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We commissioned the poet and Verb regular Ira Lightman to use the language of a poem to bend time and allow us to experience it in an unconventional way. Ira’s latest chapbook ‘Skelelittle’ is published by Like This Press.

William Gibson is one of the world’s best known writers of speculative fiction. He coined the term ‘Cyberspace’, which he popularised in his debut novel. We ask how he comes up with such neologisms, and he reads from his new novel, ‘The Peripheral’ (Penguin) which explores a new concept of time-travel and the narrative possibilities of multiple futures.

The novelist Geoff Ryman explores the appeal of ‘Time Travel’ literature, and the devices used by authors as diverse as Audrey Niffeneger and Brian Aldiss, to catapult their characters through the centuries. Geoff teaches Creative Writing at the University of Manchester and is the author of ‘253’ (Flamingo), an award-winning novel that started life as a website.

The composer and sound artist Sally Rodgers works as part of the electronic duo ‘A Man Called Adam’. Especially for the Verb, Sally has created a piece of music called ‘Sound is a Plastic Model of Time’, which explores the way language helps us encounter and play with time.