Tag: Penny Howarth

Poetry Thanks and Praise

A Gradual Return to Normality or Will Things Ever be the Same?

In 2022 social activities, and real-life poetry events, hesitated back into calendars. Meanwhile, streamed readings, podcasts, and workshops, Zoom launches and open mics continued to flourish … welcomed by poets who were, or are, less mobile, or for whom face-to-face meetings continued to be unwise or unappealing. The huge advantages of virtual events are well acknowledged: national and international audiences for poets’ work, greater diversity of input and output at workshops, and exposure to a much wider range of poetics and cultural traditions. It’s all about extended reach. For some, the climbing stats for Covid, flu and streptococcal infections, as 2022 drew to a close, encouraged another ‘retreat from real life’ … and on-line activities are continuing to save the day. Clearly, a hybrid approach to events is here to stay.

Now for my personalised list of thanks ­and praise for 2022.

Competitions

In March, I was thrilled to hear that I had won first place in the Dreich ‘Black Box’ competition, for which many thanks to Jack Caradoc of Dreich, and congratulations to all the commended and shortlisted poets. My prize arrived speedily and safely: a huge box of Dreich publications, and a book bag and pen, all in a splendid Black Box decked out with a super white bow. The icing on the cake was the ‘Black Box’ anthology of the winning and shortlisted poems, including my poem ‘Flight Recorder’. Black Box Anthology.

My next competition success was not a poetry prize, as such, but thanks to Intrigue and Mosaic in Stroud for the lovely fedora I won in a competition run by the shop. It might not have been a poem that won it for me, but it was carefully chosen, artfully arranged words! I’ll be wearing the hat to poetry gigs when I have the opportunity! Thanks to the lovely person in the shop who helped me to decide which colour to choose, and who took the in-store photo.  And thank you to my friend Sheila Macintyre who not only tipped me off about the competition but met me in Stroud in June for a super catch-up over lunch, after I’d picked up the prize.

Poems Published: in Anthologies, Magazines and On-line

My poem ‘Keyboard Warrior’ made it into the ‘At the Edge of all Storms’ anthology from Dreich in July. I loved the striking cover. Thanks again to Jack Caradoc, and to Cara L McKee. The anthology can be ordered here: At the Edge of all Storms

Five of my poems were published on-line in the ‘Lothlorien Poetry Journal’ in April. They can be read here Lothlorien Poetry Journal. A big thank you to editor Strider Marcus Jones, and thank you, especially, for the overwhelmingly positive words from in his confirming email. Such an enthusiastic and appreciative message from an editor is heartening and gladdening! Unusually for me, the poems all had a fantasy/sci-fi flavour: ‘Receiver’, ‘Reverie’, ‘In Transit’, ‘Visitations’ and ‘Managed Invasion’. Another thank you to Strider for including my work in Vol 11 of the Lothlorien Poetry Journal – ‘Windmills of the Mind’ – a beautiful book, with poems by many poets I admire, published in August, and available to purchase here: Lothlorien Poetry Journal Volume 11

Thanks to Robert Garnham for including my poem ‘Lent in a Time of Coronavirus’ on the ‘Spilling Cocoa Over Martin Amis’ website in April … a super platform for poetry that dares to be humorous, even in plague-ridden times! My poem can be read here: Spilling Cocoa

On a related (pandemic) theme, thanks to Ben Banyard in May 2022 for publishing my poem ‘Dawn Chorus, May 2020’ on-line in ‘Black Nore Review’. Read it here: Black Nore Review 

Thanks to Stewart Watkins for publishing another five Covid-related poems of mine in his ‘Pandemic Poets’ anthology in August. It’s full of powerful responses to the pandemic, and available to purchase here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0B7QJPMR8/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taft_p1_i3

In October, I was pleased to find that I had a couple of clerihews in the second volume from Smokestack Books ‘More Bloody Clerihews’ – thanks to Andy Jackson and George Szirtes.  This has now joined Volume 1, ‘The Call of the Clerihew’ (2019) on my bookshelf (where a handful of mine previously found a home). The latest volume is available to purchase here: More Bloody Clerihews

Thanks, again to Andy Jackson, for publishing my offering entitled ‘Tolstoy’ for week 2 of his Double Dactyl website Double Dactyl of the Week on 24 October.  I love this form, and will be writing more.

