I’ve been a proper worker bee so far this year, and what an adventure it’s been!
Since restrictions have eased, I’ve been out and about, offering workshops in a number of different settings. National Poetry Day was celebrated at Charles Kingsley’s School in Hampshire, where children delved into their imaginations to describe their fantasy ‘dream day’, whilst older ones focused upon communicating climate issues through the medium of eco-poetry, inspired by Julia Donaldson’s Tiddler.
I spent a wonderful afternoon at Reading’s Red Balloon Centre, chatting about being a poet and encouraging students to have a go at a few exercises. We had lots of fun, and I was astonished by the poetry which came forth from the session.
More recently, my poetry wingman Zannah Kearns and I led a workshop on performance poetry with undergraduates at the University of Reading. What a lovely group, and how willing they were to have a go (even when I asked them to project bits of Shakespeare with their arms in the air…) We concluded the session with a staged open mic and were flabbergasted by the talent exhibited. What a treat.
I’m hungry for more opportunities, so if you’re keen to arrange a talk, tutorial or workshop for a class, group or business, then do get in touch.…
Performances
Zoom has been a blessing to us poetry lot, and I am so thankful that despite the chaos of the last two years, our community has put its best foot forward and branched out, using every tool available to keep sharing our lovely words. I’ve made some great friends who I’ve never even met(!), and their support has made all the difference. It was such a joy reading at Poets, Prattlers & Pandemonialists alongside the great Kevin Higgins, and I’m looking forward to supporting TS Eliot Prize nominee, Dan Sluman at Cheltenham Poetry Festival later this month.
Course
I was thrilled to be offered a place on the PG Cert ‘Teaching Creative Writing at Cambridge’s Institute of Continuing Education (ICE). The reading has been intense, but my brain has soaked up so much in a short time. I’ve met some truly wonderful people, and I’ve even found that writing an assignment can be (dare I say it) enjoyable – providing the subject matter is right! Three long weekends spent at Madingley Hall (pictured) in Cambridge, being catered for and generally spoilt has been incredible too. I’ll be applying all I learn to my workshop offering, and I’m already bursting with ideas to get people writing and discovering the poetic voice within.
New micro-pamphlet
One year on from the launch of ‘Lost & Found’, I’m delighted to announce that a collaborative micro-pamphlet written with the talent that is Jules Whiting will be published by Hedgehog Press next year. Based upon our experiences of Electroencephalograms (what else?), this mini-collection came about organically, and I’m so proud of the resulting poems. ‘What colour is my brain?’ will be released as part of Hedgehog’s gorgeous ‘Stickleback’ series.
Well, that’s enough to be getting on with. The next update will be showing off my new office (shed) where I shall be hibernating amongst piles of paper into the start of the year.
Well wishes and warmth to you all x