Shortlisted Poet in Focus: Rachel Mann

Rachel Mann photo © KTPhotography

I hope that [Eleanor Among the Saints] will enable anyone to discover, no matter what they think about gender or sexuality, to discover at the edge of words, the edge of what’s sayable, the edge of what poetry can do, that there’s a sense of openness and promise, and new discovery. – Rachel Mann, T. S. Eliot Prize film interview

Rachel Mann, shortlisted with her collection Eleanor Among the Saints (Carcanet Press, 2024), is the featured poet in this week’s Eliot Prize e-newsletter.

The newsletter tells you about the wide range of content we have just published to help you get to know Rachel Mann and her work. This includes specially produced videos of the poet reading from Eleanor Among the Saints, and talking about the composition of the poems and the themes they investigate.

Download the Reader’s Notes on Eleanor Among the Saints, which include a selection of poems from the collection, plus reviews, reading suggestions, and a writing prompt or two for those inspired to respond creatively. The aim of the Readers’ Notes is to inspire deeper readings of the book, individually or shared with friends, book groups or writing workshops.

We have published a thought-provoking review, commissioned from John Field. Rachel has also made a fascinating contribution to the Poetry School’s Writer’s Notes project, in which she talks about her approaches to poetry. The series helps professional poets and creative writing students develop their practice by sharing the writing approaches of some of contemporary poetry’s most exciting and accomplished voices.

To be the first to read Eliot Prize news, simply sign up to weekly e-newsletter.

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Rachel Mann is a priest, writer and broadcaster. She is the author of thirteen books, including her debut poetry collection, A Kingdom of Love (Carcanet...

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