The Things to Come…. Marvellous May

The Hay House Summit has finished, missed most of the final sessions as I was busy with workshops and performances. My MOOC course ‘How Writers Write Poetry’ – University of Iowa is in its final few days, I am mainly saving resources and completing some of the internal projects which I encountered during the 7 weeks. I take a lot away from this course including 10 decently edited and possibly ready (although currently resting in that metaphoric drawer) poems.

Both elements of April/May have been great fun and have served me well. I have a whole notebook from Hay House and several print outs and saved websites and resources to refer back to and explore more when I have the time.

I have also 48hours off from performing – in which time I will be catching up, blogging and possibly working on more writing.

It is an exciting time and you have these posts to look forward to (some may appear in Poetry Wraps);

• The WLF Programme – Worcester LitFest 2015
• Ledbury Poetry Festival 2015
• Longlisted for WPL – Worcestershire Poet Laureate 2015-16
• SpeakEasy with Angela Topping and Sarah James
• Published by Paper Swans
• Stanza
• Tickets for John Hegley
• 42, Fairies & Pixies
• Writing a poem inspired by Jonathan Edwards (Costa Award winning poet)
• Workshop with Angela France
• Word Up
• Opus Club with Hannah Silva

and of course the monthly review.

So I had best get writing, keep reading!

x

Celebrating World Poetry Day

I spent the day performing in Walsall, first at Southcart Books and later at Caldmore Gardens.

 The last time I performed here was Small Business Saturday, this time Scott and Amy had organised a group of Poets to read to mark World Poetry Day.

 It was a great event and I always love browsing in bookshops. I bought 2 poetry books last time I was here, I bought 2 books this time too.

Then I hotfooted over to Caldmore Gardens to read with David Calcutt (Poet in Residence) and Janet Jenkins at the Open Day. Making my Poetry Day complete.

 

My Time in the Wilderness

Wasn’t really in wilderness at all, just poetless and writingless, so, yes… wilderness!

Mid-March I just stopped, completely unplanned and unintentional, muse seemed to have left the building and I was physically & mentally drained, all my energy was used up working the daytime and by the time it came to the evening, I was falling asleep an hour after getting home from work.

I decided to let it happen, rather than push on with my performance agenda. I was feeling sad about not writing, but even typing up previously penned poems seemed too much. At the time I wasn’t worried, knowing this time would pass.

There were 5 submission pieces I had scheduled to work on, three poetry nights (Mouth & Music, Howl & Speakeasy) that I missed and a Stanza meeting, due to an important family occassion (which weeks later led to a new poem being penned). All this went out the window and was swapped for work, sleep, real life mortgage hunting, meetings and TV.

I was activiated after 7 days by Mad Malvern Book Promotion events https://awritersfountain.wordpress.com/2015/03/30/malvern-book-promoters-mad-march-book-promotion-events/ and working for WWM (Writing West Midlands) – who have sent incredibly exciting news this month. The following week I had another week off, missing Hit The Ode and some submission deadlines. I was performing again by the weekend in a charity event at Martineau Gardens ‘Nomad Variety’. https://awritersfountain.wordpress.com/2015/03/31/nomad-variety-at-martineau-gardens/

Followed by a celebration of WORLD BOOK DAY with two events/readings in Walsall.

https://awritersfountain.wordpress.com/2015/03/31/celebrating-world-poetry-day/

The only reason I missed a 3rd week of events in March was to cover my transport costs to LONDON, which due to such a hellish journey (a breakdown on the hard shoulder on the outskirts of London resulted in a 3 hour delay, making a three hour journey take closer to seven hours, we were running late as it was) I am hoping to be reimbursed.

I missed Poetry Bites with Jacqui Rowe, particularly sad not to see Robert Harper’s (Barefiction) full set and missed Jayne Stanton too. The following night I missed Drummonds 42 with Andrew Owens. My Caldmore Community Gardens workshop was cancelled – having already turned work down, I treated myself to a much needed writing day and at least sent a backlog of poetry to David Calcutt for his Natural Histories website.

http://naturalhistoriesblog.com/others-writing/

I also worked on a couple of new poems from notes in my writing journals, from previous workshops with Angela France and Jean Atkin.

