Selby Stories Writer in Residence, Sarah Butler
Our writer in residence for Selby Stories is Sarah Butler. She has created writings and poems inspired by your stories about Selby.
Sarah Butler – Selby Stories Writer in Residence
Author Sarah Butler joined Selby Stories as our writer in residence at Selby Market. Sarah has had three novels published by Picador in the UK and with fourteen international publishers. Her work explores ideas of home, belonging, identity, family, and urban landscapes.
Sarah Butler was writer-in-residence at Selby Market over the summer of 2022. She had her own stall and collected stories about Selby from people who came to the market. She also ran a number of creative writing workshops, which produced texts and stories, and created her own writings and texts from her experiences in the town. Sarah created a website for the project which includes her own writing and also a Story Map, where she has uploaded stories told about places and people in Selby.
Nonets – putting the stories back into the town
Sarah has created a number of poems developed from the stories she collected in the marketplace. They are in the form of “nonets” – nine-line poems with a specific structure of declining numbers of syllables, which create a very recognisable shape. We have temporarily installed the nonets around the town this Summer – on pavements and in shop windows around the marketplace, streets and the park. Look out for the limited edition postcards with some of the nonets on too! Find the list of locations here.
The project is part of Selby Stories – an exciting programme of arts and cultural events running until late 2023, celebrating what makes Selby special and unique.
