Caroline at Coastcard

Publication Pointer (2): The Book of Forms (4th edition) by Lewis Putnam Turco

2012-01-26T22:16:00.005Z

Professor Lewis Turco's work, The Book of Forms, is now available in its 4th Edition, published by the University Press of New England. This new 'revised and expanded edition' has as its subtitle, A Handbook of Poetics Including Odd and Invented Forms.

A copy of the third edition (published in 2000) has long been my constant poetry companion. I have learned so much about what Professor Turco calls 'the elements of poetry', comprising 'levels of language usage'. I have been fascinated by the plethora of covered forms, from one line adonics to 210 lined sonnets redoubled.

The latest edition contains all these features plus added extras in the guise of 'odd and invented forms'. If I home in on British contributions for a moment, you will find a description of Dr Marc Latham's Folding Mirror Poetry, with an example by Claire Knight and a second one by yours truly. Crossing the Severn and moving on into Wales, you will discover a most inventive, if somewhat discordant, form called The Clang, developed by Llewelyn Hugh Nicholas of Swansea's 'Tuesday Poetry' group. If this form reminds me of anything, I suppose it would be the poem, 'Denial' by George Herbert, but this is just a personal hunch. I can vouch for the fact that The Clang is a fun form to try.

Lewis Putnam Turco is an emeritus professor of English. He was the founding director of the Cleveland State University Poetry Center and of the Department of Creative Writing at the State University of New York College at Oswega. The new edition, with sample poems by established names like Robert Frost and newer names like Greg Pincus, can be purchased from UPNE: the details can be found here. You can read the reviews on Amazon here.

In these days when 'form' in poetry is not always a prized word, I find it encouraging to know that there is popular global demand for clear explanations about the numerous different styles of poetry. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to writer-editors like Professsor Turco, not forgetting movements such as Dr. H. Tulsi's 'World Renaissance for Classical Poetry', which was founded in Visakhapatnam, India. Many of us enjoy the challenge of experimenting with word and structure.

In drawing these thoughts to a close, I would also wish to express my thanks to those who create these new forms for us to enjoy. For after all ...

"It can be argued that to invent a verse-form which becomes immortal,

living on in the works of future poets and in other languages,

is one of the greatest achievements possible for a poet ..."

Martin Lyon, 'Acumen', issue 71 (Sept 2011), p.71

Magazine Moment (28): Orintont Literar Contemporan - Canary Islands number

2012-01-24T14:51:00.002Z

Literary greetings from Romania!

I was delighted to receive the first 2012 edition of Orizont Literar Contemporan from editor-in-chief, Daniel Dragomirescu from Bucharest, Romania. This special issue celebrates the work of twelve poets from the Canary Islands, namely . . .

Rosario Valcarcel
Felix Martin Arencibia
Teresa Delgado Duque
Teca Barreira
Isa Guerra
Samir Delgado
Antonio Arroyo Silva
Russo Rodriguez
Berbel
Noel Olivares
Aquiles Garcia Brito
Daniel Bernal Suarez

I am particularly grateful, too, for the smart certificate. Thank you to Daniel and all who work hard behind the scenes in Bucharest. May 2012 be a great multicultural year for the magazine.

Poetry Matters (16): Awel Aman Tawe Competition 2012

2012-01-02T15:39:00.000Z


Wind power (as it once was) . . .

I wonder what global warming means to ME, to YOU?

Perhaps, like me, you have recently been mesmerised by the stunning images and stirred by the alarming commentary in the recent BBC series, 'Frozen Planet'. I see there is still a programme of highlights to come.

Living metres from the water and having had a telephone call about a particularly high tide from the Environment Agency in the last fortnight, I have had cause to ponder this question once again. If you write poetry in English or Welsh, you may like to enter the Awel Aman Tawe Poetry Competition for 2012 on (you guessed) . . .

CLIMATE CHANGE.

Carol Ann Duffy is the judge for entries in English. Elin ap Hywel is the judge for entries in Welsh. The closing date is 31 March 2012.

Details of the anthology from last year's Awel Aman Tawe competition can be found here.

Poetry Matters (15): Cafe Poets in Woodbridge

2011-11-12T22:22:00.001Z

We joined the Cafe Poets at the lovely venue of Browsers' Bookshop in Woodbridge last night for the first time, and enjoyed an eclectic evening of poetry. The November themes of 'war' and remembrance' ran through the programme, with the chance to focus on works by Edward Thomas (hence my photo above), Siegfried Sassoon, Milton and others. Some members had brought their own work, and a good time was had by all. We enjoyed the coffee and cake, too! Thank you to all concerned.

Fiesta Time (9): Scotland at the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival

2011-11-05T23:00:00.003Z

We spent a grey November day in Aldeburgh, enjoying the 23rd Aldeburgh Poetry Festival, laid on by The Poetry Trust. We had visited this beautiful east coast town before, but this was our first visit in 'festival season'.

Aldeburgh is proud of its poet, George Crabbe ...

We had tickets for the Scottish Islands Reading event in the Jubilee Hall. Poets like Jo Bell, who had not arrived when I took this photo, and Penelope Shuttle joined the audience of local people (like us!) and followers who had come from further afield. There were representatives from the Poetry Society, and it was good to meet Judith Palmer for the first time.

Words are the building blocks of poetry (see photo above), and it was particularly exciting to hear three poets flitting between languages, namely the languages of Gaelic, Shetlandic and English. Of course, this kind of rich diversity is not new to me, having just moved from the bilingual climate of Wales where the 'dragon has two tongues' (see here).

The three sets of readings were by Robert Alan Jamieson from Lerwick, Shetland; Meg Bateman, a lecturer at the Gaelic college, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, on Skye - and an honorary lecturer in English at St Andrews University ... and Rody Gorman, who was born in Dublin and also lives on Skye. Rody has translated Cavafy poems into Gaelic.

There were various threads running through the poems, and Jamieson's short poem, 'Welcome to the Folk Museum', struck a particular chord with me, reminding the reader (or listener) just how easy it is to 'romanticise' the Highland and island way of life, glossing over the stark realities at e.g. the time of the Clearances.

Readers of this blog will know that we have a great affinity with Eilean a' Cheò aka the 'Misty Isle'. We also enjoy (if that is the right word) the heart-rending poetry of the Raasay poet, Sorley MacLean, so we were particularly pleased to have the opportunity of hearing some modern Gaelic voices. It was interesting to learn that while Gaelic has a limited lexicon, it has a richness of its own as so many of its words have a plethora of meanings.

Thank you to all took part and to those who gave us fascinating insights into the poetry of the northern isles.

Aldeburgh ... in November

David Gill outside the Jubilee Hall

We spotted the home of a famous Aldeburgh resident ...

Magazine Moment (27): Reach Poetry (and Puffin)

2011-11-03T22:22:00.006Z

Reach Poetry issue 158 arrived this morning (thank you, Ronnie and Dawn at IDP). There are some great new poems in the magazine - not forgetting a fabulous cover of a certain Border Collie called Soxx.

It was great to find my name in 'The Box' for my 11-syllables per line Sonnet* on - you've guessed - those amazing Yorkshire Puffins. My poem was voted 4th out of those published in issue 157 - so thank you to all who chose it.

Many congratulations to Tina Negus, who took First Place with her brilliant poem, 'A Contradiction of Hoopoes'.

* Shakespeare's Sonnet XX had 11 lines per line, which was unusual - but I like the rhythm.

Creative Corner (1): Simply ... a Question Mark

2011-10-31T22:22:00.001Z

Photo © David Gill 2011

There has been a buzz of activity on the Waterfront just outside UCS today. A giant question mark sculpture, constructed in two parts by Langlands and Bell, is causing a wave of excitement as it begins to take shape. It has already aroused a measure of curiosity: what does it mean? What does it 'say' in the context of its location by the university campus?

David prepares to take some 'arty' shots of the installation through the window ...

... while I enjoy the view outside on the Waterfront, Ipswich

I decided to mount this photo on its end to show off the complementary question mark, made by the crane ... The sculpture is now 'under wraps'. One could say that it has been mummified, but I prefer to think of it as a chrysalis, awaiting the moment when it unfurls itself to unveil its full glory.

Question mark on its side, shielded by ticker tape.

Symbiosis: where does the crane end and the sculpture begin?

All under ticker-tape wraps ... as excitement mounts.

The scene on the Waterfront this evening. What will happen next?

Take a look here and here - and here for more views!

Fiesta Time (8): Aldeburgh Poetry Festival

2011-10-28T10:17:00.003+01:00

Sheep on the beautiful Hebridean island of Raasay, birthplace of poet, Somhairle MacGill-Eain/Sorely MacLean

We have just booked tickets for the Scottish Islands event at the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival, run by The Poetry Trust. Meg Bateman, Rody Gorman and Robert Alan Jamieson will be taking part.

A new Sorely MacLean volume, An Cuilithionn 1939: The Cuillin 1939 and Unpublished Poems came out in June this year. Thank you, Sally Evans of Poetry Scotland, for drawing attention to this on FB.

Further reading: what does it mean to be a Scottish writer?

Publication Pointer (2): Swansea International Poetry Festival Anthology

2011-10-26T22:02:00.001+01:00

Swansea's First International Poetry Festival, Summer 2011

This highly engaging festival was organised by Peter Thabit Jones, editor of The Seventh Quarry (mid front row in blue jacket) in association with Stanley Barkan, editor of Cross-Cultural Communications, New York (front row, right).

I am pleased to have a poem in the festival anthology: the publication has just been awarded Second Place by Geoff Stevens in the 'Best Poetry Anthology of 2011' section of the Purple Patch Small Press 'Best of' Lists' for 2011.

Competition Corner (1): A Message from India

2011-10-20T09:30:00.001+01:00

I heard this morning from Dr. H. Tulsi, the editor of Metverse Muse (Visakhapatnam, India) that I had obtained 'the FIRST rank' in the 2010 Metverse Muse Poetry Competition, 'having secured a total of 38 points for your two entries together, - 20 pts. for your poem “King of the ‘Kilt Rock’ Cloud” and 18 pts. for “Life’s Silken Thread”.'

A good way to start the day!

Kilt Rock, Isle of Skye

Publication Pointer (1): The Book of Forms (4th edition) by Lewis Turco

2011-10-17T11:14:00.022+01:00

Professor Lewis Turco has posted a list of contributors to his new volume here (including your truly) ...

The Book of Forms: A Handbook of Poetics, Including Odd and Invented Forms, Revised and Expanded Edition

by Lewis Putnam Turco

Paperback (November 2011)

Buy new: $27.95 $18.45

COMING SOON! ~ Available for Pre-order

Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping.

Other Formats: Digital

Fiesta Time (8): Aldeburgh Poetry Festival

2011-10-15T23:14:00.002+01:00

Above and below: views from Aldeburgh on the Suffolk coast.

The 23rd Aldeburgh Poetry Festival takes place here next month.

I had almost forgotten how beautiful the East Anglian landscape looks, with its intermittent 'punctuations' of dazzling white sails.

Calendar Corner (2): National Poetry Week 2011

2011-10-12T18:56:00.001+01:00

We have enjoyed a variety of literary events this last fortnight. We celebrated National Poetry Day (or 'Week' in South Wales) at Number 5 Cwmdonkin Drive, birthplace of Dylan Thomas. Thanks are due to Annie and Geoff for laying on a number of events, and to Peter Thabit Jones of The Seventh Quarry for organising a programme of readings for last Saturday night.

It was good to meet Ian Griffiths of the Suffolk Poetry Society and Geraldine Green from Cumbria. Singer-songwriter, Maria Lindström from Sweden, was on tour, and read some of her work bilingually. We were sorry not to coincide with Susan Richardson, who was performing on a different evening. Peter Thabit Jones directed - and acted in - a performance of his verse drama, 'The Boy and the Lion's Head'. David and I read alongside fellow Quarry Poets, Jean Salkilld (Tuesday Poets) and Lynn Hopkins (author of 'Creatures of a Dead Community', Seventh Quarry Press). Jill Goodwin-Croke read poems by Dylan and Caitlin's daughter, Aeronwy Thomas, including one about walking in her father's shadow in a literary kind of way.

'Games' was the assigned theme for this year's National Poetry Day, so I chose my poems with this in mind, reading 'The Ocean's Tears' (a Tercet Ghazal about a children's tide fight) and 'Lament of a Lewis Chessman' - about chess (just in case you were in any doubt!).

Exchanging news and views at Number 5

A lot seems to have happened since then!

We spent this afternoon in UCS at a lecture by Faber novelist, Louise Doughty, sponsored by the Suffolk Book League. Louise's latest novel, 'Whatever You Love' was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Prize and longlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction. Louise, however, is also well known for her how-to book, 'A Novel in a Year' - and I was pleased to buy a signed copy from her before she left Ipswich.

University Campus Suffolk, Waterfront, Ipswich - venue for Talk by Louise Doughty

Calendar Corner (1): National Poetry Week

2011-10-07T00:38:00.000+01:00

5 Cwmdonkin Drive, Swansea, Wales, UK

We are much looking forward to participating in ...

The International Dylan Thomas Birthplace Festival

Ways with Words

3 – 9 October 2011

David and I join Peter Thabit Jones (ed. The Seventh Quarry) and other poets on Saturday 8 October. Do take a look at the programme for Dylan's Birthplace and don't forget the National Poetry Day website.

Magazine Moment (27): Australia

2011-09-07T22:33:00.003+01:00

Dartmoor Pony

We have been so busy moving house (an ongoing process) that my writing time has temporarily diminished. However, I received a package today from NSW, Australia, containing FreeXpresSion for September 2011, Vol. XVII - Issue No.9, ed. Peter F. Pike. The magazine incorporates the International Poetry Xpressions column prepared by Catherine Lee Clarke. This issue contains six of my poems ...

Elegy for Idris Davies [55/2001]
Monte Testaccio: Mound of Potsherds [ 53/2003]
Weddell Seal at the Ice Edge [29/2010]
Isabella Tiger Moth greets the Woolly Bear Caterpillar [42/2009]
Dartmoor: the Call of the Wild [10/2000]
Velvet Shadows in Venice: 'The Stonemason's Yard' [1727-8] by Canaletto [2/2004]

I have now had poems published in UK, Romania, USA, India and Australia.