On Friday I went to London for Hark Issue #4 Launch and reading – very exciting! Once I had slept all of Saturday in recovery of a 22hour day on 5 hours sleep, I found as if by magic, I had woken up with my poetry muse back! We have been celebrating every since.

LINKS TO FOLLOW

A Week of ‘S’ Scary Canary – Permission to Speak, Saxon and Stanza

 

CORINIUM MUSEUM POETRY COMPETITION

I have had a busy week with just 1 day off, which I used for writing, with everything else that has been happening I have only managed 4 writing days ALL YEAR so far! I finally got to write my poem for the Corinium Museum Competition, a group of us Stanza members went on a road trip/ research/ field trip last month.  I was relieved to get my poem written after hours of research and trying to make sense or find creativity in the pages and pages of scribbled notes. Now that the pressure is over, I am sure I will manage to write more – there’s a Mrs Getty poem and a sheep poem at least waiting to be written.

 

PERMISSION TO SPEAK – Scary Canary the Venue – with Rob Francis

 Photo Credit: Mary Davies

Rob Francis – a local poet who has moved back to homelands from Leeds and has started a new Poetry Night in Stourbridge, I met him in November and have enjoyed watching him perform his sets ever since. The headline was Fergus McGonigal and I wanted to go and support Worcester’s Poet Laureate. I have been asked to headline myself and have chosen May as I have a few other things happening in March (will post about these soon).

I had a fun time finding the venue – who knew there was Scary Canary the Ladies Dress shop, and Scary Canary in Victoria Passage, a now empty menswear shop and then finally – down the other end of the high street the venue. It is such a cool place – I will take my camera next time (Caution Poet is headlining in March) and post photos. Rob had a very successful first night and it was great to perform under a spotlight (because you can’t see the audience)! It was a great night, thoroughly enjoyed. It was great to catch up with friends and get lots of positive feedback on my set.

 

SAXON

After working all day I took Mr G and two friends to see SAXON at Civic Hall. Mr G and I saw a tribute band a while back who were brilliant and Mr G decided he wanted to see the real Saxon. He made do with some DVDs that Christmas, then they decided to tour! So we got tickets.

It was a fun night and I was front row all night! Really good position, it was funny seeing people of all ages rocking out. Afterwards everybody wanted to carry on partying, which would normally be okay – but I had work the next day. The booking was originally for Monday and got changed to Friday – I had attempted a day off after the gig. I spent the day with Nursery – it was a good job I had been driving the night before.

 

STANZA

After work on Friday I was so exhausted I came home and went straight to bed. This just about revitalised me for an evening of poetry, but I was very glad I went as there were an abundant amount of strong poetry and I received ideas for mine that I hadn’t considered. It was an enjoyable night as always.

However, I had no energy left to get to the Opus Club on Saturday night – hope to make the next one.

I spent some time on Tuesday checking out Arts Jobs and festivals. There are tickets I need to buy for Wenlock and Stratford (both in April). I nearly applied for a job this evening but there is a higher level of commitment and investment than I first realised and I am unsure whether the position is right for me right now.

I also received my copy of Maps and Legends – Nine Arches Press and can’t wait to get stuck in and I saw Mike Alma and bought a copy of his book too.

I have spent most of the weekend asleep and now have a week of poetry and work to look forward to again. I have 2 days work so far, Tuesday evening is Mouth & Music in Kidderminster – Guests are Lorna Meehan and Katie Wragg, Wednesday night is a new one called HOWL, in the city – hoping for Open Mic spot and Thursday sees SpeakEasy in Worcester with Gary Longden (Stafford’s Poet Laureate) headline. I am hoping to just enjoy a night out listening to everyone else perform. Then it is Mr G’s birthday and Valentines Day … so a busy weekend coming up too.

