Advanced Content - Updates + Questions + Discussion

A message to all our Subscribers!

Apologies for the lack of activity regarding Advanced Content over the last few weeks or so. We’ve had a bit of a reshuffle recently and I’m now responsible for coordinating all Advanced Content material. :slight_smile:

Over the next few weeks I am hoping to get more authors onboard to extend the range of content available to you.

In the meantime thank you for your patience.:slight_smile:

To access Advanced Content, click on ‘Learn’ to go over to the learning site, and then ‘Learn’ again to get the drop-down menu and see ‘Advanced Content’.

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We’ve new content from Bethan Gwanas and Luke Evans on the way to you this week! :slight_smile:

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New content from Bethan Gwanas and Luke Evans is up! :smiley:

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New content from Daniel Glyn is up and new content from Bethan Gwanas will be appearing today! :smile:

Some updates for you…

  • The vocab foe each piece from now on will be at the bottom of the transcript, rather than in a separate file.

  • We’re hoping to have more authors on the books in September, therefore much more Advanced Content for you! :slight_smile:

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New content up today! :slight_smile:

Bethan Gwanas’ latest contribution is about the recent passing of her beloved dog, Del … :face_holding_back_tears: :cry: :broken_heart:

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New contribution from Daniel Glyn up today! :smiley:

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I have some very exciting news for you regarding Advanced Content!

One of Wales’ best loved and most successful authors and playwright Manon Steffan Ros is going to become a regular contributor to SSi’s Advanced Content!

Manon Steffan Ros was brought up in the village of Rhiwlas near Bangor and now lives in Tywyn, Meirionnydd, with her sons. After leaving school, she worked as an actress for a few years before becoming a writer.

She has won the drama prize at the Eisteddfod twice in 2005 and 2006, and her play, Mwgsi, won a National Theatre Wales award in 2018.

Her first novel for adults Fel Aderyn, reached the shortlist for wales Book of the Year 2010 and her novel Blasu won the Fiction Prize of the 2013 Wales Book of the Year. Ros translated Blasu into English with the title The Seasoning and was published by Honno in 2015.

As well as her books for adults, Ros has found great acclaim in her children’s writing. She has won the prestigious Tir Na N-Og prize for Welsh children’s literature four times, with her novels Trwy’r Tonnau (2010), Prism (2012), Pluen (2017) and Fi a Joe Allen (2019) – all published by Y Lolfa.

Her third novel for adults, Llanw (y Lolfa, 2014), tells the story of Llanw, a young girl lives with Gorwel, her twin, and their grandmother in a cottage in a small coastal village in mid-Wales. The Second World War throws its shadow on the family, as Gorwel’s decision has a detrimental effect on Llanw’s life.

Llyfr Glas Nebo, won the Prose Medal at the 2018 Eisteddfod and won the triple crown of prizes at the 2019 Wales Book of the Year Award: the Aberystwyth University Fiction Award, the Golwg360 Barn y Bobl (People’s Choice Award) and the Welsh-language Overall Winner. Watch Manon discuss and read from her novel, Llyfr Glas Nebo, here. The novel was adapted into a stage play by Manon Steffan Ros with Elgan Rhys, one of the directors of Frân Wen theatre company, and the production toured theaters across Wales in early 2020.

Manon Steffan Ros was included in the literary magazine Words Without Borders’ Welsh-language issue. You can read the opening chapter of Llyfr Glas Nebo, translated into English by the author herself, here. The novel has already been translated into Polish, Catalan and Spanish.

Her latest novel for adults, Llechi, was published by Y Lolfa in 2021, which is a raw, emotional story, following a group of Gwenno’s friends after she is murdered at the age of 16. Secrets about Gwenno and her family’s lives come to the surface, and several twists are revealed as we discover what led to her death.

Since the above article was written, Llyfr Glas Nebo has been translated in to many more languages. It is now available in English, Polish, Catalan, Spanish, French, Arabic with two more languages on the way!