Magazine Moment (26): Dolphins in Danger

2011-09-01T19:03:00.006+01:00

In contrast to Bottlenose Dolphins in some other places, these are free to enjoy life off the Scottish coast, 2011

My poem about the plight of some Bottlenose Dolphins has just been published in issue 156 of Reach Poetry (ed. Ronnie Goodyer and Dawn Bauling, Indigo Dreams Publishing Ltd).

You can find more here about dolphins in peril.

You can see more 'happy' dolphins here.

I apologise for the recent intermittent nature of my posts. We are in the (slow but busy) process of moving house ...

Magazine Moment (26): Reach Poetry Surprise

2011-08-03T22:32:00.001+01:00

West Country Light

I was delighted today to learn that my Glosa, 'A Softer Beauty', had taken First Prize in the Reach Poetry readers' votes for issue 154. Thank you very much, Ronnie and Dawn, for the cheque!

My poem builds around a quatrain by the eccentric West Country cleric, the Reverend R.S. Hawker, Vicar of Morwenstow, who wrote from a cliff-side driftwood hut, now in the care of the National Trust.

It was also a surprise to find a mention of my 'Turkish Delight' Tercet Ghazal in the Purple Patch review section (issue no.129), so thank you Geoff.

Magazine Moment (25): The Ghazal Page

2011-08-01T23:08:00.004+01:00

You will find my Tercet Ghazal on 'change' here on The Ghazal Page (editor Gino Peregrini). I hope you enjoy it!

Apologies for a long absence ... life seems to have been very busy recently!

Fiesta Time (7): Closing Moments at the Swansea International Poetry Festival

2011-06-18T23:27:00.004+01:00

Festival Participants: Final Curtain Call, Photo © David Gill 2011

The word 'triumph' comes to mind as I begin to look back on the extravaganza of events that have taken place here in Swansea at the Dylan Thomas Theatre and at the Nick Holly Studio Gallery over the last few days.

I would like to offer my sincere thanks to the organisers, Peter Thabit Jones (of The Seventh Quarry, Swansea) in conjunction with Stanley H. Barkan (of Cross-Cultural Communications, New York).

I would also like to thank all those who worked behind the scenes and all those who participated in various ways, enabling us to enjoy poetry, drama, music and dance from many different corners of the globe.

N.B. Some participants had already had to leave by the time this photograph was taken.

Fiesta Time (6): Premiere of Verse Drama by Peter Thabit Jones

2011-06-18T16:29:00.004+01:00

Stage set: Kilvey Hill, Swansea

Not the best photo, I'm afraid, as it was taken in the auditorium of the Dylan Thomas Theatre in the dark without a flash, just before the show began. However, it gives a good impression of the wonderful stage set designed (I believe) by Nick Holly for last night's Welsh premiere of 'The Boy and the Lion's Head', the new verse drama by Peter Thabit Jones. It was an amazing enterprise and greatly appreciated by all those who had the privilege of seeing the performance.

Fiesta Time (5): International Poetry Festival, Swansea 2011

2011-06-17T00:03:00.004+01:00

Statue of Dylan Thomas outside today's festival venue, the Dylan Thomas Theatre, Swansea

I have just come in from a magnificent day of poetry, dance, acting and music from the USA, Wales, Israel, England, Cornwall, Scotland, Canada and Italy. Tomorrow we will hear poetry in translation, but more of that when the time comes. Old friendships have been renewed and new international friendships have been made. We have heard poems of mourning and poems of jubilation. We have laughed and we have been almost moved to tears. We have heard dialect poetry, and have seen poetry written in many languages in the various books by the participating artists - from Catalan to Korean. Thank you, Stanley (of Cross-Cultural Communications, New York) and Peter (editor of The Seventh Quarry, Swansea), for organising such a remarkably cosmopolitan event. Roll on tomorrow for the next round ...

Fiesta Time (4): International Poetry Festival opens in Swansea, 2011

2011-06-15T23:04:00.001+01:00

John, Robin, Caroline (me!) and Lisa

The Swansea International Poetry Festival has begun with a swing! The festival is taking place under the auspices of The Seventh Quarry, Wales (ed. Peter Thabit Jones) and Cross Cultural Communications, New York (ed. Stanley Barkan).

Tonight's launch took place in the Nick Holly Studio Gallery, a superb venue. Thank you to all who made it a wonderful evening. Here's to tomorrow!

Fiesta Time (3): International Poetry Festival in Swansea, 2011

2011-06-15T08:28:00.001+01:00

STOP PRESS ... starting today ...

Swansea, SA1

SWANSEA, WALES: 16-18 JUNE 2011  

The Seventh Quarry  and  Cross-Cultural Communications, New York

A three-day festival of poetry, drama, workshops, and music ...

Writers and performers  from

the U.K., America, Canada, Argentina, Israel, Europe, Eastern Europe, and India.

  Hosted by Peter Thabit Jones and Stanley H. Barkan
 at the Dylan Thomas Theatre, Swansea.  

Extra festival events at The Boathouse, Laugharne;

 Dylan Thomas House, Swansea;  and the Nick Holly Art Studio, Swansea.

  A commemorative chapbook is being produced  

and several awards will be announced.  

Dylan Thomas Boat House, Laugharne

Magazine Moment (24) : Orizont Literar Contemporan, Romania

2011-06-06T13:44:00.005+01:00

Orizont Literar Contemporan

'All the world in a journal'

Thanks to the stalwart efforts of editor-in-chief, Daniel Dragomirescu, and the editorial team, the latest issue, An. IV, number 2 (22), of Orizont Literar Contemporan has been published - and has now reached me from Bucharest. In keeping with the magazine strapline above, this number contains a literary feast of poetry and prose from many corners of the globe. We find Gonzalo Salesky bringing us his poems from Argentina (p.14), and Professor Donald Riggs sharing the second instalment of his article on the teaching of Creative Writing in universities in Philadelphia (p.52). Catherine Mimano offers the lively perspective of a nineteen year old in terms of the cultural identity of her country, Kenya, a land of the wildebeest migration and hip-hop music.

My knowledge of modern languages is limited, but I always enjoy seeing the translation of a piece of work alongside the original. Adolf P. Shvedchikov writes his poetry in Russian with alternative English versions. Petronela Corobleanu of the translation unit, MTTLC, at the University of Bucharest has provided a Romanian translation, too, and it is fascinating to see the three languages laid out together on the page.

Wales is well represented in this issue. I was particularly delighted to find an appreciation by Byron Beynon of the poet, Raymond Garlick, who died on 19 March 2011. Byron is brilliantly placed to write such a piece, for, as we discover in his tribute, he was the recipient of over 100 letters and cards from this formative Anglo-Welsh poet. You will also find my latest interview, number seven in the 'Dialoguri Galeze' series, with poet and Tuesday Poetry Group leader, Jean Salkilld. Jean's poem, 'Legend's Source' (p.4), takes us 'through lights of autumn leaves' into the northern woods of America, where the tears of Hiawatha's mother supposedly welled up in the form of the mighty Missisippi river. Our thanks to Petronela Corobleanu for her translation into Romanian.

The magazine covers every shade of style and emotion. I will end by alluding to Victor P. Gendrano's piece, 'My Grocery Adventure', on p.34. He demonstrates in three short paragraphs just how he was able to fulfil his daily motto of making 'at least one person smile'. It would be giving the game away if I spilled the beans (no pun intended!) and explained just how he came to do this, for perhaps you would prefer to order a copy of the magazine and find out for yourself ...

Orizont Literar Contemporan
OLC: please enquire about PayPal and/or subscription options here.

Poetry Matters (18): Peter Thabit Jones ~ 'Poems from a Cabin on Big Sur'

2011-06-01T14:41:00.021+01:00

Poems from a Cabin on Big Sur by Peter Thabit Jones
Editor-Publisher: Stanley H. Barkan
Publishing House: Cross Cultural Communications, Merrick, New York, 2011
Photographs: Melissa Goese-Goble, Patricia Holt, Carolyn Mary Kleefeld, Linda Parker

Available from Cross-Cultural Communications, 239 Wynsum Avenue, Merrick, New York, 11566-4725, USA. Price $25 (hardback) $15 (paperback)

Launch of 'Poems from a Cabin on Big Sur' (Photo © David Gill 2011)

'I went on daily walks, alone, letting the island-like world seep into my very being ...'

Peter Thabit Jones, Preface, p.9

We were delighted to visit the stunning Studio Gallery of Swansea artist, Nick Holly, last Friday for the launch of Poems from a Cabin on Big Sur by Peter Thabit Jones. The work in this sparkling new collection brings us - in the apposite words of Vince Clemente - a vision of Peter, 'the man on Big Sur [observing] with the eyes of maturity, but [feeling] with the open heart of the boy on Kilvey.'

Big Sur, on the Central Coast of California, is adorned with the stunning combination of the St Lucia Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. It is a place well-loved by writers and those who seek natural wonder and solitude. Redwood and Monterey Pine adorn this region. It is an area of wide skies and horizons, where the rugged landscape is frequented not only by mountain lions but also by rare amphibians such as the California Giant Salamander (Dicamptodon ensatus).

In his Preface, Peter alludes to the fact that his spell as Writer-in-Residence in the Cabin on Big Sur followed in the tradition of a line of other writers and artists who had been equally influenced by this extraordinary wilderness (in the sense of 'expanse of wildness' rather than 'area of emptiness'). Jack Kerouac's novel, Big Sur, (1962), for example, arose out of his time in the same cabin.

Many of us dream of living the Robinson Crusoe experience. Most of us occasionally manage to hunt out small corners 'far from the madding crowd'. Writers like Dylan Thomas and R.S. Hawker beavered away in huts perched high above estuary and ocean. I like to write with one eye on the keyboard and the other on the wide sweep of Swansea Bay, as it spreads out beneath my window. Few of us, though, unlike Peter, have truly experienced the life of a poet in isolation - for real.

It is with these thoughts in my head that I plan to approach this collection as I read it more carefully and alongside the accompanying photographs in the days to come. I have already encountered poems that invite the reader to glimpse into the 'window's picture', as it conveys the poet's vision in terms of a dual sense of the 'so-close ocean' and the 'shores of the mind'.

Peter Thabit Jones
Forthcoming: International Poetry Festival, June 2011 (organised by The Seventh Quarry
and Cross-Cultural Communications, New York - more details soon)

Magazine Moment (23): TIPS for Writers 83

2011-05-27T16:00:00.009+01:00

Welcome to my 550th post on this blog!

Kalamata Olives with Basil and a tang of Peloponnesian Orange and Lime

TIPS for Writers magazine, 83, issue 3/2011

editor: Wendy Webb, Norfolk Poets and Writers

I recieved a copy of this edition of TIPS a few days, and as ever, have found it to contain a feast of new poetry. I chose the photo above because it seemed to represent (to me at least) something of the mouth-watering Mediterranean flavours evoked in 'Olives, Grapes, Cicadas, Sun' by Norman Bisset. We find ourselves listening to the sound of cicada 'choirs' and watching the fall of light on Doric columns. We see the very roots of civilization emerging alongside the twisting stems of olive and vine.

Wendy is always one for a challenge, and in her editorial she writes that she would like to see some palindromes, including her own verse form, the Palindromedary Sonnet, submitted for the next issue. She is also keen to receive some Folding Mirror poems in the form created by Dr Marc Latham. You can read my post linking these two forms here on Marc's Folding Mirror Poetry blog.

The poems in this issue represent a plethora of situations. We follow some steps behind the one (presumably a health professional) who walks beside the parents of a baby in 'Acceptance' by Margaret Whitaker, the winning poem in the 10th Anniversary Tips Competition. Then we take a completely different turn and feel the buzz as Kay Weeks dances the night away at Mar de Jade.

Kay's poem embraces the geckos and turtles that help to populate this Mexican landscape. Norman Bissett brings us back to the shores of the UK with his poignant observations regarding the decline of the 'Camberwell Beauties'. Bernard Jackson's sonnet 'To a Hidden Bird' resonates for me with words by Edward Thomas. You can read about E.T's 'Unknown Bird' here on The Solitary Walker blog. Bernard's evocation of Jesmond Dene, the leafy 'interlacing canopy of green', rings true for me - and I spent five very happy years of my life in that neck of the woods.

A feature I particularly like in this issue is the editors' page (p.23). This contains sample poems by Ronnie Goodyer of Indigo Dreams (IDP) and Geoff Stevens of Purple Patch. Ronnie's 'Breakbones' with its intoxicating rhythm draws us in to take a closer - careful - look at the wild flowers such as Bog Asphodel on a stretch of West Country mire. Geoff's concrete poem, 'Looking out to Sea', needs to be seen in its eye-glass shape to be fully appreciated, but its array of 'blue' words is compelling.

If you would like to take out a subscription to TIPS in this its 10th anniversary year, you will find Wendy's details on the Poetry Library Southbank Centre site here. Thank you, Wendy, once again for an engaging and colourful read.

Archaeological Avenues (3): David Gill's BSA book, update

2011-05-21T19:12:00.004+01:00

Just an update on David's book to say that you can now read more on the Swansea University website here. (There only seems to be a cached page available at present).

Previous post on publication of book here ...

Creature Feature (3): Tiger, Tiger

2011-05-16T20:39:00.000+01:00

'In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?'
William Blake

Helen Calcutt and Peter Tinkler's Tiger, Tiger site is growing in leaps and bounds (if you will excuse the pun). The exciting news is that the project has now linked up with the Born Free Foundation, thanks to the support and involvement of Richard Bonfield, BFF Poet-in-Residence.

If you would like your creative 'tiger' work to be considered for the Tiger, Tiger project, you will come across the guidelines here.

There are a number of pieces up on the site, so do take time to have a browse. You will find creative contributions from the following:

I also have two Tiger, Tiger poems on the site, which ... you can read here -

by scrolling down for 'Isabella ...'* and
by clicking on my name, Caroline Gill, for 'Muffled Drum'.

It is a sad fact that there are probably only around 3500 tigers in the wild in our world today. You can read about the Born Free Foundation's concern for this amazing wild cat here.

* This poem was first published in Reach Poetry (ed. Ronnie Goodyer and Dawn Bauling, IDP).

International Echoes (14): Metverse Muse

2011-05-11T13:06:00.001+01:00

I had been looking forward to the arrival of a package from India for some time, and was delighted when 'Metverse Muse' (double issue, 27 and 28) popped through my letterbox yesterday, all the way from Visakhapatnam.

