Just a quick heads-up about three blogging workshops that Kate of the Manchizzle and I are running next month:

BLOG LAB
On Saturday 8 November, 1pm-3pm
At Manchester Digital Development Agency, 117-119 Portland Street, Manchester M1 6ED

Stuck on posting images in Blogger? Need someone to walk you through switching platforms? Want to pimp your blog up with all the latest cool widgets, or just get some feedback on your new site? Two experienced bloggers will be on hand to help solve your practical blogging problems in these open ’surgery’ sessions. Some computers available, or bring your own and use our wireless. Drop in whenever you like during the session, but please let us know you’re coming.

BLOGGING FOR BEGINNERS
On Saturday 22 November, 10am-12pm
At Gorton Library, Garratt Way, Gorton, Manchester M18 8HE

On Saturday 29 November 10am-12pm
At Crumpsall Library, Abraham Moss Centre, Crescent Road, Crumpsall, Manchester M8 5UF

So you think you’d like to create a blog, but you’re not really sure where to start? In this workshop we’ll take you through the basics, and by the end of it you’ll have your own blog.

All three sessions are free – but space is limited and the previous workshops have been packed out, so get in there early if you’re coming. To book, call the Manchester Literature Festival office on 0161 236 5555 or email admin at manchesterliteraturefestival.co.uk.

Completely unrelated to anything, but I just glanced at BBC Manchester’s latest headlines, which are displayed on Mancubist’s sidebar:

• Man dies three days after attack
• Hospital gun threat man is jailed
• Officer injured in robber arrest
• Police name family killed on M6
• Man guilty over birthday murder
• Stab man guilty of manslaughter

Is it too much to ask for a good news story just once in a while? Apparently so…

You may have already read about it, but today Kate Manchizzle and I launch a website we’ve been working together on: Rainy City Stories. It’s been fun flexing my web developing muscles on something creative and Manc-centric, and we’re both happy with what we’ve produced:

We’ve created an interactive literary cityscape that enables you to click on a location in Manchester and read a story or poem set there. To start the project off we’re commissioning site-specific stories from some of the area’s most exciting established writers, but you can tell us your own story too.

There are already four stories up from these commissioned writers – Nicholas Royle, Rajeev Balasubramanyam, Mike Duff and Jackie Kay – and they’re based around a good spread of locations: Moss Nook, Chorlton, Victoria Station and Whalley Range.

We’ve also had several submissions from the public, which’ll be going up very soon too. While it’s been mostly short stories so far, we’re also hoping for plenty of poetry submissions – and maybe even some multimedia stuff (photo stories, comic strips, audio, video etc). Click here to submit your own story to the map.

There’ll be more commissioned work added to Rainy City Stories in 2009, plus workshops and live lit events. If you’re interested in receiving updates about these – and in reading new Mancunian literature – please subscribe via RSS, email or Twitter.

Rainy City Stories is part of the Manchester Literature Festival, which begins next Thursday, and is supported by Arts Council England. I’d really appreciate any feedback, either as a comment here or on the RCS site itself.

I’ve mentioned the work of Old Trafford-based LetsGoGlobal.tv a couple of times before but Friday 8 February sees their annual talent showcase at MohoLive on Tib Street:

Come and help us set the mis-en-scene for a FREE explosion of films, music, bands and DJ’s. Lets Go Expo 08 is an exciting showcase of filmmaking talent and will be broacast LIVE online and into SecondLife. Featuring live music from RYNA, THE HIDDEN REVOLUTION, SALTY LIPS and FRAZER KINGS.

A selection of films will also be broadcast on the BBC Big Screen Manchester from 8pm. More information here.

Meanwhile, according to this comment, Manchester’s online TV community just grew some more:

Welcome to Manchester-live.tv, the UK’s first local-based online television service. Here you will find everything and anything related to Manchester, from the origins of Northern Soul to the latest celebrity events.

But possibly the greatest thing about Manchester-live.tv is that you are able to contribute by uploading your videos and show the world your own broadcasting skills. A group has just been formed on Facebook – Manchester Live TV! – Please join.

It’s early days but there’s already plenty of interesting stuff up there including historic footage of a Manchester Beatles concert, Frank Sidebottom’s excellent Manchester Medley and New Order performing at the Hacienda (check out Hooky’s lovely hair!).

I’m not a big clubgoer myself – I’d rather see music played in the flesh – but I’m well aware of Manchester’s big clubbing tradition, which I guess dates back to 1963 when the Twisted Wheel opened. And we don’t even need to mention the H word, do we?

But while Thursday’s Metro, Friday’s CityLife and, occasionally, Saturday’s Guide do a reasonable job of previewing a few of the dozens of nights going on around Manchester each week, print space dictates that the coverage is far from comprehensive.

The folks over at Northernights have realised just this and have decided to bypass trivial things like word limits by doing it all online. They’ve got the main site – containing a club directory, previews, features and a calendar – plus a blog, which is updated a few times a week, and the obligatory MySpace and Facebook group.

What’s particularly handy, however, is the weekly mailer they’ve started sending out. ‘WARNING – CONTAINS SOME MAJOR PARTIES THIS WEEK,’ it declares. And indeed it does, as it goes on to list a couple of dozen club nights happening around town – thus saving you the effort of hunting through half a dozen other sources.

Northernights is still pretty new but I like the sentiment and I like the service they’re providing (for free, let’s not forget). It goes to show that it doesn’t take much to build something useful in Manchester – just an idea and some time.