Mary Thomson Books

Good news to share

Mary — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 09:33:03 +0000

My pamphlet poetry collection Some Consequences of Saying Yes, has been shortlisted for the Callum Macdonald Memorial Award. The award “recognises outstanding examples of pamphlet poetry publishing with a connection to Scotland or Scottish culture”.
The acknowledgement of being shortlisted is as much as I could have hoped for when I entered and the other 6 finalists are of terrific quality and the range is very wide. I don’t honestly expect to win but Raymond (my Muse!)and I are very much looking forward to going to the ceremony and the dinner afterwards and meeting the other poets and publishers.

Hurtigruten voyage poem

Mary — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 14:44:03 +0000

In October 2010 we took the Hurtigruten MS Trollfjord from Bergen to the Russian border beyond the Arctic Circle – and back – over 14 magical days. I keep travel journals, thankfully, as such sights as we saw on and from the sea throughout that journey along the coast of Norway are not going to come my way more than once. Reflecting recently on what I wrote and thought at the time has resulted in a new poem and a small book to put it in. As well as a celebration of an experience the poem is about how we measure time and distance.

Stanza Poets’ Market

Mary — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:42:03 +0000

Location: St Andrews Town Hall, Queens Gardens.
Date: Saturday 17th March
Time: 12 noon to 4pm
To many poets, small presses and publishers of pamphlets this is THE event of the glorious festival of words that is STANZA! A chance to browse, buy from and talk to poets – including Mary Thomson who is making the trip across Scotland from west to east to take a stall. Her two new collections will be on display and a small selection of her tiny single poem books too.
FREE GIFT!
If you read this and introduce yourself on the day and answer a simple question about the image at the top of each page of her website correctly, she will give you a small book free with each purchase of a collection.

A joint venture

Mary — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 16:11:58 +0000

Renfrew Burgh Band 1911-2011 – A Hundred Years of Civic Commitment.
This is a husband a wife venture! Raymond Thomson wrote a short illustrated history of the Renfrew Burgh Band with whom he plays, together they designed the pages then Mary printed and stitched the pamphlets. Copies have gone to every member of the band, to local archives and libraries and now Mary is selling them for charity at £3 each. Is it the start of a new publishing phenomena? It is unlikely to be a best seller, but is proving popular with members of Soroptimist International Paisley whose charitable efforts will benefit from the proceeds.

Christmas pamphlet fair

Mary — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 09:26:19 +0000

Drop in for a glass of wine, poetry and jolly good company!
The annual Christmas Poetry Pamphlet Fair takes place on Tuesday December 13th, from 6.00 to 8.30 pm at the National Library of Scotland, George IV Bridge, Edinburgh. Treat yourself or find that last minute present. I will be there with a stall and taking a reading slot, we are allowed only three minutes so the poems have to be well chosen!

Ilkley Literature Festival

Mary — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 13:38:05 +0000

As part of the Ilkley Literature Festival Fringe Mary and her daughter, actress Cathy Sara will be presenting their two-woman show in the Wildman at Ilkley Playhouse on October 11th at 9pm. Emails and phone calls and a single meeting in Scotland in August has brought together ideas and material for this two-woman show based on the poems in “A Kindness of Women”. Both are looking forward to the event as well as the chance to see old friends from when they lived in Ilkley. Cathy began her acting career at The Ilkley Playhouse – as a Munchkin in the Wizard of Oz – a far cry from Downton Abbey and her role in the soon to be released Daniel Radcliffe film, Woman in Black.

Art on the Wing

Mary — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 11:23:39 +0000

Art on the Wing is the title of an exhibition at the MacLaurin Art Gallery, Ayr from 28 August to 25 September. Over 30 artists for whom wildlife, landscape and birds are an important subject have been invited to exhibit in a huge range of media. Organised by the RSPB Scotland Central Ayrshire Local Group, all profits are in aid of conservation, local habitat and species protection. Mary is showing her handmade books, paintings and prints and giving a reading of her poems, titled Other Worlds, at the gallery on 30 August at 2 pm. Tel: 0129 445447/443708 for opening hours. Poems from A Kindness of Women will be included.

A KINDNESS OF WOMEN

Mary — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 16:36:09 +0000

The kindness in the title of Mary’s new collection acts as a collective noun for mothers, daughters, friends, women observed unseen, women in art and history, her own girl- and ageing self. The pamphlet is at the printers at the moment, but Mary will be hand stitching the pages and covers as usual, as she does not want to lose that personal contact with each copy before it goes to the reader’s hands.

In preparation

Mary — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 13:47:26 +0000

Mary is planning three new themed collections for 2011. “A Kindness of Women” will come first, followed by “Some Consequences of Saying Yes” and lastly by “A Stone in the Pocket”. She hopes to have all three ready for the summer.

In the National Collection

Mary — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 15:00:00 +0000

Mary was delighted that a special edition of her tiny book The Skylark was included in the exhibition SMALL at the Scottish Poetry Library in September, and even more surprised and thrilled that all the exhibits were then taken into the National Collection held there.