The editor, Dr H. Tulsi, has put together 248 pages of international poetry (from India, Australia, UK, USA, New Zealand, Singapore...), articles, reviews and competition results.

I feel very honoured to have been awarded Joint Second Prize (with international Haiku prize-winner, Claire Knight) in Category A of the competition for the 'Best Fixed Form Poet of the Year 2010'.

Archaeological Avenues (2): David's book, hot off the press

2011-04-28T11:43:00.005+01:00

Gill, D. W. J. 2011. Sifting the Soil of Greece: the early years of the British School at Athens (1886-1919).

Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies, Supplement, vol. 111. London: Institute of Classical Studies.

Hooray!

David's book (pp. 474) has just arrived from the publishers - and is dedicated to me.

The cover shows the Methana peninsula of Greece,

which I visited during one of David's archaeological field survey seasons in the area.

For further details of the book and how to order, please click here.

A snippet ...

For other independent travellers in Greece, Ellen Bosanquet's advice was to engage the services of a dragoman who 'takes you wherever you wish to go, finds the mules or carriages, takes beds and a cook (or cooks himself), and arranges a comfortable lodging at the end of each day's journey.' 

p.131, Chapter 5 - Women at the BSA

Poetry Matters (18): 'Creatures of a Dead Community' by Lynn Hopkins

2011-04-27T13:51:00.013+01:00

Author: Lynn Hopkins (picture of cover used with poet's permission)

Publisher: Peter Thabit Jones, The Seventh Quarry Press (2011), The Seventh Quarry

Photographs: Moelwyn Hopkins

Illustrations: Rhian Elin Thomas

Price: £4.50

ISBN: 978-0-95674547-3-6

'From a lofty bed,

two hands clasp a kernel

as if in prayer'

from 'The Grey Invader' by Lynn Hopkins

It is hard to think of Swansea without picturing the curve of the bay. It is an iconic yet ever-changing seascape that can be enjoyed from numerous angles. If we associate Peter Thabit Jones with the view from Kilvey Hill, we can now link Lynn Hopkins with those sweeping vistas from another vantage point where 'sea breezes blow', namely the hillside that 'stands in stillness', supporting Oystermouth Cemetery.

This 'dead community' has found a special place in Lynn's affections. For her the cemetery is a place of 'peace in beautiful surroundings'. It is a place that has inspired her first collection, a sparkling quiverful of twelve poems about the wild creatures that make their home around the graves. They are very much alive, and for Lynn their presence proves that 'life goes on, even in a dead community'.

I have known Lynn for some years, although our paths have not crossed frequently. She is currently a student on the part-time humanities degree at Swansea University. It was a privilege to attend the recent launch of Lynn's volume, and to hear the poet reading her own work. Artistic acheivement runs in the family: Lynn's husband was also a published poet. It was a thrill to meet the poet's daughter, Rhian, whose delightful illustrations are the perfect complement to her mother's words and to her brother, Moelwyn's photography. It is not often that three members of a family have worked together on a project of this nature.

Publisher, Peter Thabit Jones, adds that Lynn's poems are 'accessible, sound-textured and tender'. He makes the shrewd observation that although they are written in English, Lynn is bilingual and brings to her work that added dimension or 'sense of craftsmanship employed by poets working in Welsh.' Lynn's detailed approach is both arresting and engaging: the poet weaves her stories of the wild creatures into a compelling warp and weft of carefully chosen words.

In this poem-sequence, we encounter the statue on the cover (see above) of a pensive woman, clutching her 'private book'. Word and image combine to conjure up a sense of the pain of loss, but they also manage to convey a fragile sense of future: the reader is encouraged to consider the possibility of a time when tears will be no more. But for the present, this woman of stone has to suffer the dubious company of her faithless feathered companions, the 'Magpie, raven, and rowdy rook'.

The choice of vocabulary keeps the reader alert. Just when we are tempted to feel that all is tranquil and serene, with butterflies fluttering over 'this haven of rest', we are reminded that it is folly to think of this place as an entirely peaceable kingdom. Instead, we are confronted with the stark reality of the horrors of death and war and 'butchered hearts'. The black cat 'with two sides' to its face sums up this paradox to perfection.

So thank you, Lynn, for introducing us to your new circle of companions - the snail, the 'wily' fox, the 'brown owls' on their 'brittle boughs' - and all the other cemetery dwellers. Thank you for helping us to appreciate the world around us in a new way from the perspective of a place where sea meets sky, and where heaven and earth are bound in life and death.

If you would like to buy a copy of this captivating and lyrical collection, I suggest you follow this link to The Seventh Quarry Publications, and scroll down to the bottom of the page for contact details.

Lynn Hopkins: Part-time Degree Student’s Publishing Success

Seasonal Splash (7): Spring Fever (and amphibians)

2011-04-19T23:17:00.001+01:00

The magnificent Priory remains, Mount Grace, Yorkshire ...

... with resident amphibian!

You may have seen my wasp bole in the previous post. These images above are also from Mount Grace.

I thought this was a Common Frog, but having lightened my photo a little, I think it is actually a Common Toad. I heard today that my poem, 'Observations from the Hide' (about toads back in Wales) had taken Second Place in the Writelink Spring Fever Competition.

Magazine Moment (22): The Dawntreader

2011-04-18T23:13:00.003+01:00

Mount Grace, Yorkshire, daffodil season

We always enjoy a visit to Mount Grace when we are in the area. The Priory is fascinating in itself, but I am particularly drawn to the wildlife in this beautiful setting. We have just returned from another wonderful visit. I was even tempted to pull out my pocket watercolours ...

We found a frog in a Medieval water course at the back of one of the reconstructed cells. I kept a sharp eye out for wasps' nests, as I had seen one on a previous occasion. My waspish Sonnet, 'Matriarch at Mount Grace', has just been published in The Dawntreader (p.9, issue 14, Spring 2011, ed. Dawn Bauling, IDP).

Wasp nest, Mount Grace, April 2011

Magazine Moment (21) : Orizont Literar Contemporan, Romania

2011-03-31T16:27:00.006+01:00

Annul IV - Nr.1 (21) Ian. - Febr. 2011 ~ 64 pagini

MAGAZINE: please enquire about PayPal and/or subscription options here.

The latest issue of Orizont Literar Contemporan is brimming with material from diverse corners of the globe, including Spain, France, USA, UK, Patagonia, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Italy, Russia, Kenya, Germany ... and, of course, Romania.

Editor-in-chief, Daniel Dragomirescu, has once again succeeded in blending a rich and potent concoction of international culture and literature. The final (fictional) contribution in this number is an excerpt from Daniel's novel-in-progress, 'Un Om Printre Oameni' | 'A Man Among Men'. It concerns a country with an 'existential climate' that is healthy 'for all Romanians'. By the same token, the magazine itself surely reflects a 'healthy' and dynamic global community of (largely literary) artists who long to exchange and share cultural ideas and enterprises.

Take Juana Castillo Escobar, for example. She pens an engaging and personal portrait of 'The Literary Life in Madrid', describing the city as 'a crucible of culture', which supports three tiers of literary activity. On the other side of the Atlantic we find Professor Donald Riggs teaching Creative Writing in universities in Philadelphia, USA. The format he describes for a writing workshop is very similar to the monthly gatherings of the Tuesday Poetry group I attend here in Swansea, the home town of Dylan Thomas. I was fascinated to discover that Riggs, who has 'nothing against free verse', prescribes the writing of at least '250 haiku over the course of the 10-week term' in addition to the writing of other formal poetry, by way of counter-balancing the current trends. The poetic sound dimension (perhaps what Professor Lewis Turco would call 'The Sonic Level') is of paramount importance for Riggs, who advocates the reading aloud of work in a workshop.

And so to the poems themselves. Lunar subjects seem to be on the ascndancy this time. Canadian poet, Carole St-Aubin, takes as her subject, 'La Lune et moi'. I am immediately drawn to another succinct poem, 'The Moon', by Peggy Landsman from USA. This poem is perhaps more like a tiny star, and yet within its compact frame, we find the moon in the guise of 'white whale'. There is something charming and almost playful about this piece. I, for one, am particularly drawn to its imagery. The following passage from Anthony Trollope's Barchester Chronicles comes to mind:

"How indeed!" said Bertie. "Why shouldn't there be a race of salamanders in Venus? And even if there be nothing but fish in Jupiter, why shouldn't the fish there be as wide awake as the men and women here?"

I have barely scratched the surface, but I hope I may have whetted your appetite a little. Do consider taking up a subscription or paying for a sample copy (please contact Daniel via the link above). In these days of global uncertainty, it is a great joy and privilege to experience aspects of the literary life from diverse and often unusual perspectives. Thank you, Daniel and friends, not forgetting the University of Bucharest translation team at MTTLC.

Past contributors, with a presence on the web ...

Kristina Kostaki's blog. Kristina, a contributor to the magazine, lives in Greece. She has written a post about the 'Orizont Literar Contemporan' anthology here.
M. Denise C's blog, here
French painter, Hélène Glehen

Anthology Alert (9): Memories ~ a Host of Golden Daffodils

2011-03-21T15:53:00.006Z

The cover

Local writers, Ann Cooke and Dr Ruth Jenkins, have produced a sparkling new prose anthology on the subject of 'Memories'. The collection costs £5 (plus, I imagine, an additional charge for p&p) and profits will go to St James' Church in the Uplands, Swansea, Wales, UK. Please leave a comment here (or send me an email) if you would like to buy a copy, and I will put you in touch with the editors.

The volume was launched in the Parish Hall at St James' last Saturday evening. It was a wonderful occasion of prose and poetry. Byron Beynon gave a fascinating paper on Idris Davies and the subject of memories. He touched on key themes from the anthology, weaving these into a narrative on the Faber poet from Rhymney, whose work continues to excite a wide readership today.

After a magnificent buffet, we were treated to three pieces from the new collection. One was about the evocative and transformative power of music, a second on the ever-popular subject of the Mumbles Train (which is sadly no more) and finally, a lively account of a carol-singing expedition in Llanelli by the Reverend Dr Duncan Walker.

Congratulations to Ann and Ruth and to all my fellow contributors. Subjects covered range from a lively and colourful selection of 'memories of 1960s Swansea' (by Paulette Luise Pelosi) to biographical sketches (e.g. a grandmother, a grandfather - and my pen portrait of my godfather). There are recollections of happy times and of darker days.

Why not support a worthy cause and buy a copy of this hot-off-the-press booklet. You will then be able to enjoy some of the 'Ohhh and Ahhh-moments' (in the words of contributor, Torsten Herbst) for yourself.

Idris Davies biography online here
You can read my Idris Davies poem here

International Echoes (13): 俳句 in Response to the Earthquake

2011-03-18T21:35:00.002Z

Cherry Trees in Cwmdonkin Park, Swansea, Wales, UK (where the young Dylan Thomas played)

We continue to reel at the events of the past few days and at the prospect of what is still to come. Our hearts go out to those who have been affected.

You might like to read some Haiku (俳句), written by members of our global community in solidarity with our friends in Japan, New Zealand and elsewhere.

Ban'ya Natsuishi has been preparing a blog post of these sentiments. If you click the link and scroll down far enough, you will see that I have sent a Haiku from Wales.

Poetry Matters (17): Bloodaxe Launches in Swansea

2011-03-12T22:51:00.002Z

The Church Clock at Haworth, by the Brontë Parsonage

We have enjoyed a very literary weekend here in Swansea, with the launch at the Dylan Thomas Centre of 'Being Human', the new Bloodaxe anthology edited by Neil Astley. This book follows on from its highly popular predecessors, 'Staying Alive' and 'Being Alive'. Neil gave a reading with Penelope Shuttle, followed by questions, an interval, and then the Swansea launch of Penelope's stunning new Bloodaxe collection of poems based around the subject of time, 'Sandgrain and Hourglass'. I was privileged to return to the DTC on Saturday morning for a stimulating and enjoyable workshop with Penelope.

P.S. The clock tower is in Yorkshire ... I liked the idea of a time piece with literary connections!

Calendar Corner (11): Shrove Tuesday Pancakes

2011-03-08T22:30:00.003Z

These are a couple I ate earlier ...

I hope some of you will have been enjoying your Shrove Tuesday pancakes. I came across this blog devoted to pancakes. I see the folk in Glendale, CA, got in early on 1 March, but most of us have been enjoying our pancakes today, before Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent tomorrow. I also note that the NY CityCoach team have been running a Pancake Haiku contest. My favourite pancake poem, however, must be 'The Solitary Spatuloon' by Jack Prelutsky. You can read it here (you will need to scroll down once you have clicked the link).

On a more serious Lenten note, Bishop James Jones has been advocating a scheme called the 'Carbon Fast'. He was promoting it on BBC 'Songs of Praise', and you can find out more here.

Book Corner (3): The Book of Forms ~ forthcoming

2011-03-03T22:18:00.001Z

What better way to celebrate World Book Day than to receive an update of news about the forthcoming publication of one of my all-time favourite poetry publications, 'The Book of Forms: a Handbook of Poetics' (fourth edition), by Professor Lewis Turco?

Meanwhile, the current edition is available on Amazon.
Closer to home, you can read about World Book Night at no.5 Cwmdonkin Drive, Swansea, childhood home of Dylan Thomas. This event takes place on 5 March ~ details here.

Magazine Moment (20) : The Seventh Quarry

2011-02-22T12:00:00.008Z

Laugharne: Dylan Thomas Boat House and Estuary

The Seventh Quarry
Editor: Peter Thabit Jones
Issue: Thirteen / Winter 2011, ISSN 1745-2236, 88 pages

The new issue, as ever, is packed with inviting reading material. There is a good mix of poetry and prose, along with some original artwork. The magazine hails from Swansea and features work from most corners of the globe. This issue alone contains submissions from Wales, England. Ireland, France, India, Serbia, Germany, Belrus and America.

Russian-born poet and photographer, Aleksey Dayen, is remembered and honoured. He died in New York last November. I had the privilege of meeting Aleksey when he was reading at the Dylan Thomas Centre in 2009. I particularly recall his highly individual reading of 'Jailbird Blues', accompanied by singer-songwriter, Terry Clarke. Multi-faceted artist, John Dotson from the USA, provides a fitting tribute to Aleksey in the form of a poem, 'The Full Moon Rose'.