Many, many thanks to Gill Connors and Rebecca Jane Bilkau of Dragon Yaffle for including my poem ‘Elementary Inventory’ in the anthology ‘Up the Duff’ published in November.  I am very grateful for the inclusion of this poem which is a particularly important one for me personally. Thank you both for all your hard work on the publication of this book, and congratulations to all the other contributing poets.

As a photographer, I find that many of my poems originate from a visual stimulus, so I’m always very happy to have a visual prompt every month from Visual Verse … and happier still when one of my poems is selected for the website, along with those of many poetry friends, including Angi Holden and Finola Scott to name just two. Thanks to Visual Verse for providing these stimulating challenges every month and thanks to the editors for including the following poems of mine on the website during 2022:

‘You will go down to the sea again’ January 2022 You-will-go-down-to-the-sea-again/

‘Down the Tubes’ June 2022 down-the-tubes/

‘First Class Mail’ November 2022 first-class-mail

Another of my poems ‘An Egyptologist’s Funeral Plan’ is scheduled for publication in the forthcoming ‘Gods and Monsters’ edition of ‘Here Comes Everyone Gods and Monsters issue’

Translation

I am always delighted when I manage to merge my love of Wales and Cymraeg with my love of poetry. An opportunity came as a result of being contacted in 2021 by Nicky and Elin of Ennyn, a community-centred, arts-based company based in Ceredigion, delivering bilingual educational workshops in schools and other communities. They commissioned singer Owen Shiers to sing the poem ‘Y Border Bach’ by William Williams (Crwys) and I had previously translated the same poem which Ennyn tracked down to my website: another-crwys-poem-translated. In 2022 my translation appeared on the Ennyn website for their Dolau Dyfi project, alongside a beautiful recording of Owen Shiers singing the song yn Gymraeg, and lovely photos of the singer! https://www.ennyncymru.com/owenshiersdolaudyfi

Of all the things I do in poetry, this has to be high on the list of things I’m most proud of being involved with, not least because Ennyn is based in Ceredigion, very much the land of my forefathers.

Reading at Events

Thanks to Veronica Aaronson for not only including a couple of my poems in the ‘Despite Knowing’ anthology in 2021, but for including me in the readers for the associated event at Teignmouth Poetry’s Mini Festival in May 2022. I have huge appreciation for Veronica’s vision for the anthology, and her hard work in curating and editing the poems and seeing the project through to publication. It was good to meet Veronica at the event and also to connect with other readers and participating poets at the festival, including Rosie Jackson and Hélène Demetriades (an opportunity for me to buy signed copies of their books!)  It was also good to catch up with other poet friends, particularly Simon Williams, Tom Sastray, Rachael Clyne and Hannah Linden.  I was honoured to read the poem ‘One Day Clean, and Counting’ by Hannah Stone during the festival, and my own poem ‘At the Apple Orchard Clinic for Eating Disorders’.  Much appreciation to all the poets and organizers of this lovely festival. Poetry Teignmouth Festival 2022

Thanks to Sarah L Dixon for her hard work on the Quiet Compere tour, 2022.  Her planning began early and was thorough and well-detailed; I learnt as early as February that I would be included later in the year, on one of the virtual sessions … and this came to fruition in August when I took part in one of the Zoom editions of the Quiet Compere. quiet-compere-stop-6-zoom

Much appreciation to Sarah for her multi-venue, in-real-life and virtual tour, throughout a demanding year, including a new full-time job … and being a fantastic Mum to Frank.

Collaborations: Running Workshops, Editing and Publishing

My long-standing association with Cheltenham Poetry Society sprung to life again, after a two-year pandemic hiatus, with the Awayday in May – day-long writing retreat at Dumbleton Hall. This was the eighth CPS Awayday, which had been annual event pre-pandemic. As always, I enjoyed working with CPS Chairman, Roger Turner, on the design and content of the day’s workshops on the theme of ‘The Elements’. The material included projected images, sound recordings and the text of poems by a variety of poets including Simon Armitage, Sylvia Plath, Philip Gross, Nigel McLoughlin, Rebecca Gethin and Holly Bars. We are delighted to have received 100% satisfied feedback from the attending poets after the Awayday, confirming that the workshops had helped with their writing and that they would like to do something similar in 2023.  We must thank staff at Dumbleton Hall for another memorable Awayday, particularly Emily, the events coordinator. Dumbleton Hall

