‘What do you want?’ says the book. ‘Who’s asking?’ I say. ‘Me,’ says the book. ‘I am asking.’ ‘What do … More
Tag: Creative Process
Truly, Madly, Deeply
I am lying on the bed staring at the ceiling, detoxing from the day, as I do. ‘You all right?’ … More
Escape to the Chateau
’Anything else?’ the book says. ’What do you mean?’ ’That you want to tell me?’ There is a long silence, … More
Not to forget
‘What drives you?’ says the book. ‘Haven’t we been here before?’ ‘What drives you?’ ‘Are you serious?’ ‘Never more,’ says … More
Kenneth Koch on the New York poets
Being together so much and talking so much and writing poems and showing them to each other so much … More
What you read in 2015
This blog would be nothing without its readers. Thank you to everyone who stopped by, made a comment or a … More
Art is an attitude
Here is a quotation from Seth Godin’s The Icarus Deception that I have been meditating on for a while now. I have … More
The Creativity Challenge
Below is the text of a PowerPoint presentation that I am giving today at the Directors of Studies Conference 2015, at Port … More
It’s not about you, it’s me: on saying goodbye to Twitter
What I want is to – to be present. That’s what I’ve learned. I want to strive for presence, now, … More
Ted Hughes coming out of the radio
I have been wondering recently if the world of the poem (the one that is currently not-here, just out of … More
The Invisible College
I have just come back from a thing. I am tired. A good afternoon of good conversation about large, important … More
Why must we write?
The poem that came into my mind on waking up this morning and hearing the General Election result is Mark … More
The Parable of the Book (free eBook)
For those of you who have been enjoying my series of adventures with ‘the book’, here is a free eBook … More
Nothing to say
‘You’re late,’ the new book says. It is seated at my desk, sleeves rolled up, a mug of steaming coffee … More
The new book
It is drizzling. The house is empty, the road outside quiet. It’s just as the book said it would be, … More
Excuses
‘Was it good?’ the book says. ‘Was what good?’ ‘What you’ve been up to,’ the book says. ‘When?’ ‘You know … More
The terrible poem
The terrible poem starts with an idea. The terrible poem knows it is the best thing that has been written. … More
We’re done
Ordinary morning sounds from outside drift into the room where I am working. Birdsong. A car being parked. The noise … More