The initial interview with John Dotson concerns his work in the realms of poetry, drama, biography, sculpture, painting and acting. He describes the impact of the environment on his outlook from a place where 'the Pacific tides sound through' his dreams. He speaks of his encounters in the landscapes of Dylan Thomas on both sides of the Atlantic, and of his forthcoming book, Love for Ever Meridian.

The poems in this issue represent an eclectic blend of styles. They range (in shape as much as style) from Alan Perry's Thin Poem, 'Line', to 'A Once Strange Face' by Mike Jenkins, which moves the eye in several directions back and forth across the page as it stalks towards its climax. 'Legend's Source' by Jean Salkilld evokes an enchanted landscape, as we wander in the footsteps of Hiawatha's daughter. The final poem in the issue, 'Song' by Frances Sackett, transports the reader to an area of mountainous terrain in which there are 'things you recognise' followed by the unknown call of a mysterious bird . . .

I was very struck by the winning poems in the (USA-based) Left Coast Eisteddfod Poetry Competition (2010), judged by Peter Thabit Jones. The winning poem, 'Iberia' by Bruce Lader, dares the reader to follow in the hoofprints of Don Quixote, as he canters through the landscape of Spain in a Golden Age. Jolen Whitworth was the runner-up with a modern Sonnet, 'He Paints'.

Other features in this issue include the following:

A fascinating study by Vince Clemente, 'Wakening The Ghosts: The Words We Use, That Use Us', in which Clemente considers Leitmotifs in his own work and also in 'The Boy and the Lion's Head', the new verse drama by Peter Thabit Jones.
Poet to Poet (please scroll down once you have clicked the link): a list of the collaborative anthologies produced by The Seventh Quarry (in Swansea) and Cross Cultural Communications (in New York). Each collection includes the work of two poets from different places. The fourth chapbook in the series, 'Poems East Coast/West Coast' is now available for £3.50/$10 (details on The Seventh Quarry site), and features the work of Stanley H. Barkan and Carolyn Mary Kleefeld.
The second part of 'The Anchored Angel and the Dylan Thomas/José Garcia Villa Connection' by John Edwin Cowen.
An interview with poet, Peter Fulton, on his book (and CD), How to Carve an Angel.
Original artwork by Carolyn Mary Kleefeld.
Profiles: poet, Robin Metz, answers questions asked by Peter Thabit Jones; and Swansea singer-song writer, Terry Clarke, talks to Kate Clarke about his latest album, and its Dylan Thomas influences.

And finally . . . an exciting announcement:

~ ~ ~  

SWANSEA, WALES: JUNE 2011  

The Seventh Quarry  and  Cross-Cultural Communications, New York

A three-day festival of poetry, drama, workshops, and music

 will take place from 16th to 18th June,  

featuring writers and performers  from

the U.K., America, Canada, Argentina, Israel, Europe, Eastern Europe, and India.

  Hosted by Peter Thabit Jones and Stanley H. Barkan
 at the Dylan Thomas Theatre, Swansea.  

Extra festival events at The Boathouse, Laugharne;

 Dylan Thomas House, Swansea;  and the Nick Holly Art Studio, Swansea.

  A commemorative chapbook will be produced  

and several awards will be announced.  

Further details and a brochure forthcoming.  

~ ~ ~

Book Corner (2): The Book of Forms ~ forthcoming

2011-02-16T21:50:00.006Z

I was interested to read on the 'Poetics and Ruminations' blog that the forthcoming edition of The Book of Forms ('A Handbook of Poetics' compiled and edited by Professor Lewis Turco) will be available on Kindle. The updated work will also be published in book form.

Meanwhile, the current edition of 'The Book of Forms' is available here. I have owned a copy for many years and have found it a fascinating and invaluable guide.

Magazine Moment (19) : Cultural Horizon Magazine, Romania

2011-02-10T12:21:00.005Z

Congratulations to editor-in-chief, Daniel Dragomirescu, in Bucharest for bringing out the latest edition of 'Orizont Literar Comtemporan' / 'Contemporary Literary Horizon' so speedily after the recent 'Antologia'.

Atlas may struggle to bear the weight of the world on his shoulders (on the red and yellow card in front of the magazine), but the world of 'Orizont Literar Comtemporan' is a welcoming, buoyant and cosmopolitan cosmos of its own that propels its reader into new realms of art, literature and the vibrant exchange of ideas. The undergirding of Atlas, however, reminds us that there is a sense in which the reader finds him or herself peering forward towards ever widening horizons, 'standing on the shoulders' of those literary giants who have begun to pave the way.

The issue opens with USA writer, Peggy Landsman's witty piece, 'Daniel's Cosmic Suitcase', about the magazine's editor, who reaches for the stars. I have alluded to this in a previous post. Some features are more earth-bound, such as 'All Things Mothering' by Terra Trevor (USA), subtitled, 'Braiding Native American Heritage Month with Thanksgiving: A Native American Mother's Perspective'. This account begins with an evocative opening:

'Wind, smelling of woodsmoke, rattles the yellow leaves off the peach tree ...'

But all has not always been well in the garden, for Katerina Kostaki's poem (in Greek with English translation) is about 'The Apple of Discord'.

The magazine features a substantial excerpt from Daniel Dragomirescu's novel, 'Cronica Teodoreştilor / Chronicle of a Lost World'. Thanks to the translation by Loredana Andreea Matei, a second year student on the MTTLC course at the University of Bucharest, I am able to enjoy the narrative, 'Chained by Law', about Stelian Teodoescu, 'a former inspector of the Cooperation Institute' who

'headed backwards to the other side of the yard,

where a barn was under construction,

filled with memories...'

Carole St-Aubin takes us back (or moves us forward) to Christmas - in the kitchen 'where love is the ingredient in every feast'. Khem Guragain from Nepal adds an oriental flavour with his book review of an autobiographical novel, 'The English Teacher' by N.K. Narayan. The protagonist, apparently, experiences an understandable sense of bitterness when he finds that he is required to 'stuff the students' at Albert Mission College' with Shakespeare, Milton and Carlyle. (Aside: I would very much hope that Shakespeare and Milton would feature on the school syllabus in England today, but I would be pleasantly surprised to find a mention of Carlyle!).

The thought-provoking poetry of Roxana Drăguşin has a wistful philosophical air about it in places. Roxana has provided her own translation in English, and I was particularly struck by this phrase from 'Călătorii' / 'Travellers':

'We pick up smiles, flowers, butterflies ...'

Wales is not forgotten! My interview with Gillian Drake explores the realm of writing for children and adults in terms of the joys and responsibilities of creating 'another world' or bringing to light 'another dimension of this one'. My sincere thanks to Gillian for being in the 'Dialoguri Galeze' spotlight on this occasion.

* * *

If you would like to take out a subscription to the magazine, you will find details below:

MAGAZINE PRICE: 12 EUROS | 15 DOLLARS PER COPY (SHIPPING INCLUDED). PayPal: details to the right of the magazine page if you click here.
Antologia Revistei Orizont Literar Contemporan (ed. Daniel Drogmirescu, Bucharest, Romania): PRICE PER COPY: 40 EUROS | 50 DOLLARS PER COPY Via PayPal: details to the right of the magazine page if you click here.

Recent contributors:

Kristina Kostaki's blog. Kristina, a contributor to the magazine, lives in Greece. She has written a post about the 'Orizont Literar Contemporan' anthology here.
M. Denise C's blog, here
French painter, Hélène Glehen

Window on Wales (4): Castles in the Frame

2011-02-09T14:34:00.001Z

Dryslwyn Castle: shades of summer . . .

I have just been enjoying the photo gallery of castles in Wales on the BBC Wales site here. If you have photos that you would like to submit, you will find the details on the site.

I wonder how many castles you think there are here in Wales! I knew there were a lot, but I had no idea that there were this many, with about 100 'still standing'.

It made me wonder how many of these have either featured in poems or provided inspiration for poets over the years. Speaking personally, I don't have to think very hard to name a few castles (e.g. Carreg Cennen, Tretower, Dryslwyn and Manorbier) that have influenced my own writing to one degree or another over the years.

Incidentally, you might like to see the wildlife I have seen recently as part of The Tree Year project (see side bar) in the vicinity of the castle at Dryslwyn.

Magazine Moment (19) : TIPS for Writers 81

2011-01-29T09:20:00.005Z

'the nimble acrobat'

'How like the nimble acrobat he springs

from branch to branch ...'

from BLUE TIT by Bernard M. Jackson, p.25

MANY HAPPY RETURNS, TIPS FOR WRITERS MAGAZINE!

2011 marks the 10th anniversary of 'TIPS for Writers', the magazine of Norfolk Poets and Writers, edited by Wendy Webb. I would like to congratulate Wendy on the success of this unique publication. It has gone from strength to strength over the years, reaching out to many new writers with poetic aspirations. Its pages have been graced by the work of more established writers, too - Sophie Hannah and Alison Chisholm, to name but a couple. Bernard M. Jackson and Norman Bissett have been of great assistance: they are the authors of many of the reviews that have appeared in the magazine over the years.

Wendy's competitions have challenged us all. Her new poetry forms, such as the Davidian, the Echotain and the Andropian, have caused us to flex our poetic muscles on numerous occasions. TIPS poets have met with success in national and international competitions: Claire Knight, for example, won the Haiku section in the International Poetry Competition of the New Zealand Poetry Society in 2009. Her Haiku (俳句) have appeared on the prestigious Snapshot Press Haiku calendar.

Many pay to subscribe to Wendy's magazine, which comes out 6x a year and costs £3 an issue. Others prefer to receive the free electronic journal, eTIPS, in their inbox. TIPS, I believe, began as a kind of postal writing circle, appealing particularly to those who - for various reasons - did not find it easy to meet up with other poets. I, for one, have valued this particular ethos, and have made new 'writing friends' as a result.

The latest edition has a crisp kingfisher-blue cover. It contains details of forthcoming competitions in celebration of the anniversary. The poems in this issue are very varied in style and theme. 'The Cell Phone' by Kay Weeks from Maryland is a Sestina. David Norris-Kay's contribution is a Tanka. The Terza Rima and Haiku put in an appearance alongside other crafted poems that have no formal name.

Not surprisingly for a number that comes out in January, several poems have winter themes. Anne Smith's 'Snow' evokes a compelling winter world in ten short lines. Wendy's sparrows 'twitter on bare twigs' ('Winter'), while Bernard's garden visitor 'sings on trembled stems' ('Blue Tit'). Blue is 'my' colour, so I was naturally drawn to 'Still Vibrating Blue' by Roger Elkin, in which he paints that distinctive Adriatic shade for us, in a disconcerting quivering tone, somewhere 'between aquamarine and turquoise'. The poems range in length from the Sestina down to Diana Mendel's three-word nutshell, '3 Rs' (which is part of a sequence).

Wendy's latest book in her 'Mermaid' series is reviewed by Bernard M. Jackson. Wendy interviews fellow editor, Ronnie Goodyer of Indigo Dreams, about his forthcoming anthology, 'Soul Feathers', in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support. You can read more about this project here in a report in The Eastern Evening News.

Happy Birthday, TIPS for Writers - and here's to the next decade!

If you are interested in joining the TIPS community, you might like to find Wendy on Facebook. Do take a look at Wendy's sites:

International Echoes (12): 2011: ALTĂ ODISEE SPAŢIALĂ

2011-01-25T18:46:00.006Z

Winter Moon

I had just been enjoying Adam Tilt's wonderful photographs of the moon on his blog, 'My Life Outside', when I moved over to the Contemporary Literary Horizon blog from Bucharest to read Peggy Landsman's 2011 Space Odyssey post ('2011: ANOTHER SPACE ODYSSEY / 2011: ALTĂ ODISEE SPAŢIALĂ'). It is a wonderful cyber-galactic piece - and I felt privileged to have a mention in it. Thank you, Peggy.

Here's to 2011 and the continued success of 'Orizont Literar Contemporan' magazine (linked to the Contemporary Literary Horizon blog) as it strives to reach new heights and an even wider international - and perhaps extra-terrestrial - readership!

You can read more about the magazine here and here - and you can always use the comment facility on the Contemporary Literary Horizon site, if you feel you have a query or would like to make a response of some kind. The editior-in-chief, Daniel Dragomirescu, is keen to widen the ever-increasing orbit of this international and cultural journal. You might care to visit Kristina Kostaki's blog. Kristina, a contributor to the magazine, lives in Greece. She has written a post about the 'Orizont Literar Contemporan' anthology here. You might also like to zoom off to M. Denise C's blog, here.

MAGAZINE PRICE: 12 EUROS | 15 DOLLARS PER COPY (SHIPPING INCLUDED). PayPal details to the right of the magazine page if you click here.

Prizes and Commendations (2): The T.S. Eliot prize

2011-01-25T18:17:00.001Z

My thanks to Matt Merritt at Polyolbion for alerting me to the coverage of the prize ceremony on Jane Holland's blog, here. Derek Walcott won the prize with his Faber collection, White Egrets.

In case you have not caught up with the news reports, you can read The Guardian's feature here.

Little Egret, Penclawdd, Gower, Wales, UK

I recall a happy evening at Hay some years ago, when Derek Walcott answered questions and delivered his poetry to a packed auditorium. I was particularly pleased to have bought a copy of his 'Omeros' in the Poetry Bookshop that afternoon.

Above and below: Little Egret, Divari Lagoon, Pylos, Greece

N.B. My photos are not linked to locations or symbolic representations in the book, but it seemed a good opportunity to appreciate these fine birds! The Egretta alba, the Great White Egret, has black feet and a yellow bill, unlike the Little Egret on one leg in the Divari Lagoon photo.

Calendar Corner (10): Burns' Night

2011-01-25T12:23:00.001Z

Those with Scottish links all over the globe will be celebrating Burns' Night this evening, so it seemed appropriate to join in. The haggis may only be 'virtual', but click here to enjoy it all the same!

A Burns discovery!

Anthology Alert (8): Tiger, Tiger (A project to help the WWF)

2011-01-19T11:11:00.006Z

Do you have a tiger poem waiting to pounce?

Many of us will have had our first encounter with the 'tiger in the wild' rather than with the 'tiger in the cage' through the powerful and mesmerising words of William Blake's poem, 'The Tyger'. This was certainly one of the earliest poems (as opposed to nursery rhymes) to make a lasting impression on me.

Perhaps there is a tiger poem in you, waiting to leap out on to the page. Helen Calcutt, Peter Tinkler and David Calcutt of The Written Image are preparing an illustrated 'Tiger, Tiger' poetry anthology to raise funds for the WWF Save the Tiger appeal.