Over the summer, Roger and I co-selected and edited poems submitted by the Awayday poets, for inclusion in an anthology of poems and photographs on themes of earth, air, fire and water. ‘The Elements’ was published in November, as a joint Cheltenham Poetry Society and Gloucestershire Stanza venture, by my outfit, Eithon Bridge Publications. Thanks go to all of the poets attending the Awayday and submitting excellent poems for the anthology: Robin Gilbert, Iris Anne Lewis, Penny Howarth, Christine Griffin, Belinda Rimmer, Gill Garrett, Annie Ellis, Sheila Spence, Penny Lamport, Catherine Baker, Gill Wyatt, Alice Ross, David Ashbee, Michael Newman, Stuart Nunn, and of course Roger. Particular thanks go also to Kevin Woodward of Wheatley Printers Wheatley Printers in Stroud, Gloucestershire, who patiently worked with Roger and me through the process of setting the text, positioning photographs, finalising the cover design, and then the printing and finishing of the book. We were delighted with the resulting volume of 59 poems by 17 poets, and over 30 photographs. Thanks are also due to David Clarke and Rona Laycock who were generous in their words of endorsement for the cover, and additional words to help us publicise the book which can be purchased through Eithon Bridge Publications: Eithon Bridge The Elements.  Below are some photos of the poets with their copies.

Attending Workshops

It was also good to reconvene during the second half of the year for monthly meetings of the CPS Writing Group. Thanks to chairman Roger Turner’s securing of a new venue, and thanks to all the Writing Group members for their helpful critiques and fine poems: Roger Turner, Michael Newman, David Ashbee, Stuart Nunn, Robin Gilbert, Sheila Spence and Gill Wyatt.

Later in the year, I was pleased to join a new fortnightly face-to-face group, Cleeve Poetry Writing Club, led by Claire Thelwell.  Many thanks to her for her enthusiasm and commitment, and also especial thanks to Will Williams of The Cleeve Bookshop for allowing us to meet in his wonderful bookshop after hours.  It’s the perfect venue, and a lovely group of poets.  Thanks too to Jo Bell … again … since we are drawing on her book ‘52: Write a Poem a Week. Start Now. Keep Going’ (Nine Arches, 2015). I think this is the fourth time I have been drawn back to 52, after its ground-breaking initial run by Jo back in 2014.  It is a timeless source of inspiration, available from the publisher: 52 at Nine Arches

In 2021 I began attending Mark Connors’ and Gill Lambert’s (now Connors!) Wednesday Wordship sessions on Zoom … and these continued through 2022. A previous blog post records my gratitude to them for all the good things that I have experienced personally from this dynamic poetry duo.  Thanks to Yaffle

Assisting in a Competition

Not only did my ‘oeuvre’ grow by some twenty poems during the Wednesday WordshIp workshops, but I was honoured to be asked by Mark and Gill to offer my opinion on the short-listed poems in the 2022 Yaffle Competition, and to put them in order of the Top Ten, as I saw them. There was such a high standard that it was a challenge putting the ten poems in order of perceived merit. Having done so, I was delighted to learn subsequently that my recommendations aligned very closely with Mark’s and Gill’s own assessment – particularly in identifying the winning and commended poems. I was delighted that Mark and Gill used some of my comments on the poems in announcing the results. Yaffle Competition Results Congratulations to all the long-listed, short-listed, commended and highly commended poets and especially to winners Sue Burge (first), Ian Harker (second) and Holly Bars (third). And am pleased that one of my own Wednesday Wordship poems ‘You Knit’ will be included on an ‘honorary’ basis  in the Whirlagust III prizewinners anthology. Thanks again to Mark and Gill Connors for an excellent poetry year.

Reviews, Written and Received

Another result of the collaboration with Mark and Gill was that I was asked by fellow Wordshipper, Holly Bars, to review, and write a cover endorsement for her debut collection ‘Dirty’ from Yaffle Press, launched in November and on sale here: Dirty It was a privilege to get to know Holly through Mark and Gill’s Wednesday Wordship sessions on Zoom in 2021/22, and an honour to be asked to write a response to her astonishing debut collection. Holly is definitely a poet to watch.

In August I was delighted to receive a 5 Star review on Amazon for my collection ‘Dualities’ (Hedgehog Press 2020):  ‘Skilful poetry, a delightful collection of accomplished writing.’  Thanks to Ozymandias!

