All Blogposts

  • Out and About Again

    Out and About Again

    Although not back to how it was before the pandemic, I am increasingly venturing out in the world to attend poetry events and readings, as well as still going to online things. Trowbridge Stanza, the monthly poetry group I organise, is meeting in person again, not monthly, as we previously did, but every other month Read more

  • Ukrainian and Russian Poetry at MPT magazine

    Ukrainian and Russian Poetry at MPT magazine

    On this World Poetry Day, 2022 I wanted to mention that the wonderful Modern Poetry in Translation magazine has made its 2017 issue featuring contemporary poetry and essays from Russian and Ukrainian poets available free to read online – here’s the link to the issue on MPT’s website. Published in 2017, here’s the opening paragraph Read more

  • Poems in response to drawings

    Poems in response to drawings

    I’ve already shared the following poem excerpts on Instagram and Facebook. They are lines from poems-in-progress written by members of Trowbridge Stanza, the monthly poetry group I’m part of that meets at Drawing Projects UK, a gallery, café, studio and art space in Trowbridge, Wiltshire. Our group met in person in February, for the first Read more

  • Towards Spring

    Towards Spring

    What has changed since my last blog in January? Well, the world has changed dramatically, hasn’t it, but, here in my small corner of west Wiltshire, the news is less distressing. Since I last wrote here, there have been two in-person Trowbridge Stanza meetings, after a break of two years. Our monthly gatherings, on first Read more

  • Light Ahead (maybe)

    Light Ahead (maybe)

    Hats off to anyone who managed an end-of-year post, or any kind of post, in the last few weeks. Hats off to anyone who managed anything this year, or last year. I feel that to have come through the past two years in more or less one piece has been an achievement. I’m counting it Read more

  • My Poetry Submissions System

    My Poetry Submissions System

    My system for keeping tracks of poetry submissions is a spreadsheet-free zone. It involves paper, pen and coloured pencils. It isn’t for everyone but it works for me and I thought I’d share it with you. First, I keep track of all of my submissions in a little book. It was a freebie from a Read more