If you would like to have a submission of tiger poetry or artwork considered for this inspiring project, you will find the submission guidelines here. The final deadline is drawing ever closer! Everyone is invited to respond to the appeal, whether you are a poet, artist or tiger supporter.

Perhaps you would like to endorse the project by sending a donation to the World Wildlife Fund's campaign to 'save the tiger'. You will find details here (with excellent video clip), and I know The Written Image has a project target of £500. At present, 3200 tigers remain in the wild.

Key Points:

Submission Details
Donation (through the 'Tiger, Tiger' project to the WWF 'Save the Tiger' appeal)
The Tiger, Tiger blog
The Tiger, Tiger website

Happy writing! Unleash the tiger . . .

P.S. Members of The Written Image may be familiar to you through their recent anthology, 'Bugged'.

Anthology Alert (7): Orizont Literar Contemporan

2011-01-15T18:23:00.001Z

Laugharne, the Boat House home of Dylan Thomas, Wales, UK

I am very grateful to M. Denise for featuring my post on the 'Orizont Literar Contemporan' anthology on her blog. You can click the link here.

The anthology, which includes my poem about Laugharne (in English and also in Romanian, thanks to a translation by Alina-Olimpia Miron), was edited by Daniel Dragomirescu in Bucharest. You can read my original post about it here.

MAGAZINE PRICE: 12 EUROS | 15 DOLLARS PER COPY (SHIPPING INCLUDED). PayPal: details to the right of the magazine page if you click here.
Antologia Revistei Orizont Literar Contemporan (ed. Daniel Drogmirescu, Bucharest, Romania): PRICE PER COPY: 40 EUROS | 50 DOLLARS PER COPY Via PayPal: details to the right of the magazine page if you click here.

Window on Wildlife (14): Caretta caretta

2011-01-13T19:22:00.009Z

My 'turtle' photo

I was writing one of my 'turtle' cards this afternoon when I came across the term, 'Caretta caretta', in the latest issue of The Dawntreader (Indigo Dreams Publishing).

I was delighted when I found this poem, 'The Lost Egg of Caretta caretta', on the web. The ecological forum belongs to the Katelios Group, which concerns itself with sea turtles, the environment and volunteers in Kefalonia (of 'Mandolin' fame).

I thought you might like to take a look at my turtle photo, which graced the card I was writing earlier. The picture was taken a little way round the Peloponnesian coast from Pylos (of Homeric fame). The strange thing is that I was pretty convinced that the Caretta caretta sea turtle had eluded us on our week-long Greek Odyssey. . . until I uploaded the photo above on our return to Wales.

Do YOU see a turtle there? Sometimes I wonder if there are two . . .

Fiesta Time (2): International Poetry Festival in Swansea, June 2011

2011-01-13T11:07:00.013Z

Blue Plaque: Dylan Thomas House, Number 5, Cwmdonkin Drive, Swansea

~ ~ ~

SWANSEA, WALES: JUNE 2011

The Seventh Quarry
and
Cross-Cultural Communications, New York

A three-day festival of poetry, drama, workshops, and music

will take place from 16th to 18th June,

featuring writers and performers

from the U.K., America, Canada, Argentina, Israel, Europe, Eastern Europe, and India.

Hosted by Peter Thabit Jones and Stanley H. Barkan

at the Dylan Thomas Theatre, Swansea.

Extra festival events at The Boathouse, Laugharne;

Dylan Thomas House, Swansea;

and the Nick Holly Art Studio, Swansea.

A commemorative chapbook will be produced

and several awards will be announced.

Further details and a brochure forthcoming.

~ ~ ~

Anthology Alert (7): ANTOLOGIA REVISTEI 'Orizont Literar Contemporan'

2011-01-10T14:49:00.049Z

~ "Writers from all over the world, let's come together!" ~

Daniel Dragomirescu,

editor-in-chief,

'Orizont Literar Contemporan'

'A very happy new year' to you all - or perhaps that should be 'La mulţi ani', since my first anthology to arrive in 2011 has come from Bucharest in Romania.

Those of you who read my blog will know that I have followed the rise of the international and multicultural magazine, 'Orizont Literar Contemporan', since 2009. The editor-in-chief, Daniel Dragomirescu, has once again collaborated with the students at the University of Bucharest, under the direction of Professor Lidia Vianu, to bring us articles, poems and features in Romanian and English. The Spanish language features prominently, too, so perhaps at this juncture I should add in a third greeting: '¡feliz año nuevo'.

The anthology has an arresting and attractive colour cover. It is A4 in size and contains 82 pages (plus the covers) of work from contributors representing the following countries:

Romania
Spain
Wales
England
USA
Mexico
India
Japan
Canada
France
Uruguay
USA
Bratislava (Slovakia)
Israel
Nigeria
Greece
Germany
Belgium
Nepal

The volume brings together a plethora of literary and artistic contributions from previous issues of the magazine. I shall list a few examples:

Multicultural Dialogue: a detailed feature about 'Orizont Literar Contemporan' as a multicultural project. Editor-in-chief, Daniel Dragomirescu answers questions put to him by Maria Eugenia Mendoza Arrubarrena, 'a writer, journalist and cultural activist from Mexico'. In response to a question about the distribution of the magazine, Daniel Dragomirescu replies that while the publication was initially read in Romania, it currently has '7.500 readers all over the world ... and the number is constantly increasing.' The editor goes on to consider a question about other similar enterprises, and whether these exist. He cites 'The Seventh Quarry' magazine from Swansea, home town of Dylan Thomas, a 'magazine led by the remarkable Welsh poet Peter Thabit Jones' and 'an old Romanian magazine - "Secolul XX" - that publishes writers from all over the world in a high quality editorial and cultural layout.'

Fictional Universe / Universul Prozei: a detailed and finely observed perspective, 'In the Army', by the magazine's esteemed Director, Mihai Cantuniari. The narrative opens in Spring 1968. Cantuniari writes, 'Little by little I got to the bottom of the big mystery . . .' If you would like to follow this through, you might consider buying a copy of the anthology, which is available via PayPal (details below).

International Literary Criticism / Universul Criticii Literare: I was delighted to have the opportunity to refresh my memory on the subject of 'The Meaning of MTTLC'. Professor Lidia Vianu, is Professor of Contemporary English Literature at the University of Bucharest and an honorary member of the magazine's Editorial Team. Her students contribute to the translation work involved in presenting a multicultural and multilingual magazine. Alina-Olimpia Miron has played a large role in the translation side of things as General Secretary.

Report on the Official Launch, 9 April 201, of 'Orizont Literar Contemporan' by Ion Lazu, Romania. His report begins with these words, 'On 9th April 2010 issue no. 15 of Contemporary & Literary Horizon' journal was launched; it is run by novelist Daniel Dragomirescu under the aegis of poet, translator and memorialist Mihai Cantuniari, one of the coryphaei of contempoary literature.' Lazu remarked on the fact that the issue in the spotlight contained 8 written contributions from Romania and one artistic contribution. It contained 18 contributions from those representing other countries. Lazu described the launch in 'la Muzeul Literarturii Romane' in Bucharest as a 'spring morning hailing faith in the talent-forged word.'

Excerpt from a Novel: 'Meshes of Smoke' by Nazia Mallick from India, which has been accepted for publication by Drnequill Publishers in Bangalore.

World Poetry (my personal particular interest!): e.g. a selection by the Canadian-British poet, Paul Sutherland. His deeply personal yet universal poem, 'Grandma's Night', struck a particular chord with me. I enjoyed the combination of pathos and wit in 'Suflet Ciobet' / 'Broken Soul' by Roxana Drăguşin Romanian poet (and also Publishing Assistant and Translations Coordinator' for the magazine). It was good to have the opportunity to re-read Swansea poet, Byron Beynon's poem in memory of John Keats, 'The Spanish Steps, Rome'. It evoked a place I know well from my year in Italy (1985-86), namely no.26 Piazza di Spagna, home of the poet who died so young. Poetry from England is represented by Anne Stewart, whose first collection, 'The Janus Hour' was published by Oversteps Books in 2010. USA poet, Peggy Landsman, writes on 'Still Life with Onions', contrasting her chopping technique with Van Gogh's handling of paint. My thanks to Daniel for including examples of my work on p.42: 'A Stone Romance', 'Boat House Cat, Laugharne', 'Preseli Blue' [previously read on BBC radio] and 'Show me the Colour of Pain'.

Self-Portrait of an Artist, with examples of her Work: while I am a great believer in the old saying of American origin that 'a picture is worth a thousand words', I always enjoy marrying an artwork with its creator. For this reason I was delighted to find an autobiographical sketch by French painter, Hélène Glehen, whose fine floral art graces the magazine. Glehen explains that her muse is fired by her 'garden, the flowers, literature and English poetry of the Victorian and Regency periods.'

Speaking personally, I have gained so much in terms of international awareness, the discovery of new voices in the field of world literature - and perhaps above all, the forging of new friendships with members of this inspiring muticultural and artistic community. A big 'thank you' to Daniel and 'The Team'.

Here's to 2011 and the continued success of 'Orizont Literar Contemporan' as it strives to reach new heights and an even wider international readership.

You can read more about the magazine here and here - and you can always leave a comment on the Contemporary Horizon site, if you feel you have a comment or query or would like to make a response of some kind. You might also like to visit Kristina Kostaki's blog. Kristina, a contributor to the magazine, lives in Greece. She has written a post about the Anthology here. You might also like to visit M. Denise C's blog, here.

MAGAZINE PRICE: 12 EUROS | 15 DOLLARS PER COPY (SHIPPING INCLUDED). PayPal details to the right of the magazine page if you click here.
Antologia Revistei Orizont Literar Contemporan (ed. Daniel Drogmirescu, Bucharest, Romania): PRICE PER COPY: 40 EUROS | 50 DOLLARS PER COPY Via PayPal: details to the right of the magazine page if you click here.

Seasonal Splash (5): Deck the Halls . . .

2010-12-22T16:46:00.007Z

Christmas preparations: mince pie-making, 2009

Sadly the scene above is one from last year!

I wonder if you have read 'A Child's Christmas in Wales' by Dylan Thomas. I love the illustrations by Edward Ardizzone in my copy. The descriptions are extraordinary: Dylan speaks of 'slap-dashing home' through the 'gravy smell of the dinners of others', with 'the pudding and the mince, coiling up' to his nostrils!

P.S. Steven of The Golden Fish posted a wonderful James Joyce description last year of the rich and regimented fare of Christmas Past: do take a look, and keep an eye open for the seasonal painting at the end of the post while you are there. Enjoy!

... Oh, and in case you are wondering why there is no holly here (after my title), please click this link!

You might also like:

Christmas decorations at The Lost Fort

Publications (4): Poem of the Month - and others

2010-12-09T10:02:00.002Z

A dram, used in the coalfields of South Wales

I was surprised and delighted last night to receive an email, informing me that my poem, 'Elegy for Idris Davies', has been voted Poem of the Month by Anne Stewart on the SecondLightLive web page. This poem was published by Peter Thabit Jones in The Seventh Quarry. You can read it here.

More locally, three of my poems have just appeared in our Poetry Group's Christmas anthology, 'Tuesday Poetry', produced by Jean Salkilld. My poems are about (1) Christmas, (2) the rose-red city of Petra and (3) winter at the Westonbirt Arboretum.

Further reading

Publications (3): Winter Warmers

2010-11-25T15:16:00.004Z

The Mumbles Lighthouse: Swansea in the Snow, a year ago

I'm sitting here on a fine sunny afternoon, but there have been hard frosts in our neck of the woods. On an equally chilly note, I have just received the Winter Edition of Wendy Webb's 'TIPS for Writers', issue 80. The magnificent cats on the cover, painted by Kay Weeks, have the right idea and are curled up inside on their best cushions.

The city dogs in my poem, 'Ice Floe', are not so fortunate. My other poem in this number is also on a snowbound theme; 'Ötzi the Iceman', whose death has sparked so much archaeological controversy since his body was discovered. My light-hearted poem about Santa's unruly reindeer has been accepted for the Christmas edition of the online Writelink magazine, Writelinkers, edited by Maureen Vincent-Northam, David Robinson and Trevor Belshaw. My time as Writelink 'Writer of the Month' is drawing to a close - and as the snowy season is definitely not too far away, you might enjoy a peep at the Fenwick's Christmas window, in Newcastle, where I lived and studied many years ago ...

... Meanwhile, a very Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends in the USA!

Window on Wildlife (14): Red Kite

2010-11-16T10:14:00.002Z


David (Gill) took this photo of a Red Kite at the weekend. I thought I was posting it on my wildlife blog, 'Wild and Wonderful', but since it ended up here, it seemed a shame to remove!

I have posted a close-up of the Kite here.

Anthology Alert (6): Writelink and my Puffin poem, 'A Chink in the Sky'

2010-11-08T19:11:00.000Z

Puffins: the Clowns of the Sea

I wonder whether other poets find it increasingly rare to be sent a proof these days. I am always pleased to be given the opportunity to check my work once it has been prepared for publication. I am grateful to Sue at Writelink for allowing the contributors to do this for the anthology arising out of the Spring Fever competition. We hope the collection will be out in time for Christmas orders.

A Chink in the Sky

Seasonal Splash (4): Bonfire Wordle

2010-11-05T10:01:00.002Z

A corner of our Bonfire Night WORDLE

I have made a 5th November Wordle, thanks to word contributions from fellow writers on the Writelink site. I have posted a corner above, but thought you might prefer to see the whole thing here ...

You can find out more about this strange date in our UK calendar if you follow this link.

Animals and fireworks do not go together. Please follow the safety code suggested by organisations like the RSPCA.

Going Green (1): Writing Workshop on Climate Change

2010-11-01T11:05:00.003Z

I have been continuing to enjoy the annual Dylan Thomas Festival in the Dylan Thomas Centre in Swansea.

I spent Saturday afternoon at an enjoyable, informative and highly stimulating workshop on the topical theme of 'Climate Change'. The afternoon was organised by Emily Hinshelwood and led by eco-poet, Susan Richardson (and here). It proved a very popular event, and a good time was had by all. We balanced a spell of organic writing with a time set aside for a more structured approach, in which each participant began to create a poem in response to various prompts around the given theme.

