About Us & Frequently Asked Questions

To contact Cyprus Well...

Telephone 01392 495102, email us, or write to: Cyprus Well, Exeter Central Library, Castle Street, Exeter, EX4 3PQ

Cyprus Well is…

a registered charity and company limited by guarantee set up to enable and nurture literature development activity in South West England: Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire, unitary authorities of Bath and North East Somerset, Bournemouth, Bristol, Isles of Scilly, North Somerset, Plymouth, Poole, South Gloucestershire, Swindon and Torbay

Cyprus Well …

Leads, fundraises for, and administers new literature network development opportunities for South West England.
Fundraises for and delivers Grass Roots Literature South West, a programme of literature activity awards for all non-profit organisations and individuals to create new literature development opportunities.
Supports writing and reader development in South West England.

Cyprus Well is managed and delivered by…

an independent board of trustees overseeing a charity and company limited by guarantee and a team of dedicated executive staff.

Our Patron, Trustees and executive staff are ...

Patron

Helen Dunmore

Trustees
Professor Joan Chandler (Chair)
Andy Thatcher
Sarah Gleadall
Sam North
Carolyn Date
Ollie Dawson
Tony Parry
Sarah Duncan

Director
Tracey Guiry

Download our logos here...

Logo Pack

(Zip 4.5mb)

Some frequently asked questions ...

Here are some questions we get asked a lot ...

> What is Cyprus Well?
> Why are you called Cyprus Well?
> How do I contact you?
> Do you have a patron?
> Can you read my manuscript?
> Do you have any advice on getting published then?
> Yes, but do I send my work to a publisher, or an agent?
> I want to contact a particular writer for an event. Can you help?
> Do you have any advice on starting/joining a writers group?
> Do you have any advice on starting/joining a readers group?
> Do you fund literature activity?
> Where can I find other funding for my literature project?
> What’s happening in literature in the South West?
> What happened to literaturesouthwest.co.uk?
> Can you help me promote my event?

What is Cyprus Well?
A registered charity and company limited by guarantee set up to enable and nurture literature development activity in South West England.

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Why are you called Cyprus Well?
Cyprus Well is named after Charles Causley's house, No. 2 Cyprus Well, in Launceston in Cornwall.

Cyprus Well and The Charles Causley Trust are close friends and strategic partners.

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How do I contact you?
The best way is via email.
Send us an email and we'll get back to you as soon as we can.

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Do you have a patron?
We certainly do. We're very pleased to say that our Patron is Helen Dunmore.

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Can you read my manuscript?
Afraid not! We'd love to, but we just don't have enough people. However, when we can we try to support projects to bring writers and mentors together. Keep an eye on our website for such opportunities.

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Do you have any advice on getting published then?
This is a difficult question, because the answer really depends on what you are writing and where you want to see it published. Different types of writing call for different approaches.

Researching your options and understanding where your work fits into the marketplace are very important. For early fact-finding we like the idea of starting with a trip to an imaginery bookshop - or even a real one or an online store. Wander in and imagine you are trying to find the book you want to publish, or a book very like it. Where is it? In fiction, non-fiction, crime? Drama? Poetry? Children's Books? The section with the magazines? Or is it in the newsagents next door? On the internet? In the UK or international? Once you have found your theoretical publication's likely home, make lots of notes about where you found it, publishers who publish work like it, the kind of writers who write similar books. Do some internet research about these writers, about the publishers, find out who their agents are... As you go through this process, you might find you are getting a better sense of where your work fits into a very difficult marketplace to break into. We all like to think our manuscript is completely unique, but there will be common reference points with something else somewhere, and this will give you a clue towards a receptive home for your writing.

The Writers' & Artists' Yearbook and The Writer's Handbook are two very helpful publications and incredibly useful websites to boot. We also recommend that you visit The Society of Authors, Profwriting, Essential Writers and The Writer's Compass. Many publisher and magazine homepages have submission guidelines and these are also very useful.

Developments in digital publishing are changing the book world fast - keep an eye on The Literary Platform to watch it all unfold.