 

A Wonderful Week of Writing – Workshops, Guest Slots & Work

The last week of January was a busy one – apart from working at a desk on ‘actual’ writing and submissions I was also quite active as a poet. On Wednesday I went to Walsall to take part in another of David Calcutt’s Workshops at Caldmore community Gardens, where he is poet in residence, in the evening I performed at the 42nd 42, a special evening full of cracking talent and then on Friday night I appeared alongside Antony Owen and Lily Blacksell as Host Poets at Word Up, a great night now hosted by Ddotti Bluebell & Jasmine Gardosi.

This month I have only performed at 25% of all the events I have been invited to and that’s about 75% less than last January, I have possibly written more – although I have suffered one of those annoying blanks this weekend as I desperately try and push a couple of Corinium poems out. My intention for 2015 was to perform less and write more, so far I think I have balance. Let’s see if I can keep it up!

Caldmore Community Garden Workshop with David Calcutt

 This was my 3rd Caldmore workshop, ‘Write in the Moment’ and I had been looking forward to it all month. Unfortunately I got lost having come off the motorway a junction too late and ended up stuck in a one way system. As soon as I have acknowledged everyone with a quick hello, I got straight down to writing and because I had been in the garden before it wasn’t too difficult to catch up. In fact by the end of the workshop I had 2 pieces of writing and a poem that almost worked.

Janet Jenkins took more photos, she has a wonderful collection from the very first workshop (the one I missed) and the changes in the garden throughout the seasons are exceptional to see side by side. Of course, having had an allotment for 5 years I know how much these public spaces change with the seasons and weather, it reminds me that Mr G and I always said we would stitch our allotment photographs together.

It was a fun workshop and I met more writers – there have been a small group of us over Winter. Over lunch we shared news and heard about exciting projects everyone is currently involved with. I look forward to the next workshop, which once again falls on a day when I have an evening event/ performance.

      The 42nd 42 – Andrew Owens

I wasn’t able to make the final 42 of last year, so I was determined that I wasn’t going to miss this one. It is a sci-fi/dark themed event and I knew that fans of Douglas Adams wouldn’t let us down! They didn’t, it was a great night – wonderful to see people who only started performing there last summer gaining confidence and owning the stage as we enjoy their stories and poems.

Lots of fantastic work was shared and I particularly liked the 42 facts Andrew threw into the gaps between performances. All about 42 from years before I got back into the poetry saddle!  Polly Robinson also mentioned that she shares the pages of the Paragram Anthology ‘Remember’ (who published us just in time for Christmas) with me  and Andrew told everyone about my Guest Spot at Word Up on Friday.

Guest Poet at Word Up 

I was so excited when I received an email asking me to be a guest poet at this Birmingham event. We had an amazing turn out, especially considering ‘Je Suis Birmingham’ – a one off event of artists solidarity following the Charlie Hebdo killings, was happening on the same night.

Word Up often have more than one Guest Poet (Hosting – as they call it) and I shared the night with Antony Owen and Lily Blacksell. Phenomenal poets and performers, I was happy to share the mic with them.

Tariq Jahan was also there – he lost his son in the riots three years ago (2011) and is good friends now with Antony Owen, whose poem ‘Unbranded’ is about this. He is a poet unafraid to write about violence. Tariq now works around the world spreading peace and hope, he makes things better. An exceptional human being and the story he shared from his trip to Syria is one we should all hear.

There were lots of new faces and people who had come from Oxford and Wales to perform too. I loved seeing everyone again, I didn’t realise it has been 3 months since I saw them and about 5 weeks since I last performed in Birmingham. I am very grateful I was at Word Up and heard Tariq speak.

Unbranded – The Year I loved England Pighog Press

You can find out more about the work Tariq does here http://www.pennyappeal.org.

If you have anything to donate please follow the links above. To buy the wonderful collection of Joseph Horgan & Antony Owen click here

http://www.pighog.co.uk/titles/the-year-i-loved-england.html

 there are links at the bottom of the page for customers in UK/EU/GLOBAL

https://awritersfountain.wordpress.com/2014/07/19/book-launch-the-year-i-loved-england-by-antony-owens-joseph-horgan/

‘This poetry expresses poignantly the emotions that I at times find difficult to articulate. The words pierced my soul and brought back the images, emotions and feelings of those days in August 2011 when Britain burnt’

Tariq Jahan

As for work – well the mortgage payments continue to be provided through the part time day job whilst I search for more artistic ways to cover the bills. I think I may have found a completely suitable one. So next week now has JOB APPLICATION added to the almighty To Do list.