Emily Hinshelwood and Susan Richardson

The workshop was delivered under the auspices of Awel Aman Tawe. This organisation is running a poetry competition to encourage people to write their own 'Climate Change' poems. Gillian Clarke, the National Poet of Wales, and Menna Elfyn, award winning poet have agreed to act as judges. The closing date is 30 November 2010. There are categories for adults and children, with prizes of £200, £50 and £25 (adults) and £20, £10 and £5 (children). Further information is available from the Awel Aman Tawe website, if you tap 'competition' into the search box. It's time to formulate those ideas.

Fiesta Time (1): Andrew Motion at the Dylan Thomas Festival 2010

2010-10-28T19:42:00.005+01:00

I have just come in after a wonderful evening at the Dylan Thomas Centre. The annual Dylan Thomas Festival is in full swing, and the theme for 2010 concerns the three Thomases; Dylan, Edward and R.S.

Andrew Motion was speaking on (perhaps) my favourite of the three, Edward.

Sir Andrew Motion has written extensively on Edward Thomas, and it was good to listen to some of the poems again.

Many of you will know 'Adlestrop', but did you realise that Edward's father spent some time working for the railways? I must find out more ...

Seals and Cetaceans (3): The Writing Process

2010-10-26T23:08:00.000+01:00

I feel honoured to have been nominated

'Writer of the Month'

on the Writelink site.

I was asked to write a short piece about the writing process, and in particular about how I came to write 'The Wishing Woman of Seal Bay'. You can read my thoughts here in the Writelink Forum if you are interested.

Poetry Submission (2): 'Invisible Breath' by Indigo Dreams

2010-10-25T21:37:00.001+01:00

Ice Edge?

I am delighted that my poem, Weddell Seal at the Ice Edge, has been taken by Ronnie Goodyer and Dawn Bauling for the IDP winter 2010 collection, Invisible Breath.

Poetry Matters (16): Post-National Poetry Day WORDLE 2010

2010-10-18T22:54:00.002+01:00

I thought you might like to see my National Poetry Day Wordle, posted on my Writelink blog here.

Magazine Moment (18): Cultural Horizon Magazine, Romania

2010-10-14T16:35:00.064+01:00

The magazine arrives from Bucharest!

Those who follow this blog will know by now that I have conducted several interviews with writers in Wales for Contemporan Orizont Literar | Cultural Horizon Magazine in Bucharest, Romania. The writers to date are:

Peter Thabit Jones, poet, tutor - and editor of The Seventh Quarry
Byron Beynon, poet and tutor
Chris Kinsey, BBC Wildlife Magazine Poet of the Year 2008 and Greyhound Laureate
David Gill, archaeologist - lecturer and writer
Susan Richardson, eco- and polar-poet, with a regular slot on Saturday Live (BBC)

I was delighted today when editor-in-chief, Daniel Dragomirescu sent the following links to a YouTube video interview from Mexico and two Suite 101 articles in Spanish about this wide-ranging multicultual magazine.

Sadly I am not a Spanish speaker, but with my knowledge of other European languages and the help of Google Translate, I was able to get a pretty good idea of the texts in the links below.

The poet, Marina Centeno, takes a seat in 'El sillón de la lectura'...

Marina's blog can be found is you follow this link.

The two Suite 101 articles by María Eugenia Mendoza Arrubarrena can be found here and here.

Photographs of members of the 'team' appear here, here and here.

Do take a look at the magazine site here. New subscribers are always welcome.

MAGAZINE PRICE: 12 EUROS | 15 DOLLARS PER COPY (SHIPPING INCLUDED). PayPal details to the right of the magazine page if you click here. The latest issue is now available!

Competition Corner (7): Writelink Poetry - Seal Bay

2010-10-13T21:49:00.007+01:00


Mother and Pup

I have just heard that my poem, 'The Wishing Woman of Seal Bay' (a Lilibonelle) has been awarded First Prize in the Writelink 'Grape and Grain' Poetry Competition.

The judge was Jenny Moore, (Winner of the Divine Poetry Competition 2006, runner-up in Mslexia Poetry Competition 2007, Winner of Best Devon Poem in 2009 Plough Prize).

My thanks to all who voted or left comments on the Writelink site.

Magazine Moment (17) : Wendy Webb's TIPS for Writers, issue 79

2010-10-11T12:54:00.040+01:00

Based on the Mermaid Stall in Zennor Church, Cornwall

I have been greatly enjoying Wendy Webb's 79th edition of TIPS for Writers (and here). The attractive technicolour cover shows Wendy, quill in hand, at Coleridge's desk in Nether Stowey. The back cover (and as a left hander, I usually begin at the back) shows the artwork covers by Kay Weeks and Dee Sunshine of more of Wendy's publications .

The issue begins with a tribute to poet, Simon Wood, whose fine poems I have enjoyed and admired over a number of years. Simon's contribution to the small press world of poetry will be missed.

Bernard Jackson's Rondelet for Autumn sets a seasonal tone, with its 'sunlit groves' and 'jewelled cobwebs'.

We are transported on through a landscape of alliteration (e.g. 'Mordor on a moody moonlit midnight') to the Sagarmatha Himalayas by Dr Marc Latham, creator of the Folding Mirror Poetry form.

For those who like to follow in the enchanting footsteps of the Foodleflap, there is A Foodleflap Sonnet by Bernard M. Jackson, in which the compelling creature pursues its quest for currant buns!

My favourite 'serious' poem is almost certainly Santorini by David Norris-Kay. The poet evokes this fascinating island with its 'small twinkling towns' and 'dark cliffs topped white as burnished bone'.

Some poems concern subjects that are closer to hand, and I was particularly drawn to the examples of the Brentor Sonnet, a form created by Wendy with its split lines [6/7 and 13/14] 'for visual and sound effect'. Brentor is, in Wendy's words, 'a hill transfigured in the mist' on the edge of Dartmoor, with a chapel perched on the top of it. As it happens, it was a favourite haunt of some of my Tavistock-based relations in the early 1900s. One of the latest Brentor Sonnets in this issue is by John N. Brown. It is about a barge on a canal. Another - this time by Peter Davies - concerns the changing faces of the Suffolk landscape. Two more can be found on p.26, Autumn Love by international Haiku prize winner, Claire Knight - and Oh let me tell by Peter Geoffrey Paul Thompson.

For those who enjoy taking part in poetry competitions, p15 of the latest issue is devoted to these. They form part of the celebrations for the 10th anniversary of the magazine. Entry is open to those who live in the UK and to those who are members of Norfolk Poets and Writers.

Why not join us all as TIPS celebrates its first golden decade? The current magazine costs £3 (in the UK). eTIPS is a free pdf which is available to all and can be delivered to your inbox several times a year, on request.

You can find Wendy's email here if you would like to receive the monthly ezine or would like to take out a subscription to the full print magazine. There is something for most tastes ... the formal (with many of Wendy's own forms), the informal, the serious, the funny and even, on occasions, the absurd.

And as I mentioned, the Coleridge cover is wonderful, too!

You may be wondering about the mermaid in the photo above. To find out more about Wendy's association with these fascinating creatures, I would encourage you to take out a subscription to TIPS (or eTIPS). You might also take a look on Amazon ... e.g. here.

Thank you, Wendy, for a most enjoyable read.

Poetic People (29): I.M. Vera Rich

2010-10-09T12:16:00.002+01:00

I have just heard that Vera Rich, poet, editor of Manifold poetry magazine, linguist, activist and much more besides, died last Christmas (20 December 2009). The link to her obituary in The Times is here.

I learned a great deal from my Manifold subscriptions and particularly enjoyed taking part in the challenges. There were two per issue, one was for a topical or anniversary theme (e.g. Porcelain or Telecommunications) and the other for a poem in a particular form - and often quite an unusual and taxing one at that e.g. the Ukrainian Kolomyika.

Vera would ring me up on occasions. She rang one day to say that she was catching the train to Swansea to come to the Dylan Thomas Centre. We met her at the station, escorted her to the venue, introduced her to some local poet friends and delivered her back at the railway station afterwards. She was intent on catching a late train in order to arrive at the appointed crack-of-dawn opening hour of her favourite local baker.

As a young poet, I felt privileged to be a part of the Manifold community. I recall a message from Vera, asking if she could read one of my poems on National Poetry Day in a London church venue. I was invited to be on the jury for judging (?challenge) poems on one occasion. I only met Vera Rich once, but her name appeared frequently in our house within the pages of the Times Higher Education Supplement.

Poetry Matters (15): National Poetry Day 2010

2010-10-08T23:04:00.003+01:00

Susan Richardson, Sarah from Cover to Cover Bookshop, Susie Wild

We had a stormy evening yesterday, with waves lashing over the road at Mumbles in Swansea. However, we scuttled inside and were treated to some brilliant readings and recitations at the Cake Gallery, an atmospheric venue with fairy lights and paintings. The National Poetry Day event had been arranged by Sarah from Cover to Cover. Thank you to all those who were involved.

Susan Richardson (and here) read - well, recited the poems by heart - from Creatures of the Intertidal Zone (Cinnamon Press) and from her forthcoming collection. Susie Wild kept us on our toes with a mixture of poems and fiction.

A good time was had by all ... and we enjoyed the olives and other nibbles, too. It was a great evening.

Poetry Matters (14): National Poetry Day 2010

2010-10-07T12:16:00.004+01:00

Mumbles Pier, flying the flag for poetry?

A very happy NPD to you all from Swansea, home town of Dylan Thomas!

I'm wondering if the postman will bring anything poetic in his bag this morning.

I hope you may be attending an event to mark the day. I would like to highlight one actual event, a reading by eco-poet, Susan Richardson, and short story writer, Susie Wild, at the Cake Gallery in Mumbles, Swansea (tickets from Cover to Cover ).

I would also like to draw attention to one virtual event, Wendy Webb's Online Poetry Slam on Facebook, which is already underway. I'm not sure whether the FB event is an 'open' one, but I found it via the search box (and yes, I had an invitation. too!).

Ju Shardlow, writing a plea for old poetry in The Guardian, notices that modern forms - rap, performance, slam, podcast etc. - have pride of place this year. 'Just 10 of the 168 events listed on the National Poetry Day website have any connection with a world pre-Eliot. Ten,' she adds. How do we feel about this?

The web is full of blogposts, newspaper articles ... and celebratory poems. I will post a pick'n'mix selection of links below. Enjoy!

The Poetry Society
The Southbank Centre
National Poetry Day in Wales
Poetry Day spells all-age fun: click here to listen to Sarah James and her ideal 'home'
BBC Wales
'Poetry is ... mathematics' Steve Jones in The Telegraph. Agree?
I'm all for green digital 'solutions' - but where does this leave the book?
Roger McGough on the Greenbelt blog
NPD at Dove Dottage
A poem at last! (Norman MacCaig)
Salt Publishing suggest we should 'seize the day'
The Prime Minister's choice

And finally ...

... many of us who engage with poetry will have our own answers to the following question, but what does poetry mean to you? If I receive enough one-word answers, I will post my favourite ones in a word cloud ... (dream on?).

Does poetry need a special day? But of course. Let's party ...

Competition Corner (7): Oxfam North

2010-10-06T14:35:00.000+01:00

Further details here ...

Creature Feature (17): Seal Time

2010-09-24T15:07:00.002+01:00

The pup above was actually seen off Skye a year ago,

but it is breeding time for the seals off the Pembrokeshire coast.

I have a seal poem in the current Writelink 'Grape and Grain' competition here. If you would like to read it, you can follow the link here.

Others are also taking part in the competition, and I speak for us all when I say that any votes or constructive comments would be appreciated. You can leave these once you have followed the link to the site ... The competition closes at the end of the month, when votes will be counted.

Incidentally, participants are encouraged to drum up support from family, friends (on Facebook or otherwise!), blog-followers and message board readers. We are invited to tell everyone we know that we have 'entered the competition' in the hope that folk will 'come and vote!' You can read the rest of the rules here.

Window on Wales (3): Writers' Plaques Online

2010-09-24T11:54:00.002+01:00

You may like to check out the exciting new website for Writers' Plaques in Wales ... here.

Oops, I see I have included an apostrophe ... ;-)

Media Mix (3): Poetry in the news...What does it 'do'?

2010-09-08T22:26:00.007+01:00

Click here for a good article from the Huffington Post. You might also like this.

Poetry on Display (2): Victorian txt poems @ the British Library

2010-09-06T15:41:00.005+01:00

Did you know that a kind of txt-speak was being used to good effect in the Victorians era?

The British Library has begun to advertise its forthcoming exhibition, Evolving English: One Language, Many Voices, which opens in November. You can read about it here. The exhibition runs from 12 November 2010 – 3 April 2011, and the earliest surviving copy of Beowulf will be on display.

David Crystal (and here) feels that, 'This is a first. No exhibition anywhere has ever been devoted to the entire history and present-day global use of the English language.'

Green Moment (1): Organic Fortnight - and the Eden Project

2010-09-03T00:25:00.004+01:00

Welcome! | Croeso!

This post is part of
Crafty Green Poet's Blogfest
to mark the Soil Association's
ORGANIC FORTNIGHT
3-17 September 2010

Thank you,
Juliet,
for arranging this enterprise.

"It is poetic that a china clay pit, so Cornish in essence, has been given another life.
It is a constant source of inspiration for me and continues to get better and better.”

Anthony Eyton R.A.
Artist in Residence,
The Eden Project

I wonder when you last had a 'green' moment.

I vividly recall my first visit to the Space Age biomes
of the Eden Project in Cornwall, back in 2002.
The structures alone were impressive.

However, I was particularly struck by the 'recycling work'
that had given the old China Clay pit a new lease of life
as a place in which people could come to enjoy themselves
and learn a great deal about the world around them.

The colours of the plants were vibrant.
The scents were intoxicating.
You could feel droplets of humidity on your skin.
The organic coffee in the café was delicious.
Birdsong resounded through the jungle!

I was so captivated by Eden that I came home and wrote a long (semi-fantasy semi-autobiographical) poem about my visit, under the tutelage of Susan Richardson, as part of a Disability Arts Cymru project. The poem, 'The Cheerful Chocoholic Woman Goes Exploring', was published in Hidden Dragons | Gwir y Grymus (Parthian Books 2004).

The poem revolves around my (imaginary) Biome conversation with a Praying Mantis (and here), who makes me appreciate the qualities of our fragile earth in a new light - as you will see from the following quotation:

He tells her all about the concept of fair trade,
about sustainable forests and water aid.
‘I have seen lots of wonders, but it’s time to depart,’
sighs the chocoholic woman, with a burdensome heart.
‘I envy those Aztecs with their cocoa bean brew,
mixed with spice from the chilli to warm them right through!’