Finally, a big thank you to South Poetry Magazine South Magazine and especially Anne Peterson for the positive review of the ‘Inspired by Music’ anthology of poems and photographs edited by Roger Turner and me, and published on behalf of Cheltenham Poetry Society by Eithon Bridge Publications in November 2021. The review appeared in issue 66 of South Magazine in October 2022. The idea for an anthology inspired by music came from a desire for a project, for CPS poets, during the hiatus between the 2019 and 2022 Awayday writing retreats. The positive review for this anthology was most welcome! ‘Inspired by Music’ can be purchased through Eithon Bridge Publications: Eithon Bridge anthologies

Looking Forward

Overall, 2022 felt like a year of slowly getting back to something approaching ‘normal’ … whatever ‘normal’ is nowadays, but I hope 2023 will begin to feel like a leap forward, a change of gear, an acceleration towards goals still unfulfilled!

A happy, productive and successful 2023 to all poets, everywhere … and good health and prosperity to all people, wherever they happen to be.

The Elements

A new anthology of poems and photographs has been published (November 2022) by Eithon Bridge Publications. It is the latest in a series of multi-media anthologies featuring Gloucestershire-based poets, including members of Cheltenham Poetry Society and supporters of Gloucestershire Stanza. All seventeen contributing poets attended the CPS annual Awayday at Dumbleton Hall in May 2022, where the theme of The Elements was the focus of the workshops and writing exercises. The resulting book, edited by CPS Chair Roger Turner and me, contains four sections, inspired by Earth, Air, Fire and Water. There are 59 poems and over 30 photographs on these themes in the anthology which has been part-funded by Cheltenham Poetry Society and the contributing poets: David Ashbee, Belinda Rimmer, Penny Howarth, Michael Newman, Sheila Spence, Christine Griffin, Stuart Nunn, Catherine Baker, Penny Lamport, Robin Gilbert, Iris Anne Lewis, Annie Ellis, Roger Turner, Gill Garrett, Gill Wyatt, Alice Ross and me. Endorsements on the back cover are by poet and academic, David Clarke, and poet Rona Laycock. Copies are available to purchase (£10) from the contributing poets or (£10 + p&p) from the Eithon Bridge website http://eithonbridge/bookstore.

Previous anthologies of poems and photographs in this series include Cheltenham 300, Poetry from Gloucestershire and Inspired by Music.

A Round-up of 2021 …  or Poetry, in Spite of Everything

Continuing ‘a mission, against the odds’ might sound like an over-statement in the context of writing poetry, publishing and getting published, during a pandemic, but for many writers and publishers, it has been nothing short of heroic. Vanishing opportunities for meeting with kindred spirits, performing work and maintaining a ‘platform’ have, of course, been mitigated by the ‘mushrooming of Zoom’ – thanks to which, poetry readings, ‘open-mic’ opportunities, workshopping, mentoring and book launches have all continued to happen. These have in many cases provided national and international ‘stages’ in contrast to the pre-pandemic local poetry venues many poets loyally attended every month. Poetry podcasts, streamed events and spots on digital radio have also been growth areas. 

All very positive, but perhaps the bigger impact of the pandemic on the ‘poetry mission’ has been ‘mindset’ rather than ‘opportunity’. The lockdowns, with the isolation and loneliness for many, had a depressing impact for some, reducing productivity and the inclination to do anything other than slump. Mercifully, I have not spent the last eighteen months alone, as some fellow writers … the heroes amongst us … have done. I don’t know how I would have fared without Mr. L. Thank you, my love.  

Post-lockdown, justifiable caution of face-to-face events continued for the more vulnerable poets among us, and for all of us, socialising in-person, after so long, was met with mixed emotions … pleasure and anxiety, to greater or lesser degrees. Let’s hope 2022 will be better for us all.

