Hear Ye, Hear Ye! 

What a whirlwind two weeks it’s been in Yorick’s Court! We’ve officially opened our first submission window to the public, and the work has been flying in. Despite having produced over 125 episodes, this was the first time we’d properly opened up the door to writers from outside our little literary castle, and we were so thrilled to start reading. 

When we hit the button and opened up our submission form, it was less than an hour before the first piece of brilliant work came flying in through the ether with a virtual whoosh! We were all so excited, we immediately broke out the victorious music and began to dance. Sources can neither confirm nor deny that a small party was held in our respective households as we video-called each other to celebrate. A big thank you to that author for the excuse to toast with a glass of something bubbly. 

Since then, we’ve been working hard to publicise the opportunity to submit work to Yorick. A number of Facebook pages have been good enough to help us out, and our Admin Magician has got a squinty thumb now from hitting the ‘Post’ button so many times. One of our Court had the pleasure of helping the talented Kirsty of Kelkilou Comics and Illustrations at ACME Comic Con, and we proudly put one of our brand new posters on her stall. We had a great chat with a young author who told us all about their love of writing, and it was so exciting to see customers scan the QR code and begin exploring Yorick’s website. We loved having the opportunity to meet and chat to everyone and hear all about their fantastic creative pursuits.

While out and about, we took a journey to one of the local universities – more are soon to be subjected to our belligerent presence – to pop up the first of our posters in windows and on noticeboards, and we took the opportunity to snap a few flattering photos at the same time (any excuse really). Not only all that, but our first batch of business cards arrived in the post, ready to whip out at a moment’s notice for anyone in desperate need of a literary podcast and some light entertainment. 

Speaking of entertainment, the variety and talent of our submissions has been astonishing. When we first thought of opening up to the public, we expected a few short stories and maybe some poems. At present, the vast majority of our submissions have actually been radio play scripts (just over 48%). Since radio plays were our Chief Jester’s first love it has been delightful to read so many and see their authors’ passion for creating them. Every time we get an email that another submission has arrived, no matter what kind of work it is, all of our Court Jesters get a rush of excitement and take every opportunity to get reading as soon as they can. As always, keep them coming! 

Our podcast host, Buzzsprout, lets us see our listener numbers. After we started publicising the submission window that number shot up like a giraffe going through a growth spurt, blowing straight past our previous stats. Thank you for listening and we are so happy that you have come to make merry with us! 

We’ll be back for the start of our official second season on Thursday 16th March with a documentary about the award winning British playwright of Jamaican heritage, Winsome Pinnock, so don’t forget to tune in.