RSPB - a poem in: a poem out

This is not a good photo, I'm afraid, but Waxwings are hard to find this year!

I have donated a hand written copy of my Waxwing poem, 'Red Letter Day, Lattice Avenue', to the RSPB in the hope that they may be able to sell it and raise some funds for wildlife. My poem was first published in 2014 in Reach Poetry (Indigo Dreams Publishing).

By the same token, we bought a hand written copy of Professor David Morley's poem about Goldcrests. I am looking forward to its arrival from the RSPB. The Society had a file of bird poems (well, wildlife in general, but mainly birds) at the Norfolk Festival of Nature. Matt Howard, RSPB Eastern Region Community Fundraiser has been coordinating the venture. Poets who have donated work include Matt Merritt, Kathleen Jamie and Heidi Williamson. Wendy Cope had given a Haiku, which I expect will find a home before long.

Fiesta Time (10): IpArt Festival at Arlington's with Heidi Williamson

Heidi Williamson

We had a terrific evening at Arlington's in Ipswich last night at the IpArt PoetryFest. Poet-in-residence, Heidi Williamson, read from her Bloodaxe collection, Electric Shadow. She also shared some new work with us and treated us to a highly polished, enjoyable and informative reading. Thanks are due to the organisers, Fred Ellis of PoetryAnglia and Doug Coombes of Ipswich Community Radio.

Fred Ellis at the microphone ...

David (Gill) reading his poem, 'What did Hadrian Say?' ...

There was plenty of time for poetry chat!

I read my poem, 'Moonshine', about the Snowy Owl that landed in Zennor in Cornwall in 2009. I read this poem for the first time at the Swansea International Poetry Festival in 2011. It has just been published in the current edition of Poetry Cornwall | Barhonyeth Kernow (ed. Les Merton). 

Poetry Matters (20): Heidi Williamson's 'Writer in Residence' Course

Heidi Williamson (supplied by Heidi Williamson)

I had a nostalgic train ride to Norwich - the 'Fine City' of my teenage years and new UNESCO City of Literature - on Saturday to attend another of Heidi Williamson's excellent courses for writers. Readers of this blog may recall that some weeks ago I had the opportunity of joining Heidi's course on preparing a first poetry collection. You can read about that day here.

This last Saturday's course on 'Becoming a Writer in Residence', was every bit as challenging and wide-ranging. Heidi spent two years as Poet in Residence at the Science Museum's Dana Centre and is currently Writer in Residence at the John Jarrold Printing Museum in Norwich. She also holds a residency here in Ipswich for the Arlington's Cafe Poets.

Heidi brings not only bags of enthusiasm grounded in personal experience to her courses but also meticulous preparation, borne out of incisive thinking and careful planning. There is always a good balance of 'input' and 'discussion', not forgetting time for personal note-making along the way. So am I hoping to follow this through with a residency? Well, who knows: ideas are brewing, so watch this space ... 

Heidi's collection, Electric Shadow, was published by Bloodaxe and is available here. Heidi's excellent courses are popular: they attract writers from a wide area, so do keep an eye open if you feel they might be for you!

Poetry Matters (19): Route to a First Collection Workshop with Heidi Williamson

Heidi Williamson (photo courtesy of Heidi)

Have you ever wondered exactly what it takes to prepare a first full-length poetry collection?

I went on a brilliant workshop today led by Bloodaxe poet, Heidi Williamson. The pieces in Heidi's first collection, 'Electric Shadow', which I couldn't resist buying, have been described by Poetry Book Society selectors, Moniza Alvi and Paul Farley, as ...

‘Poems which display an incisive mind, 
a powerful imagination 

and an equally impressive purchase on language.’

I very much look forward to reading these at leisure. 

Heidi, a prize-winning poet, held a two year residency at the Science Museum’s Dana Centre in London. She is currently serving as Poet-in-Residence at the John Jarrold Printing Museum in Norwich. These opportunities have afforded her the opportunity to move out of her comfort zone (as I believe she said), and to embark on a series of explorations into the multi-faceted worlds of science and technology, worlds that are not often associated with our perhaps limited perception of those 'traditional spheres' of poetry. 

I first met Heidi some weeks ago when she travelled to Ipswich to join the Café Poets at Arlingtons. There was little chance to talk then, but I was excited when I heard that she was running a course, and was thankful that our house move didn't quite overlap with the day in question!

So what did we do in the workshop? Well, we were encouraged to attempt exercises that helped us to focus and think more incisively about the nature of our embryonic future collections. We were also given step-by-step guidelines to follow. We were made aware not only of helpful tips but also of common pitfalls to avoid along what can be for some - if not for many - an uncertain route towards publication. 

I won't go into more explicit details because it is possible that you may choose to take the opportunity of attending one of Heidi's future workshops for yourself. Suffice to say that Heidi took a very comprehensive approach to her topic, providing her participants with an extremely enjoyable and valuable way of spending a Saturday. I have come home with much to think about and a wad of practical handouts to read and digest. I look forward to following through some of the books that were recommended - and I feel far more equipped for the next leg of my own exciting and doubtless unique journey into the world of poetry and its publication.

Thank you, Heidi, for an inspiring and challenging day!