Looking back at previous end-of-year reviews, it is clear that my productivity was lower in 2021 than in preceding years – even lower than in 2020, when we had stricter lockdowns, and more fear and uncertainty generally.  However, there have been a lot of ‘poetry things’ to be thankful for in 2021 … and a lot of ‘poetry people’ to thank …

Dualities in 2021

First of all, a big thank you to Mark Davidson of Hedgehog Poetry Press for including my collection, ‘Dualities’ (published in late 2020) in the bumper Hedgehog Poetry ‘goodie box’ sent out to subscribers in the first quarter of 2021. I was thrilled that my book was in such great company, along with Dawn Gorman’s & Rosie Jackson’s ‘Aloneness is a Many-Headed Bird’, Margaret Royall’s ‘Where Flora Sings’, Gaynor Kane’s & Karen Mooney’s ‘Penned In’, Patricia M Osborne’s ‘The Montefiore Bride’, Darren J Beaney’s ‘Honeydew’, Adele Cordner’s ’The Kitchen Sink Chronicles’, Damien B Donnelly’s ‘Considering Canvases With Boys’, and Jenna Please’s ‘The Underside of Things’.  

Next, I am indebted to Nigel Kent for the generous review of Dualities on his website in April 2021. This was preceded by an invitation for me to submit one of the poems in the book for Nigel’s ‘Drop-in’ feature. The two links are here:

https://nigelkentpoet.wordpress.com/2021/04/03/drop-in-by-sharon-larkin
https://nigelkentpoet.wordpress.com/2021/04/10/review-of-dualities-by-sharon-larkin

I was very encouraged by comments received in 2021 from a former colleague who, having recently read Dualities, wrote: ‘Thoroughly enjoyed it. Some gorgeous imagery, delightful turns of phrase and the occasional construct I simply didn’t understand – which adds to the enjoyment. Great stuff. Thanks for sharing your talent!’ I was delighted that the imagery, turns of phrase … and the puzzles too … pleased this particular reader, whose judgement I very much respect.

Copies of ‘Dualities’ can be purchased from Hedgehog Poetry Press: https://www.hedgehogpress.co.uk/product-category/for-sale/hoglets/sharon-larkin/
or from my website https://sharonlarkinjones.com/shop

Poems in Magazines/e-zines and Anthologies

The year started well with Ink Sweat and Tears, taking my poem ‘Post-operative’ in January, thanks to the wonderful Helen Ivory. 

I wrote the poem ‘At the Foot of the Tree’ for Good Friday 2021, at the invitation of Elim Church, Cheltenham. Thanks to Bean Baker for creating the poetry film, with music, and uploading it to You Tube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xi3OUOR8LP8&t=38s and thanks to all the lovely feedback, especially from Sandra Kemp and Sheila Hurst in Cheltenham … and Elaine and Carri in Arizona!

Thanks to Visual Verse for taking three of my poems, in April, June and September 2021.

I was grateful to Veronica Aaronson for taking two of my poems for her anthology ‘Despite Knowing’ in support of a charity providing counselling for those in recovery from addictions. 

It had long been an ambition of mine to print-publish an anthology of poems celebrating fathers and fatherhood (see Good Dadhood, below). Now, thanks to Aurélien Thomas, I can let that ambition lapse because in 2021 he selected and edited  ‘To Dads – with Love’, illustrated/designed by JinQue RD and published by Ayo Gutierrez. I’m glad that some of my ‘Dad poems’ are in the book, along with poems by poet-friends Angela France, Michael Newman, Catherine Baker, Christine Griffin and Frances March … and many other poets, worldwide. I was pleased to be invited by Aurélien Thomas to write the foreword for the book. The resulting volume is a handsome one … available from Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dads-Love-Aurelien-Thomas/dp/B096TN7NN7

I’m always pleased when my love of poetry and love of Wales and Welsh coalesce. Thanks to photographer Ieuan Morris for including part of a translation I did of the poem ‘Melin Trefin’ by William Williams Crwys in Ieaun’s splendid book ‘Photographing Pembrokeshire’ (published, September 2021) and thank you to Victoria Bookshop in Haverfordwest for supplying me with a signed copy of the book. Copies are available from the publisher y Lolfa https://www.ylolfa.com/products/9781784617547/photographing-pembrokeshire as well as Amazon.

Another Welsh opportunity came in September when I  was contacted by Ennyn, a community interest company based in Ceredigion, delivering bilingual educational art workshops in schools and communities. They commissioned a folk singer, Owen Shiers, to compose and sing a sung version of the poem ‘Y Border Bach’, another poem by William Williams Crwys, which I have translated and which Ennyn found on my website https://sharonlarkinjones.com/…/another-crwys-poem…/.  My translation is to appear on the Ennyn website, alongside a recording of the song. 

