The Spoken Word As An Art Form

A fun morning yesterday. I was asked to represent the Cheltenham Poetry Festival at the Cheltenham Ladies College and to introduce the poet and performance artist Rebecca Tantony, who was to run a workshop with a group of students aged 12 - 14. It was my first meeting with Rebecca, but I shall certainly see to it that it isn't my last!

It was fascinating to see how Rebecca engaged with the students and involved every single one of them in the exercises she did. There was a near riot in the Rhyming Wars game! But peace descended and concentration was etched on every face for the "What makes me me?" exercise at the end of the morning. Six brave students then volunteered to perform their poetry - which was brilliant and extremely moving. A thoroughly enjoyable session.

Rebecca Tantony

Rebecca teaches creative writing to all sorts of groups and has been writer in residence at very varied venues. I recently came across her book "Talk you round till dusk" (Burning Eye). It's a great mixture of poems, flash fiction and superb illustrations byAnna Higgie. Well worth a look if you've not seen it.

Getting out the red pen ..

Until this week I wasn't familiar with Auden's words - "A poem is never finished, only abandoned". But I was at an excellent workshop on Tuesday in which we were looking at editing - hardly sounds the most riveting of subjects, but I learned a lot of very useful lessons. Less is often more and coming back to a piece of work after some time, looking at it with fresh eyes and editing appropriately can certainly be the making of it. I've been reviewing some of my older poems since and finding many opportunities to "tighten them up" - and some do read a whole lot better for it!.

Mists and mellow fruitfulness?!

The diary tells me it's November, NaNoWriMo means it definitely is November but nature in these parts seems a little confused! Walking my dog in the woods this morning I came across catkins dancing on birch branches a couple of months ahead of their usual time, and in the garden, almost buried beneath the mounds of fallen leaves I must clear up today, my primrose was in full bloom. It reminded me of a lovely story I once read as a child about the seasons swapping their characteristics with each other and the world getting into a real muddle - who it was by or what it was called I can't recall. I wonder if anyone else remembers it?

NaNoWriMo 2015

November 1st yet again - and all over the world aspiring novelists will be beavering away to get that first draft of their novel of 50,000 words written in a month. Good luck with it, everyone!

Whilst I'm not on the novel tack, I am planning to use the month for a really concentrated focus on my writing. My first task is to actually take stock of where I am at the moment; I have had several projects on the go for a while  - these need prioritising, then whipping into shape (and hopefully - for some - completing); vague ideas for poems and plays (a couple of notebooks worth) need thinking through and fleshing out. So I'm pledging at least half a day every weekday, starting tomorrow ...

If you feel inspired to do something but are not quite sure what it's all about, do look at the National Novel Writing Month website - lots of information and encouragement there, and you'll certainly have a lot of company!

Image courtesy of National Novel Writing Month

Countdown to November 1st

An interesting couple of poetry events in the last week - firstly the launch of Anna Saunders' "Kissing The She Bear", a collaborative venture with photographer William Humphries. It's a really lovely exploration of myths from far and wide and the marriage of poems and photographs works quite magically. The second event was a cream tea at the Greenway Hotel in Shurdington that accompanied a reading by the Cheltenham Poetry Festival Players; the theme was "Gardens" and we were entertained with a short but comprehensive coverage of works from the past five hundred years. I must say I much prefer listening to poems about gardens to actually getting out and doing much work in them!

Anna Saunders

But the main thrust here in recent days has been sorting out other commitments ready for NaNoWriMo which starts on Sunday. If I'm to make headway with my plans for the month (more of which to follow) there won't be much opportunity for the myriad household tasks that usually sap the creative energy. So it's an onslaught this week on everything I most dislike about domesticity ....

Looking beneath the familiar

Catchword, my writing group, had an “AwayDay” yesterday in the small Cotswold town of Painswick. After coffee at the Patchwork Mouse, we explored individually for a while, seeking inspiration in the historic buildings and fabulous surrounding countryside. Then, after a very good lunch at the Butchers Arms in Sheepscombe, we adjourned for a writing afternoon at one of our number's home.

I have lived not ten miles from Painswick for more then twenty years and have visited often during that time but, thinking about the day later, I thought how true my friend Susie's comment was - 'The interesting thing is that if you go to a place to write, then the place becomes more interesting because you look at it with an artist’s eyes rather than being  detached or disconnected from it. Writing gives you a more direct connection ... and this may be something to remember in other places, even those that are familiar.'

I certainly saw in Painswick yesterday so much that I had overlooked before - and gained a lot of inspiration for new writing. Watch this space as they say!

"In Performance"

We were a small, select little band at Deepspaceworks Arts Centre here in Charlton Kings on Friday evening for a New Bohemians workshop. Actor and poet Eley Furrell and his partner Kim facilitated an evening of tremendous fun, concentrating on the basic skills of performance - skills so vital to writers of both prose and poetry in today's world of constant readings, interviews, media visibility. Lots to learn but a safe, supportive group in which to practice - a really good session.

Eley and Kim

The next New Bohemians event will be on December 11th - "Christmas Crackers". In addition to our Christmas celebration, the evening will see the launch of Picaresque's new pamphlet, "Poetry Among The Paintings". Do put the date in your diary now - we'd love to see you there for what promises to be a great evening.