The Chocoholic Woman finally arrives home, flinging 'chocoholic chippings' from her 'chocoholic heels', only to discover with a sense of panic that the 'snowy peaks of chocolate treats' beside her favourite chair are not, in fact, organic...

You may like to read about:

The Eden Project Real Cool Futures Project, with a case study on Clio Turton who has worked as a manager at the Press Office of the Soil Association.
The Eden Project Blog
The Eden Project Shop (how about some Christmas present ideas?)
Why Organic? - from the Soil Association

If chocolate is your thing, you may like:

Divine
The Divine Chocolate Blog
The Divine Deep Dark Chocolate Competition (still time to enter)

If you enjoy poetry, you may like:

The winning poems of the 2009 Divine Chocolate Writing Competition (judge, Anthony Horowitz)
Organic Poetry (N.B. this site is about organic - or free-form - writing, rather than organic produce)
An obituary (1994) in The Independent for Jack Clemo, who found inspiration in the china clay pits.

Enjoy Organic Fortnight ...

and don't forget to visit
Crafty Green Poet

and

here

the other participating blogs, linked to the site.

And finally ... if you like the thought of a Praying Mantis, you may enjoy Naquillity's post about a Walking Stick here.

Poetry Events (4): Course with Peter Thabit Jones at 5 Cwmdonkin Drive

2010-09-02T15:06:00.008+01:00

LITERATURE COURSES AT 5 CWMDONKIN DRIVE,
SWANSEA, WALES, UK

Dylan Thomas House Literary Courses

“Following in the footsteps….”

Aimed at: Beginners and those with some experience of writing
who wish to explore new avenues

Number on course: 12

Duration: 10 weeks

Times: Thursday morning 10.00 – 12.00

Start date: 23rd September 2010

Cost: Introductory offer for first five to sign up £35 – normal cost £75

This is the first in series of courses which will look at different subjects,
including poetry,
writing for children,
and short story writing.

Opportunity to write in the house where Dylan wrote over 2/3rds of his published work and to experience the local areas that inspired his work, including Cwmdonkin Park and the Uplands.

The course will concentrate on participation
and students will be encouraged to develop their own writing and poetry style.

Course Tutor, Peter Thabit Jones
is a poet and writer with an international reputation
who grew up in the St Thomas area of Swansea.
He is an acknowledged expert on the work of Dylan Thomas,
and has taught poetry and writing courses
at Swansea University and the Arvon Foundation.

In 2008 he and the late Aeronwy Thomas – Dylan’s daughter - developed the Dylan Thomas Walking Tour
of Greenwich Village
on behalf of the Welsh Assembly Government in New York.

He is the founder of the international poetry magazine The Seventh Quarry.

Application: Enrol on the course by email to info@5cwmdonkindrive.com

Magazine Moment (16): Cultural Horizon Magazine (Romania)

2010-08-25T12:01:00.015+01:00

You can enjoy the vibrant 'buzz'

of Van Gogh's famous Sunflowers
here

I was delighted to receive the current copy of Contemporan Orizont Literar (Annul III - Nr.4 (18) / JULY-AUGUST 2010) through the post from Bucharest. Mihai Cantuniari is Director of this international and largely multi-lingual publishing enterprise, with Daniel Dragomirescu as Editor-in-Chief. The magazine's new Foundation is a media partner of MTTLC, which comes under the guidance of Professor Lidia Vianu at the University of Bucharest.

GOOD NEWS! ... Members of the magazine's editorial and production team have secured a national headquarters in Bucharest. The new Foundation is now on track. Daniel and his colleagues have persevered to ensure that the magazine goes from strength to strength, rising to new heights and inspiring readers (and writers) from all corners of the globe. I am not alone in acknowledging a debt to the editor's cultural foresight.

A package from Romania!

The arresting and penetrating eyes of Van Gogh, in his self portrait 'without beard', adorn the front cover of this issue. I cannot help feeling that the portrait complements the poem on p.16, After Kirchway after Keats by Professor Donald Riggs of Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA. I have no idea whether the painter's depressive and suicidal traits were manifested in a previous generation, but I find myself substituting 'brother' for 'sister'* in Van Gogh's case. The poem poses - as perhaps all good poems should - more questions than it attempts to answer, concerning our genetic and social make-up as individuals. I found myself reconsidering the old chestnut of whether art arises in its most potent form out of suffering - or whether suffering is just one of many valid catalysts for creativity.

This fine poem by Riggs is, of course, not about Van Gogh but about Keats. A picture of the poet lodged itself in my head back in 1985, when I lived in Rome, and paid my first visit to the Protestant Cemetery by Piramide (named after the eye-catching Pyramid of Cestius), to see those paradoxically ethereal and immortal words of epitaph etched in stone. Since then my vision has mutated somewhat, and it would be fair to say that the Keats of Bright Star is probably the dominating picture today - such is the power of story, reconstruction and (perhaps especially) the moving image.

Curiously, this issue has more of Keats on p.50. Swansea poet, Byron Beynon, evokes the interior of the Keats-Shelley House at 26 Piazza di Spagna, in his poem, The Spanish Steps, Rome. The poem includes the chilling line, 'death entered at eleven o'clock'.

Speaking of Wales, you will find my interview with Cardiff eco-poet, Susan Richardson (and here), on p.4 - along with Susan's polar poem, Waiting at the Breathing Hole, about life above and below the ice, in which the speaker waits expectantly for 'the whiskered nose of inspiration'. The poem is from Susan's acclaimed poetry collection, Creatures of the Intertidal Zone, published by Cinnamon Press. Thank you, Susan, for your detailed answers to my snow-shower of questions! Incidentally, you can read about Susan's recent visit to Keats' House in Hampstead, UK here.

This edition contains 60 packed, illustrated and well presented pages of:

Articles and Features (e.g Deborah Ann Erdmann, USA on There's No Place Like Home)
Poetry (p.8-11, 16-18, 21-22, 25-26, 30-31, 34-36, 43-48, 50-55, 59)
Contemporary Perspectives and Horizons (e.g. Peggy Landsman, USA; Iorgu Gălăţeanu, Romania; Maria Eugenia Mendoza Arrubarrena, Mexico)
Photographs and Illustrations (throughout)

Thank you once again, Daniel, for the opportunities that have arisen - opportunities to make new friends, to gain fresh perspectives on the multi-faceted world of the Arts, and to learn more about Romania itself.

This edition is truly 'international' in outlook. The following countries are represented by those who have contributed:

Romania
USA
Germany
Chile
India
Bulgaria
Nigeria
Spain
Mexico

... and Wales, including a page of Lyrical Horizon | Orizonturi Lirice poems by Chris Kinsey. I interviewed Chris, BBC Wildlife Poet of the Year 2008, in an earlier edition in my occasional column, Dialoguri Galeze.

Do take a look at the magazine site here. New subscribers are always welcome.

MAGAZINE PRICE: 12 EUROS | 15 DOLLARS PER COPY (SHIPPING INCLUDED). PayPal details to the right of the magazine page if you click here.

* A letter from Keats to his sister, Fanny

Poetry Form Challenge (3): Haiku

2010-08-21T22:02:00.001+01:00

Alan Summers said... For anyone who might be tempted to enter a haiku competition, we are now open until 21st November 2010.

The With Words International Online Haiku Competition 2010: With Words

all my very best,

Alan
With Words

Poetry Matters (11): Kyrielle

2010-08-16T16:36:00.003+01:00

A couple of kind visitors to my last post left a message asking about the KYRIELLE, so I thought the simplest - and I hope most helpful - answer was to point you in the direction of my Brekekekex blog of poetry forms. The link is here.

Thank you, incidentally, for your comments.

Poetry Matters (10): Good News from India

2010-08-09T13:58:00.006+01:00

Awaiting a package from India

I have just heard that my Kyrielle, The Winding Way, has taken Joint Second Position in the Metverse Muse Fixed Form Poetry Competition 2010.

Dr H. Tulsi from Visakhatpatnam is the editor of Metverse Muse. The magazine's new book of poetry forms, Muse Clad in Costumes, contains two of my poems. I am looking forward to its arrival from India.

Poems on the Web (8): Poetry Cow reads Charles Simic

2010-08-04T19:22:00.004+01:00

Highland Cattle family on Insh Marshes near Kingussie

You might enjoy Poetry Cow reading The White Room, a poem by Charles Simic. If the first link to the Poetry Foundation is not working, you could try this one...

Ars Poetica (2): Ekphrasis

2010-07-30T15:05:00.023+01:00

Leicestershire: Grace Dieu (above)
and nearby Coleorton (St Mary's Church below)

Wordsworth was influenced artistically
by his patron, Sir George Beaumont,
who played a key role in the founding of the National Gallery in London
and lived at Coleorton Hall

I have had cause on two recent occasions to consider the nature of ekphrastic work, so I thought it might be a useful moment to formulate some (personal) thoughts and air a couple of queries on the subject.

From my undergraduate studies of Classical Greek, I know that ek corresponds to out, and phrasis to speak. We find ek or ec in English words like ectoplasm. We also find it transmuted to ex in words like external. We know phrasis, of course, from words like phrase and phraseology. Ekphrasis, a rhetorical technique, is therefore a combination of these word-parts, which when combined give a meaning of speaking out or proclamation - or to put it another way, of calling 'an inanimate object by name' [Wikipedia - see also a number of definitions garnered by Ryan Welsh at the University of Chicago].

The majority of ekphrastic poems (I believe) shed light on a picture without the two art forms being physically conjoined. They do, however, build an imaginary bridge between the 'verbal' and the 'visual'. Take, for instance, the iconic example of Keats' Ode on a Grecian Urn. What is important here is that the poet brings a 'notional' or 'allusive' - rather than an 'actual' - image before our inner eye and makes us question what we visualise. There is no need for us to see the urn (which may or may not be a single artefact) portrayed in a given medium alongside the poem. The words alone do the work, conjuring up the object in our imagination.

We occasionally encounter ekphrasis in poetry as an actual and symbiotic pairing of word and image. That is to say, for example, that a poem text and piece of corresponding 'visual art' work in tandem to form a fusion or new creation. The one art form elucidates and illuminates the other in some manner - and this is a two-way process. We can all recall our childhood story and poetry books in which the bold and colourful illustrations added so much to each tale or poem. I consider this powerful marriage to be ekphrasis at its most basic (and on occasions at its most potent) level.

In these multi-media days of collaborative enterprises and opportunities, we are familiar with countless instances of art forms impacting on other media. Ekphrastic poetry could be 'illuminated' or 'enhanced' (I hesitate to say 'illustrated') by 'actual' painted work, pen-and-ink drawings or photographs. It may be of interest to note that a union of photography and poetry has appeared in the Poetry Book Society bulletin as Photoetry, but I see this as a form of ekphrasis rather than as something different again.

The questions lingering in my mind are ones of definition and distinction:

Are all 'visual' poems ekphrastic?
Are all 'illustrated' stories (like those in the children's picture books mentioned above) ekphrastic?

And in each case, if not, then why not?

* * *

Previous Coastcard posts touching on Ekphrasis can be found here and here. My Photoetry entry (with a couple of book recommendations) is here.

You may also like the following:

Ten of the best: examples of ekphrasis by John Mullan, The Guardian, Sat. 14 November 2009
Tim Liardet on Ekphrasis and Ekphrasis, New Welsh Review, Number 72, Summer 2006 (in which the author makes reference to the classic example of the Shield of Achilles in Homer's Iliad). This is a compelling, lively and contemporary survey - and comes highly recommended!
Wikipedia article, with extensive bibliography
Ekphrasis - a Poetry Journal
Digital Ekphrasis - Cecilia Lindhé
Wordsworth, ekphrasis - and the (artistic) patronage of Sir George Beaumont (see here for Grace Dieu and Coleorton)

Magazine Moment (15): The Seventh Quarry

2010-07-28T22:47:00.013+01:00

Swansea Bay from Mumbles,
with the Swansea-Cork ferry

I was delighted when the Summer 2010 edition [issue 12] of The Seventh Quarry arrived today, featuring an international spread of work from Wales, England, Holland, Romania, Italy, Catalonia, Israel, South Africa, Canada and America.

The magazine includes an interview with one of the leading Catalonian poets, Dr August Bover. Dr Kristine Doll poses interesting questions about the 'difficult to understand' label that attaches itself to the art of poetry.* I had the privilege of meeting August at a stimulating and memorable workshop in the Dylan Thomas Centre some months ago. Allan Peterson appears on p.5 as the issue's poet in profile.

The magazine opens with a poetry sequence including a moving piece, A Circle of Meadow, by Vince Clemente, The Seventh Quarry's Consulting Editor for America. A stylish concrete poem, Elephant, by Dave Lewis from Wales is embedded with 'memories' and 'stories' from the watering holes. Gerald England's witty contribution seems to me to combine the lazy dog pangram with a kind of abcedarium. I much enjoyed Gillian Drake's evocative poem, Lost - and am delighted that my poem, The Women of Linear B, has been included on p.11.

In Chapter 1 - Swansea Bay we are treated to an excerpt from a forthcoming Cross-Cultural Communications publication, Love For Ever Meridian; Finding Dylan Thomas in the 21st Century by John Dotson, who enjoyed 'taking in the shore-places of Dylan the boy' on a recent visit to South Wales.

The penultimate page of this issue carries a description of the latest Poet to Poet chapbook, Nightwatch by Aeronwy Thomas and Maria Mazziotti Gillan, in the series published jointly by Cross-Cultural Communications and The Seventh Quarry Press ... of which more perhaps in a future post.

Thank you, Peter, once again for another bumper edition!

* Postscript: On the subject of the meaning of poetry, there is a substantial article entitled by The Virtue of Verse by George Watson, fellow at St John's College, Cambridge in the current Times Higher Education Supplement (29 July-4 Aug 2010) - available online, with livelink highlighted above.

***

N.B. If you would like to take out a subscription
to The Seventh Quarry poetry magazine,
details can be found here.

Magazine Moment (14): Cultural Horizon Magazine (Romania)

2010-07-27T11:31:00.000+01:00

A recent package from Romania!

