Poetry Video - Her Body

When somoene with a public profile dies, the person often gets lost in the discussion of what their death means.

Her body
Was the canvas where you painted your myths
In come and similes and piss
The focal point of all your bliss
The only part of her you’ll ever miss

Her body
Will be a vanishing point in the desert
A line in the sands of time
Running through your hands
The silken strand
That drags your eyes
To the horizon
Where your future stands
The wandering caravan
That spans
The skeleton road to Samarkand

Her body
Will be a theme park for ideologues
Self-righteous pedagogues
Gender-political demagogues
Who hog the scene
Flogging anarchist zines
Filled with revolutionary schemes
And Utopian memes
While under the clogs of your flag burning screams
Her body slips into the soil unseen

Her body
Will be a garden planted with your fears
A bowl to catch your tears
A reminder of the years you spent
And those that went astray
The hours, minutes, days
You couldn’t bring yourself to say
Because you knew her body stayed
But not that she had slipped away

She is not the sum of all who went before
Her body’s not a metaphor
Her unkissed lips are not a funeral pyre
Her gaping wrists are not the mouths of liars
Her clitoris is not the primal fire
(the truth of it is infinitely higher)

Her body
Was woven from pieces of pain that no longer hurt
Has wounds that will not heal
Indignities she will not feel
Skin peels
Winds wheel
Limbs kneel
To hymns bashed out with soulless zeal
And dust steals back
The only proof that she was ever real

From the sandpit - a world of possibility

It's week one of my play experiment and I'm finding my feet. It all feels rather frivolous, but that's sort of the point, as I find my way around what I want to devote more energy to. I've been posting random things to my tumblr. One of the things I'm really enjoying is having a camera for the first time in 30 years or so - at the moment I'm photographing food a lot (maybe I'll write the recipe book I've always wanted to), and I'm doing a series of my most prized literary possessions - here's #2, My ARC of Murakami's 1Q84 from the lovely people at Blackwell's.

What I'm really looking forward to is taking pictures of this year's literary exploits, reporting Oxford's literary scene as it were.

Writing-wise, I've written my first short story for ages, but I still haven't decided what to do as my next big project. I'm tempted even at the thought of a really dark thriller - maybe my crime-loving juices are bubbling again. I'm also working on a one-man show that might be ready for next year, and a one-man exhibition for the autumn. But most of all I'm really enjoying focusing on spoken word, and trying to improve my performances and material for poetry readings and am delighted to have been asked to do a couple of longer sets - at FULLFAT next Monday, the 9th, in Brick Lane, then for Ferment Magazine on the 28th.

In that vein, I'm working really hard on my performance so I can put together some fun videos on YouTube - just the one so far, and it's not fabulous, but it's a start - I hope another tomorrow.

Most of all at the moment I'm enjoying putting this year's shows together. I've made a definite choice to do fewer shows this year but put them together even better - last year was fabulous, and I also learned a huge amount. I want to stick to 5 or 6 really top class shows I can give everything to (organising-wise - I'll accept almost any invitations to read). First up is The New Libertines at Manchester's legendary Afflecks on January 23rd. There's been an amazing response to this and I'm so excited. Later in the year the highlights so far are Not the Oxford Literary Festival in March, a Flash Slam in May, and The New Libertines back at Stoke Newington Literary Festival in June.

Most of all I'm having an amazing time, and am looking forward to working with and discovering even more new fabulous writers than ever before as well as many many of my dearest friends and closest colleagues from the past 3 years.

New Year's Message

I left before Christmas with a poem I hoped would get people writing poetry in the New Year, and more generally getting engaged in the things they cared about through there writing. You can see the words to Alibi here.

I thought I'd start the New Year as I hope to go on, with a video. I hope you enjoy it. I'd obviously love if you shared (the YouTube page is here - if you have a YouTube channel let me know and I'll subscribe), and if you do, please encourage people to leave their own poems in the responses - I hope you'll do that here. If you do, I'll take it you're OK with me putting the poem/prose/penning of whatever kind on my playpit homepage here.

Anyway, here it is. And weighing in at 2 minutes 57 seconds it's a fair bet you'll hear it at a slam near you some time this year!

Poetry Competition

Oxford International Women's Festival Poetry Competition

I am delighted to be involved with this fundraising event for Oxford International Women’s Festival:

Visit www.oxfordwomen.co.uk for more details about the festival, or find them on Facebook.

POEM THEME: Women and Wellbeing.

CLOSING DATE: Friday 5th November.

CATEGORIES: Open Category (all ages can apply), 3 prizes; Under 18s, 1 prize.

PRIZES: Perform your work at a local poetry event; win a creative writing tutorial, books by local authors and other great prizes. NB if you prefer not to perform your work in front of an audience on 17th November, you can nominate someone to do this on your behalf. The best 12 entries, in the opinion of the judges, will be published in an anthology, and will receive a copy. The 4 main prize winners will receive 5 copies each, and will have their work featured here on the eight cuts gallery website. Other featured poets will each get one copy.

ENTRY CRITERIA: The poem must be your own original work, and must be your interpretation of Women and Wellbeing (this can any interpretation as you wish). People may enter as many times as they wish, provided each entry is accompanied by the correct fee. Maximum length: 50 lines. Please do not write your personal details on the poem itself: provide a separate cover letter with your name, age (if entering the Under 18s category), and your preferred contact details. Entries cost £1.

Post your entries to Oxford International Women’s Festival, 25 East Street, Oxford OX2 0AU with payment by cheque or postal order. Cheques payable to Oxford International Women’s Festival, please. Alternatively, you can hand in your poem, cover letter and entry fee at the Albion Beatnik bookshop, Walton Street, Oxford.

Entries will be judged by local writers. Winners will be announced Monday 8th November.

Main event:

Poetry Performances and Prize-giving: Wednesday 17th November, 7pm- 10pm, East Oxford Community Centre. Winners from both categories can perform their poems as part of the event which will showcase poetry based on the theme, Women and Wellbeing.

Special performances from, amongst others,

Joan Barbara Simon, author of Mut@tus

Charlotte Geater

Ellie Tranter of Yak Shack

Christi Warner

+OPEN MIC

TICKETS: £4 per ticket for the event; competition winners get in free.

To sign up as a reader for the main event, please contact Anna Hobson annacreates@yahoo.com (ticket price will still apply, sorry!). Performances should not last more than 10 minutes and must be your own original work. NB please note that due to the under 18s category, all poems performed prior to 9pm must be suitable for this age group. If you require a later slot, please inform Anna.

Judges: Anna Hobson

Dan Holloway, founder, Year Zero Writers; owner, eight cuts gallery press

Ellie Tranter, poet in residence, YakShack