writer
I'm very grateful for the generous response I received for my previous post about my mother. Thank you to everyone who read, liked or commented on my words and thank you to those of you who got in touch by email or through social media with your kind messages and thoughts about bereavement, families and… Continue reading We read to remember who we are
This week I've been thinking about routines and making changes to my daily life. As it's the first week of Lent, several people posted on Facebook that they were giving it up (Facebook, that is) for 40 days. I was tempted to do this myself as, of all places online, it's Facebook that seems to suck… Continue reading Breaking out of a routine and feeding your notebooks
Poetry trickles in between the fault lines of this working and family life; like water it finds openings. (Philip Gross, from an interview in Iota, Issue 88). I've had one of those tricky weeks when I've struggled to find time for myself, especially for reading and writing. It's more than that, though, I'm also craving… Continue reading Poetry trickles in
I've re-blogged this post from The Reader Online (the blog of The Reader Organisation). It's an inspiring and uplifting first-person story about how coming to a shared reading group, to read and talk about books, improved the well-being of a man experiencing mental health problems. The Reader Organisation is a national charity that sets up… Continue reading Shad’s Reader Story
Can't do a long post this week as I've sliced open the base of my thumb on a glass which spontaneously exploded as I was emptying the dishwasher early on Wednesday morning. I had no idea how vital thumbs were until now. Although I'm right-handed, it's been easier to use my thumb-equipped left hand for most… Continue reading Ouch!
Which surprised me because I thought she was famous. Of course, I've heard lots of people say "nobody reads poetry" and "poetry doesn't sell" but among my friends, certainly those on Twitter and Facebook, nearly EVERYONE reads and buys poetry so my perception of reality is somewhat skewed. But even though Helen Mort was five… Continue reading No-one had heard of Helen Mort at the library
New Year is starting to feel much older now and a weekly routine is emerging. Two things I'm doing more of, so far, in 2014 are driving my car and spending time in public libraries. There are about 140 miles between my house and the four Wiltshire libraries where I facilitate weekly shared reading groups for… Continue reading The joy of reading, libraries and driving
I've realised that deciding to publish a blogpost every week is much easier than actually doing it. There have been several false starts. I was going to write about waiting, since that is what I'm doing a lot of this week - this month, in fact. I'm waiting to hear about poems I've submitted to… Continue reading Starting and ending meetings with a poem
This week, in my new role as project worker for The Reader Organisation (TRO), I’ve been working hard to get ready for the shared reading groups that I’ll be facilitating, very soon, in Wiltshire. This work has involved lots of reading. Yes, I’ve been slaving over some good books. My first session for people with… Continue reading Slaving over a good book
I wrote the post below when I first started working for The Reader Organisation: There might be a slight change in focus on my blog over the next 18 months as I settle into a new part-time job as a Project Worker for The Reader Organisation. Part-time because I'm still very much part of my… Continue reading The Reader Organisation
Josephine Corcoran 