I’m hopeful that one of my poems shortlisted for Hedgehog Poetry’s  ‘Looking Out, Peering In’ competition, will be included in the anthology at some stage.

Readings given … and in prospect

February brought my first opportunity to read in 2021, thanks to Veronica Aaronson who invited my to share poems in two 10 minute slots, along with Frances Corkey-Thompson, at Poetry Teignmouth at the Mill, via Zoom, on 23 February. There was a lovely audience on-line, with wonderful sets from Frances and an excellent ‘open mic’. A big thank you to Veronica for making it all happen, expertly organizing and sensitively hosting such a welcome opportunity for poets to present their work to an audience during the lockdown. The first and last poems I read were the first and last in my Dualities – Two Old Sticks and Firewords – seemed to go down best at the event. And one of the additional benefits of Zoom is that comments in chat are quick to copy before shut-down, so that responses to individual poems can be captured … valuable feedback!

I was again grateful to Veronica Aaronson for including me in the zoom launch event for the anthology’ Despite Knowing’ (see above) which took place in October. I was glad to read one of my poems from the book, in excellent company alongside a large contingent of contributing poets, including poet-friends Stella Wulf, Marc Woodward, Oz Hardwick, Vivienne Tregenza, Rachael Clyne, Kevin Reid, Hannah Stone and Jenny Robb. 

Now I am looking forward to attending a live launch event for ‘Despite Knowing’ at the Pavilions in Teignmouth in May 2022, Covid permitting. Thanks again to Veronica Aaronson for this invitation.


Another opportunity to share a poem or two on Zoom came thanks to Josephine Lay, at a reading for International Women’s Day on 8 March, joining with 17 other women poets, sharing one of our own poems, and one by another poet. I was pleased to share one by Christina Thatcher, whose work I very much enjoy. 

Two opportunities came to read on The Poetry Place, West Wilts Radio, thanks to Dawn Gorman. The first of these was an ‘open mic’ opportunity in August, when I shared three short poems on the programme at which Penelope Shuttle and June Hall were the guest poets. The second, exciting, opportunity came in November when I was a guest poem on The Poetry Place with David Cooke, with another great band of poets at the ‘open mic’. Thanks again to Dawn Gorman for The – wonderful – Poetry Place on West Wilts Radio


Publishing

I opened the Good Dadhood on-line poetry project for submissions on 1 April, publishing poems at the rate of twice a week until Father’s Day in mid-June, I’m proud of what Good Dadhood has become over its three ‘editions’ (2017, 2020. 2021) and the response from poets has been uplifting … in terms of the quantity and quality of poems submitted, often accompanied by photographs of or with Dads. It has been so good to have an opportunity to celebrate fathers and fatherhood in this way. You can read the poems and see the photos here: https://wordpress.com/home/gooddadhood.com  Thanks to the following poets for their contributions in 2021: Angie Holden, Sarah J Bryson, Suzanne Iuppa and Val Ormrod, Mark Connors, Ben Banyard, Zoë Siobhan Howarth-Lowe, Helen Kay, David Callin, Rodney Wood, Neil Elder, Janet Dean, Hannah Mackay, Carmina Masoliver, Hilary Robinson, Maggie Mackay,Kate Jenkinson, Finola Scott,George Colkitto, Catherine Baker,Peter Raynard, Rachael Clyne, Tom Kelly, Susan Castillo, Greg Freeman, Louise Warren, Jenni Wyn Hyatt.

My biggest publication project of the year came in the last quarter of 2021, with ‘Inspired by Music’, a new anthology from Cheltenham Poetry Society and Gloucestershire Stanza, which I  published through Eithon Bridge Publications in November.  Produced in just 12 weeks from the submission deadline to collecting the books from the printer, the anthology features 57 poems by 17 poets, with 25 carefully selected images to accompany the words. It was good to gather together with a dozen of the contributing poets at Pittville Pump Room in Cheltenham in early December, to collect copies, catch-up, and have an outdoor Covid-safe celebratory coffee together. Thanks to all the poets: Kathryn Alderman, David Ashbee, Catherine Baker, Annie Ellis, David Gale, Gill Garrett, Robin Gilbert, Chris Hemingway, Sharon Larkin, Iris Anne Lewis, Michael Newman, Stuart Nunn, Gillian Ridley-Wells, Belinda Rimmer, Sheila Spence, Roger Turner, Judith van Dijkhuizen; an especial thanks to Roger Turner for co-selecting/co-editing and to Stroudprint for first-rate printing services. Thanks to Mr L who helped enormously with proof-reading. Thanks to Oz Hardwick, Mark Connors and Mark Blayney for providing endorsements for the book. Further information and ordering info are here: https://eithonbridge.com/anthologies/

We still haven’t officially launched ‘Inspired by Music’ … or, indeed. our previous anthology ‘Poetry from Gloucestershire’, the launch for which had to be cancelled in early 2020 because of the pandemic.  I hope we will have opportunities to read from both books during the coming year.  We are open to offers!

