Writing

Vicky is a British/Welsh poet, and sometimes short story writer based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire. Her debut pamphlet If All This Never Happened will be published by Southword Editions in April 2021. She also works as a poetry mentor and editor with young and emerging poets who have received accolades such as: the New Poets Award, the Young Northern Writers Prize, and Foyle Young Poet of the Year. She’s the editor of four books of poetry and fiction written by emerging young writers, and writes content for creative projects and promotional literature.

Vicky won a Northern Writers Award in 2014, and was shortlisted for the Arvon/Jerwood Mentoring Scheme for poetry 2016/17. She is a recent Jerwood/Arvon mentee for poetry (2019/20) working with poet Hannah Lowe.

Publications:
Poetry Wales, The Rialto, Magma, Atlanta Review, The Interpreter’s House, Butcher’s Dog, Under the Radar, The North, And Other Poems, Matter, Brittle Star, Write Where We Are Now project (Carol Ann Duffy/MMU), Slim Volume, Pieces of Me, Wild Poetry, Silver Birch Press, Café Writers Magazine, Ink, Sweat and Tears, Prole, and anthologised in Verse Matters (Valley Press 2017), Not in the Plan Vol4 (Carers UK 2017), Mancunian Ways (Fly on the Wall Press 2020), Poems about Love (Fragmented Voices 2020), The Untangling (Arvon 2020)

Writing Teaching/Facilitation & Mentoring  – bodies includes:
Hive Young Writers Network, Arvon, Poetry Wales, The Writing Squad, Wakefield Literature Festival, Off the Shelf Festival of Words
Editing and mentoring

Writing Accolades, Awards & Happenings:

• 2nd place in the Munster Literature Centre’s Fool for Poetry International Chapbook Competition 2021
• Final Shortlist Wolves Lit Festival Poetry Competition 20/21
• Contributing Editor – Poetry Wales 2021
• Shortlisted in the Magma Pamphlet Competition judged by Mary Jean Chan 2020
• First Place in the Aurora Poetry Prize 2020
• Arvon/Jerwood Mentorship for poetry working with Hannah Lowe 2019/20
• Runner-up in the Mother’s Milk Poetry Prize 19/20
• Recipient of The Sarah Nulty Creativity Award 2019
• & a BBC Creative Champion Award 2019 – both in recognition of 20+ years developing young writers and creatives in South Yorkshire
• First place in the Prole Laureate Poetry Competition 2019
• Laureate’s Choice Poet for the Barnsley Hear My Voice project chosen by Ian McMillan 2018
• Highly commended in the Carers UK Poetry Competition 2017
• Longlisted in the Yorkmix Poetry Competition 2016 & 2017
• Shortlisted by Mona Arshi for the Arvon/Jerwood Mentoring Scheme 2016/17
• Winner of the Arvon Northern Writers Award in 2014

Writing-related Commissions (not including projects):

• Yorkshire Day poem: Our Rotherham, working with Rotherham Young Writers (RMBC 2020)
• Small Pleasures Project poem: Inventory of Small Pleasures (Dina 2020)
• Women’s suffrage centenary celebration poem: Five Suffragette Ghosts I saw
  on Sheffield Streets (Apples & Snakes Jan 2018)
  
• Dyslexic and Loving Words: a 40-minute documentary exploring what it means to be a dyslexic writer, encouraging dyslexics to pursue a love of words through interviews with well-known dyslexic wordsmiths such as Benjamin Zephaniah, and highlighting word-related difficulties
  faced by people with dyslexia. (Off the Shelf Festival of Words 2013)

Editing:

Vicky has collated and edited many publications for creative projects over the years including four anthologies of poetry & short fiction by emerging young writers: Everyday Hymn (2014) Wild Poetry (2017), Everyday Smile (2018), Surfing the Twilight (2019). She is a currently contributing editor at Poetry Wales (2021)

See Facilitation and Projects for more about her work as a writing facilitator and projects relating to writing.

Photo: Interviewing Shonaleigh Cumbers for Dyslexic & Loving Words