poetry
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The wonderful Michelle McGrane has featured several poems from The North End of the Possible on her blog, Peony Moon. Michelle is a heroine of the poetry blogosphere, quietly supporting poet after poet after poet with her site. Make sure you linger in her virtual salon and sample some of the other work she has
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The new issue of Irish Pages, entitled Memory, has just arrived today. It includes work by Michael Longley and Wendell Berry as well as a substantial contribution by David Kinloch. It also happens to be the first issue which I have had some editorial input, my contribution on that side being a beautiful poem by
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It’s exactly a week until the launch of The North End of the Possible and Rob A Mackenzie’s The Good News at the Scottish Poetry Library! If you’re within striking distance of Edinburgh on Saturday 4 May, come on down for 1:00 pm to savour some readings from me and Rob, enjoy a glass of
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A quick post to remind anyone withing striking distance of Newcastle that I’m reading from The North End of the Possible at the Lit & Phil on Monday evening. The event is free — which leaves you free to spend your pennies on a sparkling, hot-of-the-press copy of the book — and starts at 7:00pm.
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Just over a fortnight ago, I received the following message from Claire Askew: For nearly a year, as well as doing my teaching job, I’ve also been doing some work with an organisation called Women Supporting Women. WSW is a not-for-profit community organisation that provides resources and services to vulnerable women and girls in Edinburgh.
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Oh, is it really more than a month since I last posted?! How time flies when you’re preparing the next book and an online course for the Poetry School! Still, it’s good, thoroughly enjoyable, rewarding busyness, that. Anyway, if anyone is still here — perhaps you’re appreciating the contents of the cupboards; I hope so
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Poet and fiction writer Emma Lee tagged me in this internet meme. I’m answering about The North End of the Possible, as it is certainly the next big thing in my writing life! Where did the idea come from for the book? As I think is common with many poetry collections, the idea grew out
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Happy new year, everyone! Sorry I’m a week behind the time in spreading the good wishes, but a felicitation is certainly better late than never. Anyway, on the writing front, the new year has certainly been well hanselled for me. I was surprised and delighted last week to see that Robert Peake had chosen me
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I had a whale of a time at Linlithgow Book Festival this past weekend. The Saturday was particularly busy but hugely rewarding. I worked out that I must have done almost a 13-hour day, starting with the final prep for my poetry workshop through to leaving the Masonic Hall after the open mic at nearly
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Ruth Padel’s Radio 4 programme “Poetry Workshop” is back for another series. I missed the first one in its entirety, and only noticed this evening when I wandered to the iplayer for “The Verb” that it was back for a second round. So I listened and enjoyed. I listened even more closely when I heard
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Tonight, one of my children asked me what poetry is. I answered poorly, talking vaguely about lines. (Well, how do you explain it to a five-year-old?!) But it got me thinking again about that imponderable. Does the difference between prose and poetry, perhaps, boil down to this: in poetry, the focus is on the relationships
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November is almost upon us already, which means that — aside from all the ghoulish goodies in the supermarkets, the building of bonfires and the buying of fireworks — Linlithgow Book Festival is just around the corner. This year’s LBF runs from Friday, 2 November to Sunday, 4 November. As in previous years, I’m running
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This post is just a quickie to say that I’ll be appearing at the Callander Poetry Weekend (7 to 8 September) this year as part of the Split Screen and filmpoem events on the Saturday afternoon. The weekend is free, and there is a lot going on. The full programme can be found here. Despite
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… lend us your ears tonight! If you’ve been visiting this blog of late, you will know the drill: six poets for £5 — a bargain, if I do say so myself — in the wonderful surroundings of the Fruitmarket Gallery. Doors open at 7:30 pm and we kick off at 8 pm. There will
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Having been caught up with the publicity for the 06 | 16 — The Fruitmachine reading at the Fruitmarket Gallery, I’ve almost neglected to tell you anything about another reading I’m involved this festival season. It’s at the Banshee Labyrinth a week today — Tuesday 21st of August — and also involves six poets, namely:
Amy Jo Philip 