Sounds Good

Georgia Conlon is developing her podcast Georgia’s Poetry Workshop. A student at Newcastle University, she says “The Sounds Good bursary award enables me to create new and even more accessible and holistic resources to empower listeners to learn, create and share their poems.”

Suzanne Hyde is an emerging writer and activist who is a passionate believer in housing justice, the arts and challenging the status quo with a unique and thoughtful voice. Her podcast A Social Life will be an exploration of societal attitudes to social housing occupants and their life experiences, with an initial focus on Northern estates, lives and institutions in her adopted home city of Newcastle upon Tyne.

She says “Learning the practicalities of creating new podcasts and the hidden tricks of the trade is truly kickstarting my ambitions, inspiring a passion for podcasting which will hopefully result in a beautiful and professional end product. Huge thanks to New Writing North for the show of confidence and belief in my original podcasting concept. I hope to do you proud.”

Katie Houser’s podcast hopes to reach those in and outside of the ‘art world’, for anyone who has been to a contemporary art gallery, looked at something and said “this is complete trash. I could have done that.” Talking to other artists in Newcastle and in America she thinks her ultimate goal is to challenge the notion of fine art in general. Is it possible to connect contemporary and historical art to what is happening right here and right now in world news, pop culture, science and technology? Katie says “The Sounds Good Bursary is going towards mainly mentorship and professional feedback from podcast producers. I am excited to launch this project and have the opportunity to speak with some of the very best, thanks to New Writing North.”

Liam James is presenting and directing a podcast with professional authors based in different locations while playing Dungeons and Dragons together online. He says “The bursary has given me the opportunity to get some really good quality kit to upgrade my set-up. I’m also hoping to use it for a subscription to an industry standard sound effects app, so my podcast really will sound good.”

Cinzia Hardy is working on how different artists interpret heritage settings, set around Northumberland’s Wallington Hall, once home of Sir Charles Philips Trevelyan, Socialist MP and ‘illogical Englishman’. She says, “I think without the New Writing North Sounds Good bursary I would have been quite daunted to embark on recording and editing a series of podcasts on my own.”

Amanda Drago says “I live on top of Hadrian’s Wall and much of the work I make is inspired by the location. So, I am testing out a walk and talk style podcast exploring an artist’s connection with the landscape along the line of The Wall. I am starting with electronic music pioneer Delia Derbyshire, who after leaving the BBC Radiophonic Workshop in 1974 moved to the village of Gilsland, where I live. This project is quite timely as 2023 is the 60th anniversary of the first screening of Dr Who on TV, one of Delia’s best-known compositions.”

Mark Mackenzie says, “The North East is a place of notable cultural, engineering and artistic achievements. However, it is the people that make it special. As the creator of the programme my aim is to promote the north east of England, to make people aware of its art, music and culinary history and what is happening NOW. I’m hoping to use my award towards a combination of equipment and software but also put it towards personal communication development training and to attend a podcasting conference where I can learn from industry experts and network.”

Becky Howell says, “I’m delighted to receive this bursary and will use it to help get my fiction podcast off the page. I’m now able to invest in the editing process which will put me in a position to start casting and recording.”

James Routledge is a bookseller and event coordinator with Opt Indie Books and Sarah Davy is an award-winning freelance writer and facilitator.

“We were delighted to receive a bursary for our podcast, Books Unpacked. This new project will explore the lifecycle of a book through conversations with people working across the industry. This support allows us to hit the ground running and start recording episodes this year.”