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Yes, but do I send my work to a publisher, or an agent?
Lots of publishers prefer to receive manuscripts from agents, especially if you are writing novels. Different types of writing get different answers to this question. Again, the bottom line is research. Contact your manuscript destinations and ask them what they prefer. The Writers & Artists website is just stuffed with useful information about making that first step. One of the very best, clearest set of guidelines on this we've seen is at Mslexia. In fact, the whole Get Published section on their website is brilliant.

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I want to contact a particular writer for an event. Can you help?
Yes, email us and we can try to help. Our growing list of South West Writers will help you contact some writers in this region.

Otherwise, we recommend you see if the writer you want has a website, which might have contact details. Otherwise, you could try contacting their publisher, or their agent. You can find their publisher from their book jackets, and you might find their agent by just web searching "(author name) + agent". We can also recommend looking for writers at Apples & Snakes and Contemporary Writers and looking through the list of tutors at Arvon.

Think carefully about the budget for your event before you do contact a writer though - we strongly support paying writers for their time, and meeting any accommodation and travel costs. The Society of Authors currently recommends fees of £350 and £250 respectively for full and half-day engagements, plus expenses, and suggests a fee of £150 for a single session (not exceeding one hour, and plus expenses). You should factor travelling time into these costings - for example, a writer may have to travel several hours to get to you. We also recommend you read the Society's own guidelines for authors appearing at events - it will give you an idea of the kind of information and support writers might be looking for themselves: Society of Authors, Guide to Author Appearances (Adobe PDF, 266k)

Remember that different authors may have their own fee and requirements. It is best to establish these at the very beginning. It is also worth bearing in mind that bestselling writers might be booked up even a year or two in advance, and that certain dates for certain types of writers are similarly booked early - e.g. poets on National Poetry Day. So plan early!

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Do you have any advice on starting/joining a writers group?
Cyprus Well loves writers groups, but we'd always recommend you start or join a writers group that has a bit of support behind it - perhaps from your local library or arts organisation. If there isn't a writers group in your area, either of these agencies might help you to start one in a supportive and sustainable way. Ground rules are critical to a writers group - particularly for brand new groups. Make sure everyone in the group agrees the way they are going to work, and what everyone expects from the group. That way, things should work out okay. If you can't find anyone to help out, drop us a line and we'll speak to some of our friends in your area to see if we can help.

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Do you have any advice on starting/joining a readers group?
Cyprus Well loves libraries, and many libraries have their own readers groups. As a first port of call you should drop along your local library and ask about groups in your area, or if they can support you to set one up. Do some research on readers groups on the web - it's amazing the free resources you can find on the websites of publishers, media, etc. Check out Reading Groups For Everyone or Bookgroup Info to see if there's a group near you. If you can't find a readers group in your area, and can't find anyone to help you, give us an email, and we'll see if anyone we know in your area can help.

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Do you fund literature activity?
We certainly do, with big plans for the future. For now though, please check out our Grassroots Literature page for funding that is available just now.

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Where can I find other funding for my literature project?
We're always looking for funding ourselves, and we keep an eye on Arts Council England's website, particularly the Funding section. The Arts Council also has a very useful Other Sources of Funding document, and you can download a copy here.

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What’s happening in literature in the South West?
Keep an eye on www.cypruswellcommunity.org and our What's on calendar. We try to feature as many activities across the region as our fingers can manage to type in.

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What happened to literaturesouthwest.co.uk?
Arts Council England, South West, Poetry Can and Cyprus Well all agreed to direct Literature South West traffic to the new Cyprus Well website. What this means though is that we might not have your contact address, so please join up to the Cyprus Well Community, and send us information on events so that we can promote you as best we can!

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Can you help me promote my event?
Absolutely! Visit our What's on Calendar page for more details - and take advantage of www.cypruswellcommunity.org and other services. Contact us if you have a big project or event you are promoting and want to talk about how to cover that on our site.

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About Us & Frequently Asked Questions

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