I was delighted to receive the current copy of Contemporan Orizont Literar (Annul III - Nr.3 (17) / Mai-Junie 2010) through the post from Bucharest. Mihai Cantuniari is Director of this international - and often multi-lingual - publishing enterprise, with Daniel Dragomirescu as Editor-in-Chief. The magazine's new Foundation is a media partner of MTTLC, which comes under the guidance of Professor Lidia Vianu at the University of Bucharest.

This edition contains 60 packed and well presented pages of:

articles
poetry
critical perspectives
feedback
photographs,

in addition this year's second extra A4 supplement, El Boletin del Autor, representing Orizonturi Literare Spaniole, and featuring Pedro Javier Martin Pedros. Pedros is interviewed by Victor Mrata Cortado on the intriguing subject, 'Poezia este şi va fi mereu necesară' | 'Poetry is and will always be necessary'. Pedros considers those closet writers who 'write like angels', but whose words rarely see the light of day. What is it that makes us write? Why, I wonder, are some writers so reluctant to admit that they have secret scripts hidden away - in a 'celebrity-culture' world in which others are desperate to flaunt their work?

The main body of the magazine begins with 'A Preface to the Passions of Daniel' (editor-in-chief) by the magazine's Director. Cantuniari pays tribute to Daniel Dragomirescu, whose dreams, visions and tenacity of spirit have made the magazine what it is today, by forging ahead and 'co-opting a series of precious translators', under Alina-Olimpia Miron. Daniel has persevered to ensure that CHM has gone from strength to strength, rising to new heights and inspiring readers (and writers) from more and more corners of the globe. I am not alone in acknowledging a debt to the editor's cultural foresight.

Thank you, Daniel, for the opportunities that have arisen - opportunities to make new friends, to gain fresh perspectives on the multi-faceted world of the Arts, and to learn more about Romania itself.

This edition is definitely 'international' in outlook. The following countries are represented by those who have contributed:

Romania
Spain
Estonia
Nepal
USA
Israel
Finland

Britain, I am glad to say, is not forgotten - thanks to a section on the Feedback pages by Chris Kinsey. I interviewed Chris, BBC Wildlife Poet of the Year 2008, in an earlier edition in my occasional column, Dialoguri Galeze.

Do take a look at the magazine site here. New subscribers are always welcome - and the next edition including the latest in my interview series from Wales will be available soon!

MAGAZINE PRICE: 12 EUROS | 15 DOLLARS PER COPY (SHIPPING INCLUDED). PayPal details to the right of the magazine page if you click here.
The next issue is almost out, which will include contributions from Wales, including my interview with Susan Richardson and poetry by Byron Beynon. You can find the details here - and may perhaps like to order a copy for yourself!

Poetic Places (5): Out in the Wild

2010-07-23T22:10:00.009+01:00

Gannet flying inland from the Achiltibuie area,
north of Ullapool
[please click to enlarge]

I have just mounted a post on my new Wild and Wonderful blog about a Buzzard we saw in the Quiraing region of Skye. I have been thinking a lot about wild places and wilderness since we returned from Scotland, so it was a pleasant surprise to read Professor Morley's post about walking and writing. You can find it here: 'Rebounding Flowerheads'. His piece makes special reference to Scotland and the West Country.

My Loch Coruisk post, with book suggestion etc.
A 'wild' book I really enjoy is Britain and Ireland's Best Wild Places by Christopher Somerville
Turnstone blog about walking and writing

Competition Corner (6): Writelink Poetry

2010-07-21T13:05:00.005+01:00

I was thrilled and delighted to gain Second Place in the latest Writelink poetry competition on the theme of 'Rivals'.

My poem is about the creatures on the Burges wallpaper at Knightshayes Court, a National Trust property near Tiverton.

I've been 'bumping along' for days with my dominant [left] arm in a sling following a fall on Skye - so this news really cheered me up. Incidentally, the form I used was the French Quatern. It was not a form I had tried before, but as many of you know, I love to experiment.

Buried Treasure: Puffins!

2010-07-15T00:37:00.004+01:00

Seth Apter's...

Welcome | Croeso to my Puffin Post, which I am re-posting as part of Seth Apter's Buried Treasure collaboration, in conjunction with Seth's inspirational art blog, The Altered Page. The brief was to 'excavate' an old post and give it a second life... so here goes. Enjoy!

Saturday, 3 October 2009

Puffin Quest 3: OAPS (Old Age Puffins)

Puffins at the RSPB Reserve,

Bempton Cliffs, Yorkshire, UK

Those who follow my blog will know that puffins are probably my favourite bird. They float around in 'rafts' on the sea, looking like small jewels or beads in a necklace. They are often referred to as the 'clowns of the air' because they look so comical when they fly. I took a number of photographs, trying to capture their different poses: I hesitate to say their 'expressions' because this is a word I associate with humans. I hope you like the result!

Puffins seem to have been in the news a bit these past few months. I blogged about the rare sighting of the Tufted Puffin a couple of weeks ago.

[Ed.- you will find a link to that post from this one! You might also like to see my puffin bookmarks in this post].

I have now been given an unidentified newspaper clip about 'the oldest known puffin in Europe'. The bird was ringed back in 1975. Another puffin found in the same vicinity of Rough Island, part of the Shiant Isles, off Scotland had first been ringed in 1977.

Wildlife Extra: apparently a puffin on Iceland may be even older!
British Trust for Ornithology OA Puffin Report

-------------------------------------

By the way, if you enjoy exploring the natural world, you might like to hop over to my new 2010 blog, Wild and Wonderful.

Previous Comments:

: 4 October 2009 00:18
steven said...: hello caroline - i was astonished at the ages of the puffins!!! i had no idea!! by the way - the puffin card is really lovely!!! they've always been my favourite bird. have a peaceful day. steven; 4 October 2009 14:02
Crafty Green Poet said...: I didn't know puffins lived so long!

Your puffin card is lovely, really captures their character...

Poetic Forms (3): The Clang

2010-07-13T11:05:00.011+01:00

My Clang is about spice...

Do you enjoy new poetry forms?

I am delighted that Professor Lewis Turco has posted a piece on the Clang form on his 'Book of Odd and Invented Forms' site. The Clang was invented by Llewelyn Nicholas. You can read two examples on the site, one by the creator of the form and the other by yours truly. If you would like to read the poems, you will need to go to the site [link above] and scroll down or search for 'Clang'.

We would be interested to know if you decide to have a go at writing a Clang...

P.S. My understanding today [24 hours on] is that Professor Turco has now taken down much of his 'Book of Odd and Invented Forms' site, with a view to editing the material for a possible print publication.

Poetic Places (4): Loch Coruisk, Skye

2010-07-12T14:51:00.019+01:00

The view from Elgol,
looking across Loch Scavaig towards Loch Coruisk

It gave me a real boost to return from Skye (nursing what seems to be a fractured ulna... final diagnosis still pending) to find that my poem, 'Turner's Loch Coruisk, Skye' [24/2009] had been awarded 2nd Prize as a result of Readers' Votes in issue 141 of Reach Poetry (Indigo Dreams Publishing, editors Ronnie Goodyer and Dawn Bauling). Thank you to all who voted and to Ronnie and Dawn for the cheque!

Incidentally, Wendy Webb's poem about (David and me at) Loch Coruisk appears in her volume, A Mermaid's Tale (Wendy Webb Books 2010). You can read more here on my Land&Lit blog.

Sadly, my injuries meant that we were unable to take the boat over Loch Scavaig to Loch Coruisk on this occasion, but we had a couple of memorable visits to Elgol. If you would like to see what we enjoyed watching on the sea loch, you might care to click on this link, which will take you to my new blog, 'Wild and Wonderful', about the natural world.

P.S. On the recommendation of the Quaerentia blog [and here], I took a copy of Robert MacFarlane's book, The Wild Places with me as holiday reading. I injured my dominant arm on our first full day on the island, so my reading plans have been delayed due to difficulty in holding the volume or turning the pages. Watch this space! I know the book contains a small section on Loch Coruisk.

Window on Wildlife (13): Wild and Wonderful

2010-06-19T23:20:00.007+01:00

Damselfly at Dinefwr

I feel the time has come to post my wildlife photographs on a separate blog, so this post is to introduce you to Wild and Wonderful.

This 'Caroline at Coastcard' blog here will focus more specifically on poetry and writing from now on.

Magazine Moment (10): Reach Poetry: Loch Coruisk

2010-06-18T16:58:00.007+01:00

The brooding waters of Loch Coruisk

My poem, 'Turner's Loch Coruisk, Skye' has been published in Reach Poetry, issue 141, June 2010 (Indigo Dreams Publishing, editors Ronnie Goodyer and Dawn Bauling).

You may be amused to hear that Wendy Webb's poem about my last visit to Loch Coruisk appears in her volume, A Mermaid's Tale (Wendy Webb Books 2010). You can read more here on my Land&Lit blog.

Media Mix (5): What is Poetry For? The Guardian

2010-06-18T14:34:00.006+01:00

You can read the article here. A measure of excitement mounts as we await the announcement of the new Oxford Professor of Poetry.

Oxford University
The candidates (BBC)

P.S. Poetry in the recent Honours to mark the Queen's Official Birthday: here

Web Watch (1): Second Light Poet Page

2010-06-12T22:11:00.006+01:00

A dram

This one is outside the home
of the composer, Joseph Parry, in Merthyr Tydfil,
but it is similar to the ones
that Idris Davies would have known
in the Rhymney Valley.

My Poet Page is now live on the Second Light site. You can view it here. It includes my poem, 'Elegy for Idris Davies', which was published in The Second Quarry (#3, Winter 2006). See: The Guardian, 15 April 2006: review, ‘Boats, bards and bomb shelters’ by Travis Elborough.

Caroline at Coastcard

Publication Pointer (2): The Book of Forms (4th edition) by Lewis Putnam Turco

Magazine Moment (28): Orintont Literar Contemporan - Canary Islands number

Poetry Matters (16): Awel Aman Tawe Competition 2012

Poetry Matters (15): Cafe Poets in Woodbridge

Fiesta Time (9): Scotland at the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival

Magazine Moment (27): Reach Poetry (and Puffin)

Creative Corner (1): Simply ... a Question Mark

Fiesta Time (8): Aldeburgh Poetry Festival

Publication Pointer (2): Swansea International Poetry Festival Anthology

Competition Corner (1): A Message from India

Publication Pointer (1): The Book of Forms (4th edition) by Lewis Turco

Fiesta Time (8): Aldeburgh Poetry Festival

Calendar Corner (2): National Poetry Week 2011

Calendar Corner (1): National Poetry Week

3 – 9 October 2011

Magazine Moment (27): Australia

Magazine Moment (26): Dolphins in Danger

Magazine Moment (26): Reach Poetry Surprise

Magazine Moment (25): The Ghazal Page

Fiesta Time (7): Closing Moments at the Swansea International Poetry Festival

Fiesta Time (6): Premiere of Verse Drama by Peter Thabit Jones

Fiesta Time (5): International Poetry Festival, Swansea 2011

Fiesta Time (4): International Poetry Festival opens in Swansea, 2011

Fiesta Time (3): International Poetry Festival in Swansea, 2011

Magazine Moment (24) : Orizont Literar Contemporan, Romania

Poetry Matters (18): Peter Thabit Jones ~ 'Poems from a Cabin on Big Sur'

Magazine Moment (23): TIPS for Writers 83

Archaeological Avenues (3): David Gill's BSA book, update

Creature Feature (3): Tiger, Tiger

International Echoes (14): Metverse Muse

Archaeological Avenues (2): David's book, hot off the press

Poetry Matters (18): 'Creatures of a Dead Community' by Lynn Hopkins

Lynn Hopkins: Part-time Degree Student’s Publishing Success

Seasonal Splash (7): Spring Fever (and amphibians)

Magazine Moment (22): The Dawntreader

Magazine Moment (21) : Orizont Literar Contemporan, Romania

Anthology Alert (9): Memories ~ a Host of Golden Daffodils

International Echoes (13): 俳句 in Response to the Earthquake

Poetry Matters (17): Bloodaxe Launches in Swansea

Calendar Corner (11): Shrove Tuesday Pancakes

Book Corner (3): The Book of Forms ~ forthcoming

Magazine Moment (20) : The Seventh Quarry

Book Corner (2): The Book of Forms ~ forthcoming

Magazine Moment (19) : Cultural Horizon Magazine, Romania

Window on Wales (4): Castles in the Frame

Magazine Moment (19) : TIPS for Writers 81

International Echoes (12): 2011: ALTĂ ODISEE SPAŢIALĂ

Prizes and Commendations (2): The T.S. Eliot prize

Calendar Corner (10): Burns' Night

Anthology Alert (8): Tiger, Tiger (A project to help the WWF)

Anthology Alert (7): Orizont Literar Contemporan

Window on Wildlife (14): Caretta caretta

Fiesta Time (2): International Poetry Festival in Swansea, June 2011

Anthology Alert (7): ANTOLOGIA REVISTEI 'Orizont Literar Contemporan'

Seasonal Splash (5): Deck the Halls . . .

Publications (4): Poem of the Month - and others

Publications (3): Winter Warmers

Window on Wildlife (14): Red Kite

Anthology Alert (6): Writelink and my Puffin poem, 'A Chink in the Sky'

Seasonal Splash (4): Bonfire Wordle

Going Green (1): Writing Workshop on Climate Change

Fiesta Time (1): Andrew Motion at the Dylan Thomas Festival 2010

Seals and Cetaceans (3): The Writing Process

Poetry Submission (2): 'Invisible Breath' by Indigo Dreams

Poetry Matters (16): Post-National Poetry Day WORDLE 2010

Magazine Moment (18): Cultural Horizon Magazine, Romania

Competition Corner (7): Writelink Poetry - Seal Bay

Magazine Moment (17) : Wendy Webb's TIPS for Writers, issue 79

Poetic People (29): I.M. Vera Rich

Poetry Matters (15): National Poetry Day 2010

Poetry Matters (14): National Poetry Day 2010

Competition Corner (7): Oxfam North

Creature Feature (17): Seal Time

Window on Wales (3): Writers' Plaques Online

Media Mix (3): Poetry in the news...What does it 'do'?

Poetry on Display (2): Victorian txt poems @ the British Library

Green Moment (1): Organic Fortnight - and the Eden Project

Poetry Events (4): Course with Peter Thabit Jones at 5 Cwmdonkin Drive

Magazine Moment (16): Cultural Horizon Magazine (Romania)