SJ Bradley and Rachel Bower at Blackwell’s

Two Yorkshire-based, Manchester-published authors are heading over th’ills to the Rainy City for his event at Blackwell’s Bookshop – S J Bradley will be reading from her inventive short story collection Maps of Imaginary Towns and Rachel Bower will be discussing her debut novel It Comes From The River.

S J Bradley’s Maps of Imaginary Towns is out with Manchester indie publishing house Fly On The Wall Press, showcasing a range of ideas, from futuristic colonies to drab estates. More on the book: “With lyrical prose and psychological depth, Bradley illuminates the quiet heroism pulsing through seemingly ordinary lives. Beleaguered, yet resourceful social workers battle towering workloads; a harassed elderly childminder collapses under the strain; a victim of domestic abuse strikes out for freedom and disgruntled workers in dead-end jobs dream of a brighter future.”

Published by Bloomsbury, Rachel Bower’s It Comes from the River is an unforgettable, uncanny debut about violence, resilience and hope – and the power of women when they work together – infused with the folklore of Northern England. The blurb: “Alex is trying to hold her growing family together with a husband who is becoming more and more difficult to keep happy. Lauren hopes that the new man in her life might present a fresh start for her and her two boys. And Nancy’s son has moved her into a care home where she feels entirely out of place, longing for her lost dog while dreaming of her own escape. But there is something else at play here. Something lurking in the water or at the end of an unlit street; a shadow in a bag of strangers’ clothing; a chorus of voices calling in the distance. As each woman’s world spirals from her grasp, they feel it getting closer, revealing the truth of what binds them together, and what must be done to set each of them free… From the river it comes; to the river it always returns.”

S J Bradley is a writer from Wakefield. Her short fiction has appeared in various journals and anthologies including Conradology and Resist! Stories of Uprising from Comma Press, New Willesden Short Stories 7, Queen Mobs, Litro magazine and Untitled Books. Her first novel, Brick Mother, and her second novel, Guest, are both published by Dead Ink. She is the editor of the Saboteur Award-winning anthology Remembering Oluwale, which is available from Valley Press. Her work as an arts organiser includes the non-profit literary social Fictions of Every Kind (which she ran for 10 years), The Northern Short Story Festival and the Walter Swan Short Story Prize. She is also a teacher of creative writing, including short story writing courses for Comma Press and First Story in Leeds and Bradford.

Rachel Bower is an award-winning writer from Bradford. Her poetry, fiction and academic work has been widely published in journals and magazines, including Magma, The London Magazine, The Rialto, Stand and The White Review. As well as her debut novel, she is also the author of two poetry books, These Mothers of Gods (Fly on the Wall Press) and Moon Milk (Valley Press), and a non-fiction book on literary letters, Epistolarity and World Literature (Palgrave Macmillan). Rachel is also a beekeeper, cold water enthusiast and the founder of Wild Writes, which runs workshops encouraging people to connect with nature and creativity.

The event format at Blackwell’s Bookshop is usually a 45-minute author reading and discussion, followed by a chance for audience members to ask questions. There will be the opportunity to get your book signed/dedicated after the event.