Winning Poem in Disability Arts Cymru 2016 iBook

More than just... 'A Drop in the Ocean'

The staff at Disability Arts Cymru have produced an iBook of poems that rose to the top in their 2016 competition. Many of us selected a piece of artwork from the organisation's art contest as inspiration, though we were also offered the theme of austerity/extravagance.

My poem, 'A Drop in the Ocean', which was awarded First Prize, was inspired by 'Shoreline Symphonies' by Eileen Harrisson. You will see Eileen's picture if you download the pdf.

Disability Arts Cymru Poetry Competition 2016

I was thrilled to receive an envelope this morning containing my First Prize in the 2016 Disability Arts Cymru Poetry Competition. Poets were encouraged to write in response to art work, which is always an appealing idea; but this year we had the added topical but paradoxical theme of 'austerity and extravagance' to take into account.

'Shoreline Symphony' by Eileen Harrisson was my artistic starting point (9th canvas down on the left side of this link).

So why the photo of rope and gull prints on an otherwise empty beach? My poem was set in what had once been a flourishing harbour. You can guess the rest.

St Govan's Chapel Poem published in 'Seeing Beyond The Surface'

 

St Govan's Chapel © D&C Gill

I have just had a poem, 'Above St Govan's Chapel', published in a rather unusual book.

Seeing beyond the Surface is 'a lighthearted and uplifting compilation of short stories and poems by and about people with disabilities'. Joanna Swank, the editor, writes in the context of assessing our fellow human beings, that 'it is a great thing to see what is beneath the surface.'

This volume has just been published and proceeds will benefit Abilities Solutions in Westville, New Jersey, USA.

Most of the contributors are based in the USA, but there are a couple of us from the UK. Another volume is in the pipeline, and if you might be interested in making a submission to Joanna, please visit the Seeing beyond the Surface website here.

My poem arose out of a visit to the chapel in a cleft in the cliff at St Govan's in Pembrokeshire, Wales. I was both elated (by the scene, and also by the Choughs that clipped the turf) and frustrated (by the access to the chapel itself). 'Above St Govan's Chapel' was written as part of a Disability Arts Cymru project, which resulted in the publication of Hidden Dragons/Gwir a Grymus, an anthology published by Parthian and launched at the Hay Festival in 2004.  

Poetry Round-up

Staffin ... Isle of Skye

Time for a quick poetry round-up ...

Due to time away and other commitments I have got behind with my postings, so here is a summary.

• I have been awarded Third-Equal in the Fixed Form Poet of the Year (2014) Challenge for the Metverse Muse (#38, ed. Dr. H. Tulsi, Visakhapatnam, India) competition in Category A. My poems in the international contest were 'Nightmare' and 'Feline Fancy'. My poems, 'Cattle Crossing, Staffin Bay' and 'Winter's Knife' have been published in this issue of Metverse Muse. 

• My poem, 'In the Wake of Prince Madoc', was Highly Commended in the inaugural Disability Arts Cymru Poetry Competition, judged by Menna Elfyn. The poem will appear in an eBook, alongside the artwork I selected as my inspiration. 

• I will be reading my poem, 'Dear Loris', at the Emma Press Launch of the anthology, Slow Things, in London on Tuesday 21 July. 

• My review of Mike Bannister's poetry book, The Green Man (translated into Romanian as Omul Verde) has appeared in Orizont Literar Contemporan, in the May-June 2015 issue. 

• My interview with Professor Don Riggs of Drexel University in Philadelphia has appeared in Made of Words (translated into Romanian as Făurit din cuvinte). Published in Romania under the aegis of Orizont Literar Contemporan.