English and Creative Writing lecturers launch their poetry anthology ‘In Transit: Poems of Travel’

The anthology features poems from Nottingham Trent University lecturers Rory Waterman, Andrew Taylor and academic Jo Dixon

Image credit: Five Leaves Bookshop

Professor Tim Youngs and Dr Sarah Jackson, lecturers in BA (Hons) English at Nottingham Trent University, have this month launched the poetry anthology ‘In Transit: Poems of Travel’. The academics, both part of the Centre for Travel Writing Studies here at NTU, have edited the anthology collaboratively.

In Transit is an anthology of new or recently published work that focuses on travellers of all kinds, including those who have no choice but to stay where they are. It follows journeys and reflects the experience of being in transit, in the form of 39 different poems from a variety of writers. Poets from any country were asked to anonymously submit work in order to be featured in the collection. The talented writers and NTU lecturers Dr Rory Waterman, Dr Andrew Taylor and research assistant Dr Jo Dixon were all chosen to feature in the anthology. Alumna from our MA Creative Writing course, Jeanette Burton, also features, along with Dr Zayneb Allak and Dr Rich Goodson, who both gained their PhD at NTU. National and international contributors include Nancy Campbell, Colleen J. McElroy, Miranda Peake, Yvonne Reddick and Maria Taylor.

Independent poetry publisher The Emma Press, based in Birmingham, has published the anthology. Established in 2012, the publisher has since won the CLiPPA award for children’s poetry and the Publisher’s category of the Michael Marks Awards in 2016. Founder Emma Wright also illustrates the work that she publishes where appropriate, contributing 10 stunning illustrations for this particular anthology.

The Centre for Travel Writing Studies has been researching into the relationship between the mode of travel and the experience of the journey through a number of different projects. This collection comes as part of that initiative. The Centre for Travel Writing Studies has become increasingly active in producing and promoting poems of travel, including Professor Tim Youngs' debut pamphlet Touching Distance, which was published by Five Leaves in 2017.

The anthology was launched as part of this year’s Lowdham Book Festival, a 12-day festival organised by The Book Case bookshop, which included events across Nottinghamshire. Tim and Sarah discussed and read from the anthology, with readings from Midlands-based contributors, including Dr Jo Dixon, Dr Rory Waterman, Dr Rich Goodson, Dr Zayneb Allak and Jeanette Burton.

You can purchase In Transit here: https://theemmapress.com/books/in-transit-poems-of-travel/