Between the Lines

DOORS & BAR OPEN: 6pm

EVENT START TIME: 7pm (prompt)

EVENT END TIME: 8:30pm (approx.)

THE BAR WILL BE OPEN AFTER THE EVENT

BETWEEN THE LINES

Candid conversations about how writing really happens.

Between the Lines is a live conversation series exploring how writing really happens. Hosted at The Straw Yard and recorded as a live audience podcast, each event invites an author into an unedited discussion about the realities of a writing life: the long arc of making work, momentum and doubt, rejection and resilience, instinct and discipline, and the moments that make writing feel alive and worthwhile.

This event features Niki Segnit, the celebrated food writer behind three of the most original and influential books on flavour and cooking published in recent years: The Flavour Thesaurus, Lateral Cooking and The Flavour Thesaurus: More Flavours. The Flavour Thesaurus has become a modern classic, transforming the way cooks think about ingredients and flavour pairings. It has been described by Yotam Ottolenghi as "delightful and informative... packed with knowledge and information, but conveyed with such a lightness of touch", while Nigel Slater writes, "The books I value most are those I return to again and again. Such has been the case with The Flavour Thesaurus." The Sunday Times called it "an eclectic combination of dictionary, recipe book, travelogue and memoir... a deceptively simple little masterpiece."

Niki Segnit’s first book, The Flavour Thesaurus, won the André Simon Award for best food book and the Guild of Food Writers Award for best debut. It has been translated into fifteen languages. Her second book, Lateral Cooking, now republished as Lateral Cooking: How to Cook by Heart has been called 'a staggering achievement' by Nigella Lawson, the 'book of the decade' by Elizabeth Luard, and 'astonishing and addictive' by Brian Eno. And Rukmini Iyer, author of The Roasting Tin books, says that her third, The Flavour Thesaurus: More Flavours 'will inspire a new generation of home cooks, chefs and writers alike'.

In conversation with Niki, we'll explore the craft of writing about food, flavour and memory, and what it takes to create books that readers return to throughout a lifetime. How do you write about something as sensory and subjective as taste? Where do curiosity and observation become a distinctive voice? And how do you build a writing life by following ideas that don't fit neatly into any one genre? Recorded live as a podcast at The Straw Yard, the event invites questions from the audience that matters most: writers, readers, cooks and anyone fascinated by the stories behind the page. 

Arranged by the Berwick Writers' Forum, part of the Berwick Literary Festival.

Live podcast recording with audience Q&A

Book signing supported by The Book Loft

Free event – booking essential

Between the Lines is free to attend, but you may opt to pledge a donation to help fund future events in the series. Audience members can choose to donate £5, £10 or £15 in support of the Berwick Literary Festival, helping us sustain and grow literary events in the town.

www.berwickliteraryfestival.com

@berwicklitfest

With thanks to our funders for supporting the first year of this new series: Create Berwick, Northumberland County Council and the North East Combined Authority.

Content guidance:

This live, unscripted conversation may include discussion of themes from the author’s work, including mature content and sensitive topics. Audience participation forms part of the event. Recommended for ages 16+.