Happy New Writing Year

Great start to the year in the company of fine folk from Longford (nr Ashbourne) and environs (Longford Lane, Hollington, Ednaston, Smalley, Derby, and even Staffordshire!) who gathered yesterday in Cubley Village Hall to 'Write from Scratch' and leap into poetry. Many thanks to Angela Churchill from Longford Book Group for superlative organising. I'll be in that neck of the woods again on April 21st, reading at Ashbourne Library.

Closer at hand, I'm reading at Spoken Word Antics, upstairs at the Red Deer, Pitt St, Sheffield next Tues 13th January, 8pm for 8.30pm, and selling copies of 'The Purpose of Your Visit' and 'Some Girls' Mothers' with all proceeds to medical aid for Gaza.

Cool Yule

Here's a splendid poem for the season, reproduced with kind permission of its author Shona Ashton (11).

You forget the true meaning of Christmas

The birth of Santa Claus

Here he comes now in his manger

Pulled by wild boars.

He had to use his manger

Cos his sleigh failed its MOT

Plus there was no snow this year

And the sleigh's a snow-riding machine.

Rudolph's lightbulb has broken

Either that or the battery's gone

The reindeers won't go anywhere without him

He's their hero, their Number One.

Santa has had enough now

Everything's going wrong

So if you're still waiting for presents

Be prepared to be waiting quite long.

Adrian Mitchell 1932 - 2008

Very sad news that Adrian Mitchell died on 20th December. Dubbed the 'Shadow Poet Laureate' by Red Pepper magazine, he was an inspiring, galvanising performer, a prolific playwright and poet of unsurpassed integrity, honesty and wit. Here's the Guardian obituary and the Bloodaxe page which includes video footage of Adrian reading his poetry.

Poet Laureate X Factor

The debate about Andrew Motion's successor continues. Here's Motion's advice and Mark Lawson's sharp take on it all (with a string of comments and proposals from others).

The DCMS is going to consult the public. Who would you vote for? Pam Ayres? Simon Armitage?

Writing on Stone

The 2009 Buxton Poetry Competition is underway. In the new year I'll be running workshops in Derbyshire schools on the theme: stone. Here's a Poetry Archive classic to whet your appetites and chisels: Wall by the Cumbrian poet Norman Nicholson (1914 - 1987).

To change tack.. I've won first prize for poetry in the Chroma Queer Writing Competition with Return, a 'specular' poem (reads line-by-line the same backwards as forwards). It's also a 'concrete' poem (the shape reflects the subject) which nicely takes us back to stone and walls :) ...

Photo: Dry stone wall, Edale. photoeverywhere.co.uk

Killamarsh: Ready, Steady... Write!

Today I was in misty Killamarsh for an inspiring morning of reading, writing and discussing poetry. Thanks to Michelle from the Library who organised the event, and to Wendy, Ann, Sheila, Elaine, Tina, Lynne, Lynne and Dorothy who wrote wonderful autumnal poems. They've started a new writing group - the first meeting is at the Library on Wednesday 3rd December, 4 til 6pm - all welcome.

Poetry & Money

There's no money in poetry, but then there's no poetry in money, either. (Robert Graves)

Thanks to Cathy Grindrod for drawing my attention to the following, apposite for our 'interesting' times, written by poet Richard Armour.

That money talks
I'll not deny,
I heard it once:
It said, 'Goodbye'.

You have until midnight tonight to enter the Poetry Society's National Poetry Competition, where the first prize is £5,000.

If you want prime poetry for minimal outlay there's still 2 days left to catch an event at Sheffield's Off The Shelf Festival.

A final word on the subject:
'Money doesn't talk. It swears.' (Bob Dylan)

Thanks to Doug Savage for permission to use the Chickens. Check out more of his great poetry-related cartoons here.