ASSOCIATE POETS 2023
In March of 2023 we put a call out for our first ever Associate Poets. Then in July of 2023 we announced our wonderful associate poets that worked with us throughout 2023. Congratulations to Sonia Burns, Camille McCawley, and Who the f**k is Alice?. We were thrilled with the number and the quality of the applications we received - there was some really stiff competition for the three places. Big up yourself if you applied, and huge congratulations to the three selected poets. Read more about them down below and check out our 2024 associate poets here.
CAMILLE
Camille is a Derby based poet who focuses on grief in pregnancy loss & close relatives, inspired by working in nature conservation. She was Associate Poet for Derby Poetry Festival 2023 and is Shadow Poet in 2024. Her poems have been published by literary magazines such as Under the Radar and Ink, Sweat & Tears. Her debut pamphlet, An Odd Gift, was published by Bearded Badger Publishing in 2021. Camille has headlined events such as Hammer and Tongue, Word Wise and Ilkley Fringe Festival and has supported Yomi Sode, Joelle Taylor, Matt Abbott and others. She has worked on various commissions including Apples and Snakes ‘Cece’s Speakeasy’ a climate project, and with collage artist Jenny Stevenson. She co-hosts Poetry Praise Sandwich, a free monthly community poetry event.
SONIA
Sonia Burns is a Derby based poet, performer and facilitator. Her debut chapbook, Umbra:philia, was published in November 2021 by Bearded Badger Publishing, with the support of Arts Council funding. Sonia’s poems have been published in Ink, Sweat & Tears, 192 Magazine and various anthologies. Sonia is involved in several creative collectives and founded the Poetry Praise Sandwich night with fellow poet Camille McCawley.
ALICE
Alison Tanik is an East Midlands-based poet, playwright and performer, who headlines at poetry events across the country under the stage name ‘Who the Fuck is Alice’. Her work is concerned with gender (im)balance, violence, and desire. She is currently studying for an MA in poetry at Manchester Metropolitan University. She was an Associate Poet of the Derby Poetry Festival in 2023.
