I arrive late back at the house. It is already dark. The usual reassuring things are there: unopened mail, the … More
Category: Poems
Thirteen ways of remembering Ted Hughes
Teachers’ words should not be ‘How to write’ but ‘How to try to say what you really mean’ – which … More
Mowing the lawn with Maura Dooley
‘There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as … More
Why poetry matters
The value of poetry is that it should matter … first to the writer and then to the reader. Michael … More
About Maurice
I first met Maurice in the sitting room of a mutual friend, a lifelong Labour supporter, the night after the … More
KBO
‘80% of success is showing up.’ -Woody Allen I was chatting with a student the other day when I said … More
Waiting to be picked
If you’re not enough without the gold medal, you’ll never be enough with it. – John Candy, Cool Runnings I did not … More
What I learned this week
That CK Williams has died. More than two weeks ago! One of my heroes. This is the first thing I … More
Guest blog post: Poetry and Work, by Shawna Lemay
Poetry and Work I recently took out a book via Interlibrary loan called, The Mind at Work: Valuing the … More
Guest blog post: Travelling without a visa, by Finuala Dowling
Travelling without a visa It seems to me that all writing comes from a place of resistance inside – … More
Am I a poet?
A friend recently asked me if I was writing. I replied, as I always do, saying that it was going … More
Lifesaving Poems: Fleur Adcock’s ‘The Soho Hospital for Women (IV)’
The Soho Hospital for Woman (IV) I am out in the supermarket choosing – this very afternoon, this day … More
Pure distraction
In the rift between what is going to happen and whatever we would wish to happen, poetry holds attention for … More
Ignore everyone, absorb everything
During the mad phase, when everything was a tweet or a share or a retweet, one of my favourite discoveries … More
Guest blog post: Whose life is it anyway? by John Foggin
A few weeks ago I was writing in my own blog, the great fogginzo’s cobweb, about the way I … More
Lifesaving Poems: Myra Schneider’s ‘Goulash’
Goulash A crucial ingredient is the right frame of mind so abandon all ideas of getting on. Stop pedalling, dismount, … More
A few days
The afternoon was drawing to a close when I knew I had hit the wall. On its own terms there … More
This may not work
Since I decided to leave Twitter and abscond from Facebook I have been reminded of some of the guiding principles … More
Lifesaving Poems 