An blog update for National Poetry Day! To celebrate, not only have I just recorded an interview with the immensely talented Tishani Doshi for Planet Poetry, but this evening I’ll be at Hastings Stanza for some poem sharing and workshopping. All very fitting. Everything’s cranking up now it’s the autumn: the publicity machine for variousRead more ⟶
Category: Submissions
Keeping track of poetry magazines: getting down and dirty
I’ve just finished trawling through hundreds of poetry magazine websites. It’s my quarterly mission: to update the spreadsheet that I send out to a few thousand poets. Every time it seems to become more challenging: the process of pulling up-to-date information from a magazine’s web presence requires a kind of forensic mindset: never believe theRead more ⟶
Subs, poddie, choirs & a greenhouse
When you login to your blog and see there are 16 updates required it can only mean one thing – it’s been a bit neglected! So here’s a somewhat belated update… The podcast is nearing the end of its fourth season! When it comes to the home stretch Peter and I tend to get aRead more ⟶
On spirituality, a submission and the wonder of lists
Wow, I felt a lot of love for RS Thomas after my last blog post. I wonder if we need more spirituality today, generally I mean. I speak as a moderate atheist. I think I used to call myself an ‘agnostic’ – wanting to leave the door open I suppose – but we all growRead more ⟶
The positives of submitting less to magazines
I recently came across this blog post by Naush Sabah about why we send our poems to magazines (or not). I’m in agreement with her on just about all of it, although I needed telling some things; for example: You needn’t seek to publish every poem you write. Some work is for the drawer, someRead more ⟶
Round up: poems, podcast, garden, new photos…
News round-up time… written in haste, before the Wimbledon Men’s final… The Pod Peter Kenny and I have just wrapped up the last episode of Season 3 of Planet Poetry. Our guest was Richard Skinner, a fitting ‘finale’ as he led us through a fascinating poetry landscape in which OuLiPo, curtal sonnets, Caedmon and cutupsRead more ⟶
Midsummer update: poetry projects, novel stuff, podcast…
It’s been a busy few weeks. Today started very well by my getting the Wordle in one – third time this year! If you don’t know what Wordle is then I apologise. But a ONE is pure luck. I danced around the room – Nick probably thought I’d got a book deal. Speaking of which:Read more ⟶
And in other writing…
Not much new to report on the poetry writing front, except for a dozen or so poems in submission (“in submission”? Should it be “under submission”? I won’t say ‘Under consideration” because that suggests the darn things are actually being read by someone, and there’s no knowing if that’s the case. Anyway I think IRead more ⟶
Why I missed the TS Eliot readings, plus the good and the bad of January
Hurray! Spring is on its way! Well, the days are lengthening at least….It’s been a busy start to the year although I don’t seem to have got any poetry written. I’ve actually mostly been reading and researching a story which might turn into (whisper it) a novel – I know, I know, and me alwaysRead more ⟶
A holiday and a vintage submissions spreadsheet
On a holiday Just back from a short trip to the Netherlands where the weather was spectacularly mild and dry for late October. I can’t recall ever being at the seaside in just a T shirt and jeans on my birthday! And what a seaside. It was my first visit to the Netherlands (I don’tRead more ⟶