The Poets' Hare!

I had no idea that winning the Gloucestershire Writers Network poetry competition for the Cheltenham Literature Festival involved taking on custody of a hare for twelve months! But adorning my desk as I write is this chap; I've yet to find out his history and his actual significance but I know that he has spent time with some winning poets who have gone on to far greater things than I can ever aspire to, so I am delighted to have his company.

And the event at which he was presented to me was fantastic - I'm sure it will mark the pinnacle of my literary career! Along with the winner of the prose section of the competition and ten runners-up (including my colleague John Holland from Somewhere Else Writers) I was entertained in the Writers Room at the Festival before our readings in The Studio. It's quite a capacious venue and it was so exciting (if a little intimidating) to have a large audience of family, friends, local writers and general festival goers.

With Rona Laycock, writer and event organiser

The judges from both sections of the competition were with us - Jennifer Cryer, who had judged the prose, and Jennie Farley, who had judged the poetry. It was fascinating to hear the variety of work that had been inspired by the Festival title "Memory" - some autobiographical, some family oriented, some purely fictional.

The evening was concluded by Jennie with a wonderful selection of her own poems on the theme, speaking to us so movingly of childhood, parents, love and lovers.

I still haven't really come down to earth after it all. Over the past few days I've been to several other events with "proper" writers presenting their work and I just can't believe that I've been a small part of such an amazing festival!.