Together Not Alone with poets Alexandra Corrin-Tachibana, Mary Mulholland and Sue Wallace-Shaddad

Delving into the culture and contexts of Sudan, Japan and Guyana, three poets explore aspects of family and war (Sue), love and language (Alexandra), and roots and trauma (Mary). Crossing Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and Europe, their unique voices reflect the complex worlds they've experienced and offer an original, international perspective on what it is to be alone yet not alone.

In an interwoven reading across all three poets’ works, they will explore:

• How even when we feel alone, we're not – the past is part of us
• How humans seek and long for the solace of belonging and community
• How, even in conflict and war, empathy and support can bridge distances
• How sharing viewpoints and experiences can build a sense of connection
• How transgenerational trauma can be laid to rest
• How we inhabit different spaces at the same time.

A short Q&A opportunity will bring the event to a close.

About Alexandra Corrin-Tachibana
Alexandra Corrin-Tachibana is the author of two collections, both published by Salt, Sing Me Down from the Dark (2022) and Skinship (2026). The latter title is derived from a Japanese loan word fusing ‘skin’ and ‘kinship’, reflecting how her writing is rooted in her love of Japanese language and the decade she lived in Japan. She will show the impact of those experiences on her life and writing now, using lesser-known Japanese forms. Her writing reflects a yearning to belong in a country where she will always be 外国人 – a foreigner - and demonstrates how, as we go through our daily lives, we co-exist in multiple places, so are never fully alone. Her poem, Madam Gout, is shortlisted for the 2026 Forward Prize for Best Single Poem - Written.

Facebook: @alex.corrintachibana
Instagram: @corrintachibanapoetry
Bluesky: @corrintachibana.bsky.social

About Mary Mulholland
Mary Mulholland's debut collection, The Dodo Stories, is out from Nine Arches Press in October 2026. The poems it contains explore her maternal line's emigration to Guyana, taking us deep into the rainforest, and their subsequently relocation to the UK.  Drawing on insights from her previous career as a psychotherapist, she will consider how trauma, secrecy and shame can cut us off even from ourselves, but a silenced past will filter in from the unconscious. She will read award-winning poems that offer hope and an understanding that ultimately, in being alive, we're all part of a whole. Mary founded Red Door Poets, and is an editor of The Alchemy Spoon.

Web: https://www.marymulholland.co.uk
Instagram: @marymulhol
Facebook: @mary.mulholland.50/

About Sue Wallace-Shaddad
Sue Wallace-Shaddad has three published pamphlets, writes poetry reviews and runs workshops. Recipient of an Arts Council DYCP grant in 2023/24, she is a trustee of Suffolk Poetry Society. Her latest pamphlet Once There Was Colour (Palewell Press, September 2024) spotlights the impact of conflict on her Sudanese family, showing how - through empathy and recognition - those escaping conflict are not alone. She contrasts family get-togethers with the subsequent anxiety of separation over distance.

Web: https://suewallaceshaddad.wordpress.com
Bluesky: @suewallaceshaddad.bsky.social
X: @Sue_SWS
Instagram: @suewallaceshaddad
Facebook: @suewallaceshaddad