'Mad Again' Brighton Book Launch

Come along to an evening of interleaved poetry performances from Reanna Valentine, Éloïse O’Dwyer-Armary and Simon Hauwaerts, to celebrate the launch of Reanna's debut solo poetry collection 'Mad Again' (published by Written Off Publishing). Together, we'll journey through love, loss, chronic pain, family, queerness and mental health, and come back better for it.

Tickets are pay as you feel, supporter donations of £8 are much appreciated.

Drinks, snacks and copies of the book will be available from the venue, which has comfy seating and wheelchair accessible toilets. There will be other wonderful poetry books on sale and the opportunity to get your copy signed.

About The Performers

Reanna Valentine @reannavalentine ‘takes an elegant route to a blunt point,’ but would rather it was the other way around… Their debut solo pamphlet ‘Mad Again’ was published by Written Off in May 2024. Reanna co-authored ‘Fragmented Light’, their Saboteur Award nominated joint collection, with their grandmother Carolyn Reed. They were shortlisted for the Zealous Amplify prize and longlisted for the Disabled Poets Prize.

Éloïse O’Dwyer-Armary (she/they) @eloisearmary is a bilingual poet born and raised in France, based in Sussex, UK. She is a PhD researcher in ecopoetry at the University of Brighton, author of Body Compost & other ghost poems, Pink Goo, director of Collections Of Queer Poets and co-producer of the podcast Poetry To Your Ears.

Simon Hauwaerts (any pronouns) is a Belgian writer who now lives, loves, and laughs in the UK. He has reluctantly created an Instagram at @simon.hauwaerts. She dislikes writing bios and has a cat named Orlando, who is a far more interesting creature than the poet.

About 'Mad Again'

"Perhaps it was fire meeting fire,

and exploding"

In Mad Again - their first solo collection of poetry - Reanna Valentine digs deep to craft a profoundly intimate and intricate picture of a person at one point undone, but at others found settled and whole.

Splitting off parts of themself in poetic snapshots of chronic pain, family, queerness and mental health, Valentine captures their intense journey through existence. From moments of self-sabotage to multiple diagnoses, this book is essential reading for anybody who has ever struggled with sustaining joy in tandem with their own identity, health and losses.

‘For all its playfulness, it is large and wholehearted, committed to the experience of tenderness, happiness, sex, pain and loss.’ KAT ADDIS, AUTHOR

‘An uncompromising journey to the soul's core.’ COLIN HAMBROOK, EDITOR, DISABILITY ARTS ONLINE

Published by Written Off Publishing

Event Venue

The Queery, 46 George Street, Brighton and Hove, United Kingdom