quest

(This is preliminary information only)

We are creating a map which will feature information about Devon and its writers, old and new. Your answers to the survey questions will help ensure no one is missed out. Words as prose, poem, fiction, non-fiction; historic, fanciful, humorous, frightening –– we want to map the full range of known and hidden talent Devon can offer.

If you'd like to become involved, please click here to add your information to the project database. Your information will be kept safe and will only be used for the project.

Pending funding decisions, we will launch this project this coming April (2010), along with partners Devon Libraries, The University of Exeter, and Cyprus Well.  The project will create a set of journeys linked to literary themes and living writers across Devon, set out in a series of maps.  This will include a printed trail map, identifying sites to seek out across the county. The maps will contain many different kinds of trail points –– a podcast, a pointer to a workshop or other writing challenge, a set of instructions to begin your own writing about a place, a book to read.

STOP PRESS We have just been informed that the project has been awarded £50,000 by Arts Council England. Thank you!

Although Devon’s literary heritage is central to the project, wordquest Devon offers more than just a formal heritage trail: living writers and the encouragement of new writing are also of key importance. 

A quest is more than a journey: it is a seeking after.  This project, then, is about finding your connection to the astonishing and exciting world of literature amidst the grandeur of Devon’s landscape.

 

Timetable

The project begins in June 2010.
The public phase of the project begins in June 2011, and continues through to September 2012.
The evaluation and wrap-up of the project ends in November 2012.

 

Outcomes

There are two phases to the project.  In Phase 1 we will:

  • scope and design a map, creating a literary trail across Devon, linking numerous cycling and walking trails
  • print and distribute 50,000 copies of the map
  • facilitate new writing with young people across Devon, publishing some of it on the website
  • create between 30 and 40 podcasts, centred around a literary theme and using either a piece of existing writing or a new, commissioned piece of writing
  • commission or facilitate 16-20 pieces of new writing, for a variety of media
  • record at least 60 readings of work using a variety of professional and non-professional voices

In Phase 2 we will:

  • hold writing/reading workshops in libraries, the University and schools across Devon
  • hold special events and readings at a variety of outdoor locations across Devon
  • create an active online writing community, using Facebook™ and a dedicated website and highlight what people are writing on Twitter™ about reading and writing in Devon
  • use the published map as the catalyst for new creative activity and encourage people to use it on their own
  • create an iPhone™ app so that people can download the map podcasts as they walk/cycle (these will also be downloadable from the website)
  • facilitate at least 300 pieces of new writing, some of which will be published on our website
  • plan for the longer-term legacy for the project

 

Legacies

We believe the project will result in a number of specific legacies.  It will

  • create a number of new writers
  • significantly increase the number of people who are more interested in reading and in writing
  • get people more interested in the place where they live
  • enhance tourism for the longer-term through the longterm maintenance of the website and if demand exists a re-printing of the published map
  • strengthen a number of arts organisations in Devon and forge new partnerships with writing groups and writers.

However the project is also very scalable, and is likely to be rolled out in other parts of the region and the UK.

 

Who is behind the project?

The lead partners on the project are Devon Libraries (Devon County Council), the University of Exeter, Cyprus Well, and Aune Head Arts.  Other partners include the North Devon Biosphere Reserve and The National Trust.

 

thanks to our project funders:

  University of Exeter arts council england Devon County Council  

 

 

page last updated 26-Feb-2010 16:42
website designed and maintained by aune head arts