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Slow January continues

Posted on by Josephine Corcoran

There’s that joke about January lasting hundreds of days and then the rest of the year whizzing by in the blink of an eye.  That’s definitely what I’ve been experiencing.  I was just beginning to recover from my knee operation and then I somehow managed to contract viral pneumonia – so my January has definitely been slow and racked with dramatic coughing.  But onwards and upwards.  I’m feeling much better and there are STILL nearly two weeks of January to go!

I haven’t felt like doing much but now I’m coming back to life and revisiting old notebooks.  I’m beginning to assemble new poems.  I finished my commission for Ginkgo Projects/Bloor Homes and I think that some of the poems I wrote for this project will sit well in my next book.  My poem ‘To Bring Me Luck’ about older women and ageing might also belong there.  At this stage, I’m gathering poems and being open-minded about a possible theme.  I would dearly love my next book to feel coherent and thematic and my aim is to be able to articulate this.  I recognise that I really struggle with explaining to anyone what my work is about.

One thing is sure: I feel more determined about shaping my next book but that isn’t to say that I’m trying to force a theme upon it.  That would be a dreadful mistake.

Being ill, I missed going to the T S Eliot readings in London (would’ve been my first time there) but luckily my friend Kathy Pimlott went so I was able to catch a flavour of the evening by reading her blog.  And Paul Stephenson did this great interview with one of the shortlisted poets Fiona Moore so it was good to read that.

Back to my notebooks now.  Hope everyone has a good week.

7 thoughts on “Slow January continues”

  2. Dear Josephine how annoying to get an illness on top of recovering from surgery. I’ve had my usual January blues but being able to go out for a walk, or swimming always helps to lift the gloom! The TSE readings were great. Especially as Fiona Moore is a good friend. Hopefully you’ll make it next year and all the best for a healthy February! Ali x

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  3. Rotten luck! But as you suggest it’s a case of keep on keeping on. And I really enjoy reading your newsletters. Your comment that you “really struggle with explaining to anyone what my work is about” really resonates with me, as a poet ☺. So there’s at least two of us! Very best wishes for your continued convalescence, and your writing.

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