Adam Farrer wins 2021 NorthBound Book Award
Posted on July 9, 2021
Memoir Cold Fish Soup awarded prize as part of 2021 Northern Writersβ Awards
Manchester-based writer Adam Farrer has won theΒ third annual NorthBound Book Award as part of theΒ 2021 Northern Writersβ Awards for his non-fictionΒ debut, Cold Fish Soup.
The NorthBound Book Award, supported by theΒ Department of English and Related Literature at the University of York andΒ New Writing North, was created in 2019 to celebrate the richness of writingΒ from the North of England and the innovative spirit of independent publishing.Β It is judged by representatives of the partner organisations with guest judgesΒ each year. Adam wins Β£5000 plus publication with independent publisherΒ Saraband.
Cold Fish Soup is a memoir of linked pieces reflecting upon aspects of life inΒ the authorβs former hometown, the Yorkshire coastal resort town ofΒ Withernsea. Often darkly humorous, they explore themes includingΒ economic decline, severe coastal erosion and mental health crises, alongsideΒ evocative descriptions of the surrounding countryside and wildlife β as well asΒ his mother and sisterβs brief Burlesque appearance on Britainβs Got Talent. InΒ a collection described by one reader as βa Yorkshire David Sedaris writingΒ The Outrunβ, the book asks, what does it mean to love and be shaped by aΒ place that is dying?
Adam Farrer said:
βDuring the writing of my manuscript, I lost count of theΒ times when I wondered why I was doing it. There I was, an up-and-comingΒ writer, working away on these stories about my family and my experiences inΒ an area of the East Yorkshire coast that few people seemed to know or careΒ about. But the motivating force that pushed me past this always came fromΒ my belief that the people and the place I was focusing on were valid andΒ deserved to be written about. Winning the NorthBound Book Award, andΒ getting to work with a renowned publisher like Saraband, has given me theΒ confidence to believe that these stories, and my voice, deserve to be heard.β
Saraband publisher Sara Hunt said: βAdam has pulled off a rareΒ combination of confronting grave, even taboo subjects with clarity andΒ sensitivity alongside glimpses of pure humour in his descriptions of anΒ undeniably quirky town, community and family. Cold Fish Soup isΒ unforgettable, providing real insight into male mental health and anΒ affectionate account of a downtrodden seaside resort. Itβs an outstanding readΒ and a worthy winner.
Dr JT Welsch from the Department of English and Related Literature atΒ the University of York commented: βAdam Farrerβs manuscript brings extraordinaryΒ care, humour, and honesty to places and lives that are often overlooked.β
Judge Polly Atkin, a Cumbria-based nonfiction writer, poet and academicΒ who received a Northern Writers Award in a previous round, said: βCold FishΒ Soup is so wide-ranging and thought-provoking, covering masculinity, mentalΒ health, sense of belonging, carving out a creative life in a geographicallyΒ marginalised place, and burlesque, amongst other things. It drew me in, andΒ kept me hooked, and made me both cry and laugh heartily and fully. It is aΒ love letter to Withernsea and all the people in it, its crumbling cliffs, its strangeΒ beauties and its losses, that made me love Withernsea too.β
Will Mackie, Senior Programme Manager at New Writing North, said: “TheΒ NorthBound Book Award would not be possible without the commitment,Β imagination and support of our partners at the University of York andΒ Saraband β itβs an absolute pleasure to work with them to create and deliverΒ this transformative opportunity. Adam Farrerβs beautifully written collection ofΒ linked personal essays about his hometown of Withernsea is insightful,Β challenging, moving and entertaining β everything that we hoped for from theΒ third winner of the NorthBound Book Award. Itβs a book that I canβt wait to seeΒ published by Saraband so that other readers can share the unforgettableΒ reading experience that Iβve been fortunate to have.”
About Adam Farrer
Adam Farrer is a creative nonfiction writer and spoken word performerΒ based in Manchester. He is the editor of The Real Story, an Arts CouncilΒ England-funded online nonfiction publisher and spoken word event series,Β working to nurture creative non-fiction talent in the UK. In 2019 he becameΒ the inaugural writer-in-residence for Peel Park, Salford. He has performedΒ his work at a number of arts and literature festivals and has runΒ workshops on creative non-fiction writing and spoken word skills for aΒ number of festivals and conferences, and the University of Salford, whereΒ he also works as a support technician. Cold Fish Soup is his first book.
