Read here for regular musings from the Dark Angels community and beyond. We share thoughts on writing and creativity of all kinds.
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Good news from the front lines
Front lines are all on our minds right now. I think of poetry as language’s front line, the place where things can at once be at their most considered and their most intense, raw, immediate.
Floating on a sea of inspiration
On just about every Dark Angels workshop, we talk about place. As a thing or a notion that writers ought to tap into or evoke.
The story is always smarter than you
Paying a visit to Material, an essay by the writer Lucy Corin.
Writing is always writing
First, as writers who attempt to earn our livings in the commercial world, we often put ourselves into straitjackets. As if there were irreconcilable differences between, say, writing a website and writing a novel.
Keeping Time
At Dark Angels residential courses, we sometimes think of our writing exercises as ‘experiments’: to try things out together, drawing on new ideas in a safe and supportive environment.
A note on our Writing Programme
Go Deep. If you haven’t yet joined us on a Dark Angels writing experience, we can promise you our courses will help you to become a better writer.
In conversation: Richard Pelletier and John Simmons
In which John Simmons and Richard Pelletier chat about a new novel from John, staying productive as a writer, social media, and reading.
In conversation: Craig Watson and Therese Kieran
Having recovered from a boisterous and wonderous gathering of Dark Angels at Hawkwood College, Craig Watson and Therese Kieran discuss the lighter side…
In conversation: Ted Leonhardt & Richard Pelletier
A few short days ago, US Dark Angel Richard Pelletier and Ted Leonhardt, held an event at Folio. It's a lovely private library, perfect to discuss some great topics.
In conversation: Doug Howatt & Richard Pelletier
This past October saw the first ever Dark Angels workshop held in America.
In conversation: Craig Watson & Stuart Delves
Co-founder Stuart Delves gets Craig Watson to deliver the big reveal. How a piece of well-crafted business writing led him to Dark Angels and a set of experiences ('the people, the places, the playing with words') that have become one of his life's highlights.
In conversation: John Simmons & Rowena Roberts
Rowena Roberts and cofounder John Simmons talk language and connection, books, storytelling, and what it means to call yourself a writer.
Spanish Crossings
Dark Angels founder John Simmons has just published his second novel, Spanish Crossings, set during the Spanish Civil War. This began as a story written in Spain on a Dark Angels course in 2014.
In Conversation: Stuart Delves & Samm Short
Stuart Delves and Samm Short remember how last year's advanced course was a little bit different - blending writing and yoga in the house overlooking the sierra.
Dark Angels in Conversation: Amsterdam
Gillian Colhoun and Stuart Delves ran a two-day, bespoke course for Irdeto’s marketing team in Amsterdam this January.
Fiction is the true alternative
I cannot imagine that anyone reading this blog is a supporter of Donald Trump.
Straight Outta Uni
“Straight Outta Uni” is a funny time. The first question that occurred to me was whether I would have to reference anymore.

