It's official - Manchester has a black music scene !sx .sx Hot on the street .sx OK - as from Saturday night , courtesy of Channel 4 TV's And It Wasn't A Dream documentary , it's official - Manchester has a black music scene .sx But don't make the mistake when you see Saturday's short and by now outdated documentary , that they've covered it all .sx As local black poet and writer Lemn Sissay once said .sx " That square mile or so that makes up Moss Side and Hulme is the most creative square mile in terms of talent in Britain .sx " .sx Lemn Sissay does not come from the Hulme area , he is in fact from Leigh , so it's at least a fairly unbiased opinion .sx But that square mile is truly brimming with talent .sx On the rap music scene people are familiar with The Ruthless Rap Assassins and MC Buzz B , but three young guys hot on the street looking for a way through are Original Fourth Generation , until recently going under the name Rebels In Effect .sx Stylistically they are different to both the Rap Assassins and MC Buzz B , but they share a common bond in that lyrically they are out to speak their minds and tell it like it is and maybe could and should be better .sx Yes , one thing rappers from this area have is plenty to rap about .sx Unemployment is high , prospects low , crime on the increase , opportunities on the decrease .sx Drugs and violence are the symptoms of the desease of neglect .sx It's anger at that neglect that is peppered throughout the lyrics of Original 4th Generation , Mancunians with an attitude and a half .sx When trying to find a reference point for this band's music think Curtis Mayfield and the halycon days of seventies funk .sx The best track I've heard from the Original 4th Generation is the superb Find Ya Mind .sx It's education through rap , Gil Scott Heron's The Revolution Will Not Be Televised for the nineties carried on a wave of pure funk .sx On their track , The Search For Inner Peace Through Poetry , they slam in with a sampled bass from the Temptation's Psychedelic Shack and then ease into some mellowish vibes .sx The use of special textures in the music and the fact that it's the rap's content rather than off-beat styles that carry the message through nice and clear , is due partly to Original 4th Generation's work with local production and song writing team Chapter And The Verse , but there is more to come .sx People in the music industry in Britain are slow to wake up to the fact that British black music is alive and kicking outside of London .sx The latest tactic employed by Manchester's artists on the dance scene is to sneak in the backdoor with white labels and create a buzz in the capital through the radio stations like Kiss FM and Jazz FM and the club scene , before anyone finds out they aren't from London .sx But while everyone else in this city seems to be thinking that until they've appeared on Top Of The Pops they haven't made it , Original 4th Generation , The Rap Assassins , MC Buzz B and Chapter And The Verse know it's the quality , originality and honesty of your music that really counts .sx .sx The write way to commit murder .sx " Advice and information are vital to anyone who wants to get into print and that is what we try to supply " .sx by BERNARD SILK .sx YOU'RE writing a crime thriller and want to bump off a victim with a spectacular poisoning .sx But what substance would your killer need and in what quantity ?sx Deadly Doses , the writers' handbook to poisons and antidotes supplies the necessary information ( and presumably for real killers , too , but that's another story) .sx Similarly , if your fictional murderer wishes to indulge in some gunplay , instant expertise is at hand via Armed and Dangerous , the crime writers' guide to weapons .sx They are just a couple of the 150 titles from the shelves of Freelance Press Services , the Salford-based agency which helps budding and established writers all over Britain - and indeed the world .sx Arthur Waite , who's 81 , founded the company more than 60 years ago and reckons it's the country's longest-established agency of its type after the London School of Journalism .sx For many years now , he's been helping writers to get their work into print with the aid of his daughter Saundrea .sx But it all started for Arthur when he became a founder member of the Manchester and District Table Tennis League in the 1920s .sx He proved such a whizz at the sport that he was soon playing for the England team .sx .sx That led to articles for national newspapers ( no , he didn't use ghostwriters ) - and Arthur went on to pen two big-selling books about table tennis .sx Eagle comic .sx Soon he had extended his activities to writing children's stories which were featured in many publications of the time , and was publishing a popular children's magazine The Merry Go Round , later to be incorporated into the legendary Eagle comic .sx These days , he still runs a correspondance course of writing for children , as well as publishing the Freelance Market News .sx Arthur explains :sx " It's a monthly newsletter for freelance writers and photographers , keeping them up to date with what's going on in the world of newspapers and magazines .sx " It deals with both fiction and general interest articles .sx Editors and publishers tell us when they are starting new publications , and people in the business let us know the latest on who's buying what .sx " We mention about 60 or 70 markets for writers each month , some which they might never find out about in the ordinary run of things .sx " And there's an overseas supplement every three months which gives the same information about foreign markets - we get that through contacts in many countries .sx " Our clients range from teenagers to pensioners , and from complete beginners to established writers who use us to find work .sx Some markets are constantly diminishing as others are growing so it's vital to be in the know .sx " .sx Saundrea , who began as an advertising copywriter and later joined her father in the business , reckons the service is unique .sx She is editor of Freelance Market news .sx " I don't think that anyone else supplies this sort of information on the scale that we do , and we also stock what is probably the biggest library of