Last weekend I was reading at Buzzwords Cheltenham, which happens to take place not five minutes from my brother & sister-in-law’s home, so I stayed with them and they seemed very happy to come to the reading. (My long-suffering family!) What a warm and responsive audience there was, and an impressive open mic. My goodness,Read more ⟶
Category: Readings
At Buzzwords this weekend
If you’re within the Cheltenham catchment area I hope you’ll come to Buzzwords this Sunday evening (10th Feb) where I’ll be the guest reader, and also leading a Q&A/discussion about getting published in poetry magazines. I’ll even have the last few copies of the guide with me to sell – funny that! I’ll be reading fromRead more ⟶
City walk, a workshop, Van Halen & Jo Bell’s ‘Kith’
This is the first year in a while that I haven’t been driving up to the Southbank for the T S Eliot Prize readings this evening. I’ll look forward to reading all about it on various blogs. I’m having a catchup day between jaunts. Last week was the first session in Katy Evans-Bush‘s fortnightly small-groupRead more ⟶
Kay Syrad, Josephine Corcoran – short reviews
A couple of brief reviews of collections I’ve been reading: Inland – Kay Syrad (Cinnamon, 2018) (£8.99) There’s nothing predictable or familiar in this collection. Just when you feel you’re getting your feet under the table suddenly the table is gone, and the ground beneath, and your feet too. Just two poems in we encounterRead more ⟶
The new ‘How to’ guide is finally done…
Things have been a bit quiet on this blog for the last month, mainly because I’ve been full-on with the new booklet which arrived from the printers today – hurrah! More about that below… a quick zip through other news: Workshops, readings etc Last month I went up to London for a Coffee-House Poetry workshopRead more ⟶
Forward Prizes, Poetry Book Fair – big poetry week
It’s a good thing it’s pouring with rain today as I have every excuse to stay indoors, write, bake bread and plan this week’s garden tasks. I don’t know about my fellow poets but I’m all for a bit of quiet reflective time after the excitement of the Forward Prizes on Tuesday and then FreeRead more ⟶
Catchup for a rainy day – news, upcoming etc
With a real sense of summer coming to an end, I just wanted to mention a few things before August is up, and that feeling of moving on to the start of a new year. (Still haunted by school terms, decades on…) Excellent Events Back in July, I didn’t manage to make it to TheRead more ⟶
Readings, and a Garsdale (re)treat booked
Well the submissions list was popular… I hope you managed to get some poems out before some of the deadlines. I’ve got a few things out now. Although sorry to report that YET AGAIN I didn’t win the National. Oh well! I’m hoping to be at the award ceremony on Wednesday (if my RSVP wasn’tRead more ⟶
Pamphlet launch night
Stephen Bone and I had a blast last Thursday launching our pamphlets in Eastbourne, at the brilliant Printers Playhouse. The audience was a sea of fantastic poet friends, non-poet friends and supportive other-halves… we had excellent guest readings from our good friends Sarah Barnsley and Antony Mair, and what else can I say except massive thankyousRead more ⟶
The new pamphlet is here | launch details
Exciting times. My third pamphlet (counting ‘Foot Wear‘ as one) All the Relevant Gods is here. A box of copies arrived last week, so now I have to go about emptying it! There are reviews to solicit, copies to send out, readings to secure – I already have readings confirmed for Needlewriters Lewes in April, plus ReadingRead more ⟶