There are 2 poetry events, (well there are 5 but only 2 penned into my diary), 1 stanza  and Mr G and I are off out for a rare night at a gig, having stated he was too old for it all last year! We saw a Saxon tribute band a few years ago and were blown away by them, I am still grinning from my backstage moment and the fact that Mr G has the bass guitarists t-shirt! Anyway, Mr G said if they ever re-formed he’d love tickets…. well …

They did and we are off to see them. The gig was scheduled for December but the drummer ended up in hospital! I am also working all week, bar Tuesday – if I am awake that will be my writing day!

A Great Night at Word Up!

I have had an amazing night – now on the post performance adrenalin mixed with sugar rush of waffles from ‘Something Sweet’!

It was an amazing night at Word Up, Ddotti had managed to get a PA system and the mic can really help over the noise of the coffee house/bakery busy times!

Ian Bowkett was brilliant and I loved watching him perform again and have come home with some of his poems to enjoy as soon as I have downloaded them.

All the other performances were a really high standard too and lots of new faces. I managed for the 1st time EVER, to perform a poem from memory and I managed it with a confident performance too!

I was delighted to see Kate Walton (Story Tramp) again, before she goes off to do all the summer festivals, it was a shame she couldn’t perform but the slots were so full, we were bursting at the seams!

After a great few hours it was over, it finishes 9.30 as York’s Bakery shuts, as with last time I made it (back in February I think) a group of us, most of us who performed and some who watch went to the other side of the city to Something Sweet to eat waffles, crepes and sundaes at the 24hour waffle place! It was great fun, despite having to split over 2 tables as there wasn’t a big enough table for us all.

It is a great time to chat – as I have said before, the gigs are great but there is never time to socialise in the interval with everyone and if people all leave at the end of the night there will definitely be a handful of people (at least) who you wanted to speak to and never had the chance.

I had no idea how late it was – but it was around midnight when I got home!

Buzzing on sugar and adrenaline!

A Day of Poetry Thursday 17th April – Poetry For Lunch & – Birmingham

I have enjoyed my first week off work, I love life in my writing skin. I spent the first 3 days writing, reading  and making submissions, well one submission, the rest weren’t ready for the deadline and there is no point submitting any below par writing. The weather we had at the beginning of the week was gorgeous. I spent every afternoon in the garden and Mr G took a couple of half days to enjoy the sun with me.

By Thursday I was ready to go out and about, after a 3 day rest, (I had been out on small errands, to post the submission the old fashioned way and to pick up a take-away tea).

Poetry For Lunch and Tea

 I had a double booking in the city. Poetry for Lunch (now POETRY FOR LUNCH) with  Jan Watts and then in the evening I was going to watch poetry performances at  HIT THE ODE, which included such big headliners this month that tickets (usually bought on the door) were pre-booked online. The room was also full of headliners just watching from the audience. It was such a great day!

Poetry For Lunch – Library of Birmingham

I got into the city from the suburbs by train and rushed to the Library of Birmingham for POETRY FOR LUNCH, it was great to be back (since I started my contract I work Thursdays) and lovely to see Jan again – and as it is Easter, she had bought mini eggs for us to share. Mmmmmm. There were some people I had not seen perform before and a few people I didn’t know. I shared a couple of poems – it is the first time I haven’t needed to wear a coat!

Part way through I noticed my friend, Tracy watching from the steps. She smiled and took some photos. Lovely to see her. Then later on towards the end of the event who should I spot in the audience, but….. a celebrity! 🙂

Frank Skinner (who had attempted to hide behind his hands), it didn’t work, Frank – you will have to come and meet us all next week if your show is still in town, he is performing at The Hippodrome.

Copyright Bernard Davis 2014

 

 

Poets Eat and Drink – An Afternoon in the City

After PFL a group of us went for drinks together and spent a few hours chatting – there is never time at events to really socialise and a couple of us were staying in town for the hours between these gigs. It was great to catch up with people I have not seen for a few months. Later on I went to a buffet place for tea (lovely) before hitting Hit The Ode.