writers' self-help books in Britain .sx " They deal with every conceivable sort of writing - crime , romance , horror , novel-writing , poetry , TV scriptwriting .sx .. plus specialist advice books like Deadly Doses .sx " .sx Freelance Market News has a circulation of around 2,000 across Britain , Europe , America , Australia - there are even Japanese subscribers - and there is constant feedback from the writers themselves .sx " Some write to tell us of their successes .sx It's very satisfying to get an excited letter from someone who has just sold an article or even succeeded in getting a book accepted by a publisher , " says Arthur .sx " Many of our clients are published authors of thrillers , romances or short stories and we have a file of testimonials from people we have helped .sx " .sx Sometimes the agency has to stick up for its clients in more practical fashion .sx " We mention magazines which are good payers - and bad payers - in Freelance Market News , " says Saundrea .sx " If we highlight a bad payer it sometimes seems to spur them into bucking up the cash flow to the writers .sx " Now and again we will chivvy a slow-paying magazine with a letter on behalf of a specific writer and it's surprising how often it gets results .sx " .sx Manchester is gearing up for the city's annual arts jamboree and for the first time it's got the 'International' tag - so will the world sit up and take notice ?sx Festival fever .sx by RACHEL PUGH .sx IT'S starting with fireworks and , thanks to a new vital ingredient , festival organisers expect it will more than explode onto the European arts scene .sx For collaborators in Manchester's annual arts festival , which starts on August 31 until September 30 , have for the first time taken the step of calling it 'International' .sx Television is the new addition to a formula which they believe will make culture vultures the world over sit up and take notice .sx They hope , with time , it will prove as big a draw as anything offered at Edinburgh or Salzburg .sx Granada Television has invested pounds600,000 in the event and is joining the two main sponsors Manchester City Council and Central Manchester Development Corporation to transform it into the country's only Festival of Arts and Television .sx A string of international stars of music , theatre and literature and a rich hinterland of fringe events will attract audiences from a wide area .sx But what makes this festival different is the 15 hours of coverage - two of them nationally shown - which Granada is planning for this year .sx Granada's head of art , William Burdett-Coutts , who started the Edinburgh assembly rooms , believes the innovations are crucial in Manchester festival's search for international status .sx He said :sx " Manchester has got to develop a particular character for its festival and use it from its sales point .sx There is no point in creating a festival just for the sake of getting a few people together .sx Valuable " A festival has to be more than quick entertainment .sx It has to be part of the strategy for a city's long-term economic development .sx " .sx In future years , as it establishes itself there are plans to increase television coverage and involve the making of videos , to provide a valuable new area of operation for the industry and to attract more international names and money to the city .sx Festival director , Phil Jones , is convinced that the festival has what it takes :sx " It's an internationally credible festival , with internationally credible events .sx There's something in it for everybody .sx " .sx There is no shortage of big names with artists like the Lab e-grave que sisters ( appearing with the Hall e on September 8 in a concert sponsored by the Manchester Evening News ) the Medici and the Brodsky string quartets , the Fairer Sax , Miriam Stoppard and pianist Imogen Cooper .sx They are also joined by a whole string of lesser known performers from abroad like the anarchic , violent and raunchy circus troupe Archaos , from France , Jamaican heavyweight singer Shabba Ranks and Jaleo Flamenco from Spain , to give the festival a truly international flavour .sx Events like the Festival of Manchester Writing , which coincides with the main event , have been brought under its umbrella .sx A glance at the festival's history reveals that it has been going in some form , developing from the organ festival for the past 17 years .sx Only in the last five years has it expanded to produce a comprehensive programme across the spectrum of the arts .sx Local events involving artists from Manchester's rich and diverse ethnic communities have always featured largely in the programme .sx This year is no exception when punters can sample anything from the Chinese evening catered for by the Yang Sing restaurant or the rhythms of Manchester heavy reggae band Dread and Dread at Band on the Wall , to the Green Room's review of Manchester's African community .sx Phil Jones said :sx " It has always been an accessible , populist festival with a big emphasis on the community .sx " .sx Reputations Cheltenham , Glynderbourne , Aldeburgh - all big names .sx But they depend little on local resources .sx They have won their reputations by drawing people from outside in .sx But now Manchester is trying to gain a world reputation .sx There was last year's unsuccessful bid to host the 1996 Olympics , for which the Arts Festival became the Olympic Festival , complete with stars of the calibre of opera soprano Kiri Te Kanawa .sx Undaunted it is also trying for the 2000 games .sx The latest target for Manchester is to be accepted as City of Culture 1994 - the year selected for a celebration of theatre and drama .sx The city has put in a nomination which , if successful , would win it pounds250,000 of Arts Council funding .sx Festival organisers hope that its entry to international class will provide some leverage , to add to the long-standing tradition of theatre .sx Phil Jones said :sx " It will not be the be-all and end-all of our bid , but it will certainly make a difference .sx " .sx The day art-hungry Sheilas and Bruces are seen boarding jumbos in Melbourne in droves bound for Manchester , the city's festival organisers will truly be able to boast they have achieved their aim .sx