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New Welsh Writing Awards 2016

The New Welsh Writing Awards is a prestigious writing prize. This year it celebrates the best of travel writing from those based in the UK and Ireland, with the proviso that the authors have been educated in Wales. It’s only open to those submitting entries of between 5,000 and 30,000 words, and the prize is always judged by prominent figures in the writing world. The 2016 award is due to have its longlist announced on 20th April, while the shortlist will be announced on 1st June. The award ceremony itself will take place at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Art on 7th July. Those wishing to enter have unfortunately missed the deadline though, so will have to wait until next year’s competition instead. Last year’s award was judged on the best writing on nature and the environment, and was won by Eluned Gramich, who wrote Scenes from a Hokkaidan Life. She won a £1,000 prize, as well...

The Rise of Laser Cutting for Artwork in Wales

You might think that laser cutting is something mainly associated with heavy industry, and you would be right. However, in this age of international outsourcing and limited opportunities for many, professional laser cutters have had to find new avenues of work, and one of the most exciting of these is laser cutting artwork. Yes, that’s right: these highly powerful lasers, used to cut through some of the world’s toughest metal, have now been tamed to produce stunning pieces of art. Many of the UK’s best-known artists and designers have jumped on the bandwagon and started commissioning or designing artwork that makes use of laser cutting techniques, and the results can range from small pieces through to ginormous statues, designed to make a bold statement wherever they are placed. Generally, laser art is created by a laser cutting professional, however they are not usually the creative...

A Brief Look at Early Welsh Literature

When you think of Welsh literature, a few names are likely to spring to mind – names such as Dylan Thomas and RS Thomas, amongst many others. But Welsh literature has a far wider spectrum than these more modern writers, as it spans back almost 1500 years, all the way back to the late 6th century. Early Poets This first group of Welsh writers were known as Y Cynfeirdd (The Early Poets) and included such famous luminaries as Taliesin and Aneirin. There’s a curious thing about these very first Welsh writers though – they didn’t actually write in present-day Wales, as at their time Wales spread far into northern England and southern Scotland. It wasn’t until the Anglo-Saxons arrived that the boundaries of Wales were pushed back to where they sit today. It was these poets who set the standard for years to come though, praising their subjects lavishly. This so-called “praise poetry”...

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