I've been going along to FenSpeak, a bimonthly poetry and storytelling event based in the Babylon Arts Gallery in Ely, for several years now. Each session features one or two guest poets, alongside plenty of open mic slots. The first time I went, I was struck by the friendliness and inclusivity of this event, and … Continue reading FenSpeak

Last summer I attended a five-day online Arvon course on Queer Poetry, led by Caroline Bird and Richard Scott. Although it was disappointing not to be able to attend in-person, I found the experience just as productive as previous residential Arvon courses I've been on, thanks to expert tutoring by Caroline and Richard. One of … Continue reading Butcher’s Dog Issue 15

I've wanted to write about Anne Lister for a long time, even before she was brought to the attention of the wider public by the popular BBC series Gentleman Jack. I felt an affinity with Anne, not only because of her relationships with women, but also because she was such a prolific diary-writer. I recognise … Continue reading Tea & coffee at 8.25

I'd never heard of desire lines until I read this article by Amelia Tait in the Guardian in June. On reading it, I realised that there was a name - and a rather lovely one, too - for the paths I'd seen emerging on the meadow at the bottom of my garden during the lockdown. … Continue reading Desire lines*

I've always loved teaching Grace Nichols' The Fat Black Woman's Poems. The poems offer rich and diverse material for exploration, and are also great as stimuli for students' own creative writing. A few years ago I was inspired by The Fat Black Woman Composes a Black Poem to write my own poem exploring different aspects … Continue reading ‘Popshot’ Issue 30: The Protest Issue

I'm fascinated by all the creative ways in which poetry is finding new homes in cracks during these famously strange times. It was great to have a poem in the latest issue of Brittle Star, and it was even more exciting to hear that, in lieu of a launch party, there would be a series … Continue reading ‘Brittle Star’ issue 46 podcast

I love how poems sometimes spring from most unexpected places. Having to deal with unwanted rats and pantry moths at different points in the past led to me googling 'Pest control', which then led to me stumbling upon accounts of Chairman Mao's 'Four Pests' campaign from the 1950s. In an attempt to eliminate pests which … Continue reading The Poetry Village: How to conquer nature

I'm delighted to have a poem in the latest issue of Brittle Star, which landed on my doormat yesterday. In between rain showers, I made an audio recording of my poem, The Chicken Question, for the magazine launch, which will be released as a podcast soon. Although it's disappointing not to be able to gather … Continue reading ‘Brittle Star’ Issue 46

A while ago I wrote a post for the What I'm teaching section of this website about writing poems on seeded paper with my National Writing Project Cambridge group. Well, having shared our poems at our February meeting, I planted mine in March. It felt like a hopeful and grounding thing to do at the … Continue reading Growing poems