelong obsession with whales had until then only been fulfilled by books, films, and skeletons in museums. They wanted to visit museums, read books, experience whale culture at source and, maybe, if they were lucky, see whales in the wild. They were lucky. What we share here is only part of what will eventually be a collection of poems and prose.

 

 

The Icelandic exchange was made possible by a pre-pandemic grant from Hull City Arts and in partnership with Wrecking Ball Press,  Reykjavík City of Literature, Manchester City of Literature and Manchester Festival of Libraries. The International Residency was made possible by a domor who wishes to remain anonymous.