A Great Time Had By All At 42!

 I accepted the great challenge of writing material which would be suitable for this event – as I am such a scaredy cat that my over active imagination struggles to keep any grasp on reality. Sometimes I challenge myself to read books from this genre but cannot read them after dark!

Anyway I knew I had written some poems this year that would be suitable and I set about writing a few new ones.

I know that often poet’s perform the same set or parts of it – I like the fact that signing up to a new event forces me to write new material.

1 month – 5 events in Leamington, Stratford-Upon-Avon, Birmingham and Worcester.

And my confidence is high – audiences are so kind and other poets are great at giving feedback.

*Mid spooky verse

Thanks to Andrew Owens for making me feel so welcome and using my blog tag line in the introduction!

I also saw a writer I met back in April at Keith Lindsay’s Writing Workshop. We got talking and he leant me a book – about writing – will help me through NaNoWriMo for sure!

 So thanks for trusting me with it James.

I had a fabulous night, heard a mixture of stories and poems and had some great feedback on my set.

The adrenalin is surging!

The only sad thing – is about 20 minutes before I was due to leave for the city – I found out that it was optional fancy dress. In previous years I have loved dressing up for Halloween

    

and this year we hadn’t made any plans to. The only party/ gig we have been invited to clashes with a gig we have already booked so until a few weeks ago I had no need for a costume. Unpacking my fancy dress wasn’t a priority and it is still buried somewhere in the 3rd bedroom (which we will tackle later this week!) … I did have skulls on my dress…. and at least I didn’t have to worry about my make up running!

A spoken word event was the perfect way for me to include Halloween into 2013.

The next one is a Flash Fiction event, so may need to work on some material for a while!

Another Great Night Behind the Mic

Last Thursday I ventured into the City to a Spoken Word event at the ORT café.

It was a fantastic evening, a great mix of performers – stand up, music, monologues, story telling and of course, poetry.

It was also my 3rd return to life behind the mic. The atmosphere was wonderful and the audience very receptive. Somewhere between the first poem and the end of my set I found my confidence … nerves vanished and in an almost out of body experience way I heard the voice of a lioness come from deep within.

That performance poet who has sat on a shelf gathering dust since 1998, reappeared! It went really well and I received positive feedback.

As if the night couldn’t get any better… I had a chance to speak to other performers and met Tessa Lowe, a fellow poet who told me about a festival at the university, which I hadn’t come across. It is the first year they’re attempting it and advertising isn’t as widely posted as many other local events. (They could have ridden on the coat tails of Birmingham Literature Festival, I will email the organisers with ideas for next year as far as promotion and marketing – although I suppose the faculty has a limited budget!)

 

Last night I ventured back into the City, walked around campus feeling my old student spirit rise to the surface. That home within a home feel that I never really felt when I was studying for degrees, but 14 years into the real world, campus is a safe place I yearn to belong to.

I was attending several events as part of ‘Book to the Future’ festival created by and mainly for the

I had heard of Jan Watts as she was poet Laureate a few years ago. I had also heard of ‘Phenomenal Women’… A group of talented female (as the name suggests) writers/ poets.

After searching the web for a while I found the festival programme and read that Jan was interested in hearing from other performers. I dropped her an email, along with Andrew Kileen and Katharine D’Souza whose events I had missed over the weekend.

Before lunch my 4th performance this month was confirmed.

 

 

Even the hot flushes of nerves seemed to have diminished by this evening, although they may have been helped by the open window! And the familiar environment of a lecture hall.

It was a great night with some fantastic performances. Inspiring. I read many more poems that I had planned, as we all got a second bite of the Apple. I also found out that the theme was family – none of us knew that… Not many of us connected our material…. I opened with a poem I had just scribbled whilst Jan introduced the evening. It was about and for my great aunty Sheila who celebrated her birthday with us on Sunday but whose actual birthday was Monday.

I opened my set with this poem.

 

Great night, next gig is Wednesday!