⭐ ⚡ SHIRLEY MAY ⚡ ⭐

We are beyond thrilled to be welcoming such a local literary LEGEND to the That’s What She* Said stage. As well as being an incredibly international writer and performer in her own right, Shirley is the director of writing collective Young Identity, an arts organisation and charity empowering young people to create, write and perform. Shirley believes her role is to make both performance and page poetry accessible to young people in Manchester. She has worked for years to promote a culture around performance poetry to make it “cool” by mentoring and supporting new writers in schools and community groups.

⭐ ⚡ KATE GARRETT ⚡ ⭐

Kate Garrett is a writer, mum, editor, witch, horror fan, history buff, amateur folklorist and folk drummer, among other things. Her poetry and flash fiction have been widely published online and in print, and she is the author of several books. Her first full-length poetry collection, The saint of milk and flames, was published last year by Rhythm & Bones Press. Her eighth chapbook, A View from the Phantasmagoria, is forthcoming from Rhythm & Bones in October 2020.

⭐ ⚡ ESTHER KOCH ⚡ ⭐

Esther Koch has been writing and performing spoken word, page poetry and prose for 6 years. She is a slam winning stage poet and as a member of the Mancunian collective Young Identity. She has showcased her work at BBC Radio 1xtra’s Words First, HOME, UniSlam, alongside the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra at the Sounds From The Other City festival and the collective’s own One Mic Stand. Esther has supported celebrated Poets such as Benjamin Zephaniah and Saul Williams, been published by Own It London and is a BBC featured spoken word artist, appearing in her own poetic film online at BBC Bitesize.

👑 PLUS OPEN MIC 👑

Email hello@forbookssake.net to book your 5-minute slot