Workshops attended

Thanks for Mark Connors (again) and Gill Lambert for their great Wednesday Wordship workshops on Zoom which I joined in the last quarter of 2021. 

And thanks to Angela France for her excellent workshops I attended while they were on Zoom in 2021 with other members of the Women Aloud group: Penny Howarth, Judith van Dijkhuizen, Frankie March, Gill Garrett, Christine Griffin and Catherine Baker. 

Thanks to so many poets for their poetry friendship, especially local friends Belinda Rimmer, Catherine Baker and Gill Wyatt.

Looking ahead

Thanks to Sarah L Dixon for the invitation to be part of her Quiet Compere event in August 2022, 

and, again, thanks to Veronica Aaronson for the possibility of reading a poem at the live launch of ‘Despite Knowing’ in Teignmouth in May.  

As ever, I am open to other reading opportunities!

A Poetry Kick

The first session of Kickstart Poetry in Cheltenham on 3 January exceeded my expectations in terms of numbers attending – given that it was so early in the New Year, and a cold night at that. We were very grateful to Parmoor House for finding us a bigger room than the one we normally use, which would have been a little too cosy!

Early feedback suggests that fellow Kickstarters agree that the workshop and supplementary information posted in our own Facebook group is helpful.  Here are some of their comments:


“Thanks for this wonderfully detailed information … and for hosting us yesterday. I really enjoyed it and enjoyed hearing some wonderful poetry.” 
“Really enjoyed the workshop last night. A good kickstart to the new year. Very helpful info thank you … No excuses but to get started now”.
“Have already put down ideas for three of the poems. Couldn’t stop poetry thinking last night.”
“I enjoyed it, thank you … lots of interesting ideas.”
“It was fab and I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
“Thanks for a great session … Your group has a good mix of people, poetry and styles. I really feel that I can gain from the structure of it.”

“I very much enjoyed the session … and look forward to more in the coming months and working on the prompts in the book.”
“Fab time this evening at CPS Kickstart poetry workshop based on Jo Bell’s 52 … Good to have a structure to work with.”

“Very well done … pace, tone and level just right … generating plenty of enthusiasm.”

So, the new-style workshops under the auspices of Cheltenham Poetry Society seem to be a worthwhile addition to the Society’s calendar.

Credit must go to Jo Bell, whose book 52 – Write a poem a week.  Start now. Keep going published by Nine Arches Press is the inspiration for the workshops.  We’ve identified 12 primary prompts to write on in the monthly workshops in 2017, but also drawn up a timetable to keep people on track if they want to take up the challenge of writing 52 poems during the year.

Writing a first draft for one of the 12 primary prompts occupies the first part of each workshop, followed by a read-round, and a ten minute break for a drink and a chat – perhaps about publication opportunities and successes.  In the second half we’ll be   bringing pre-written poems (on the 3 or 4 other prompts for the month) to the workshop for feedback.  There will also be a quick look forward to the prompts for the following month.  Comprehensive handouts accompany the sessions but all participants have been encouraged to buy a copy of the 52 book … and The Very Best of 52 book from Nine Arches Press.

Thanks to Roger Turner, Annie Ellis, Samantha Pearse, Michael Skaife d’Ingerthorpe, Gill Wyatt, Penny Howarth, Frankie March, Belinda Rimmer, Kathryn Alderman, Judith van Dijkhuizen, Alice Ross, Marilyn Timms and Howard Timms for supporting the workshop.  See you on 7 February!  Meanwhile, feel free to post draft poems in the closed Facebook Group for kindly comments from other members of the workshop series.  This does not amount to publication; your finalised poems will be free to be submitted to magazines, ezines, anthologies and competitions.  And build your (next) collection with Kickstart Poetry!