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Diolch yn fawr iawn Catrin! That’s great news. I’ve only just seen this thread to be honest so I’m excited about the other recent additions and very happy to hear that Manon Steffan Ros will be contributing. I’ve read several of her books and was lucky to see Llyfr Glas Nebo on stage. I love her style of writing and she has a beautiful singing voice too. Looking forward to this very much diolch. :grin:

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Great, nice to notice this thread by chance and looking forwards to getting back into Welsh after what is now about a couple of years, I guess.
Hopefully others will also notice that the advanced content is getting started again!

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SSIW has been of enormous benefit in my life over the last 5 years since doing a 6 month course which was gratefully extended over a year for health reasons. One of the simplest and best life decisions was to become a subscriber. The 3 levels of challenges have been like a travelling language gym while slowly progressing to Uwch level with DysguCymraeg. Now the advanced content is proving its worth, especially the wonderful people BecaaiPhobl introduce us to. Beca’s way gives space and lots of time for a full picture to come through. Having transcript and translation as back up is a rich resource and so helps us to ‘big up’ our Welsh learning. Am now looking forward especially to the contributions from Manon Steffan Ros flagged in October.
So thank you all at Say Something -I’m happy to say you have changed my life! Especial thanks to Nia (who taught our children so well) and whose delight and dedication locally in Bro Dyfi has been constant and inspiring.

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Thank you for this positive feedback! It’s greatly appreciated!

Manon has just given birth to her third child and promises me that as soon as she and the baby have settled, she’ll be thinking of getting back in to the swing of things and contributing to the Advanced Content.

I’m also currently putting feelers out for more contributors, I have a few ideas up my sleeve and a few interesting contacts, so as soon as I have some solid news I’ll let you know. Watch this space! :slight_smile:

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Not sure if this is the right place to put it but the transcript for Deg y Dysgwyr with Chris Taylor is missing the last minute of the interview.

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@CatrinLliarJones

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Hi Emily! Unfortunately, I wasn’t responsible for the advanced content when these episodes were being produced and uploaded, so don’t currently know if we have the original files stored somewhere. I can make enquiries to see if we can work out why the end is missing, and if there’s anything we can do to resolve this problem. In the meantime sorry for any inconvenience and thanks for your patience!

@Kinetic sgen ti unrhyw syniad?

Hi
I have finally finished Deep End (hŵra) and wondering where to go next. I have had a look at the Advanced Content and have listened to the first Luke Davies one. I found it very fast and I was expecting (hoping) to see a transcript in English as well as Welsh but there is only a vocab. Which was fine as I managed to work it out with just that. However, not all of the broadcasts have a vocabulary even?
Can someone help me understand what I should expect from this section and how I can make best use of it.

I have found SaySomethinginWelsh challenging, useful and very rewarding. Even if I didn’t sometimes appreciate it when my brain was threatening to implode during some of the lessons!

Thank you.
Diane

@DianeO Llongyfarchiadau! Congratulations on finishing Level 3! That’s quite an achievement!

Have you read what it suggests at the top of the webpage for the Advanced Content:

As a guide to both length and challenge-level, the Deg y Dysgwyr series is probably the best one to start off with, and the later Beca a’i Phobl chats are shorter than the earlier ones. Stori Dwy Steddfod is an audio-documentary; Caru, Paru a Galaru is an ongoing fiction series based in a registry office; Dyddiadur Dynas Desbret is a lighthearted fictional lockdown diary and there’s a new audio diary by much-loved author Bethan Gwanas.

All content apart from Dyddiadur Bethan Gwanas and the later editions of Caru, Paru a Galaru and Dyddiadur Dynas Desbret have full transcripts and translations, and everything else has a transcript and/or vocab.

You can read more if you go to ‘Learn’ up at the top to get you to the main website, then ‘Learn’ again and select Advanced Content there. At the top of the page it gives suggested instructions on how to use the material.

I can’t find any content from Manon? Is it a work in progress……?

It is yes, Mike! Sorry for the delay!

Shortly after agreeing to contribute, Manon found out that she was pregnant! Unfortunately, she had a very challenging pregnancy, during which she had to shelve a lot of work. She’s now playing catch-up but promises that she will be with us soon!

Diolch for your patience, it’s greatly appreciated. :slight_smile:

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