Writer's Blog.
Finishing a novel
I've not been able to write much prose since I began my novel in 2020 as part of my M.A. It was in Dr Alan Bilton's class that I started to write an adventure story set in Sweden. I couldn't get to the ending. I even wrote a poem while I was in Sweden last winter, looking for my main character so that she could help guide me to the end. It seems like this has paid off, because Ebba came back to my imagination and I wrote another 12,000 words or so. I'm continuing to draft as very kind and devoted family members feedback, which is really helpful. Then it will be time to send to agents! Finally! Wish me luck.
Poetry and Pints July 2024
It's such a privilege to host this monthly poetry night with such high quality poetry and a great audience. I run it as a circle in that everyone has two opportunities to perform their poetry as we go round. I really like this because people can adapt what they were going to read depending on what themes begin to emerge from the night. Everyone is welcome - we have full time writers and first time dabblers, and a supportive, kind and receptive audience. Second Sunday of the Month in The Old Swan, Llantwit Major.
Tranås 2024
In July I went away - on my own- to a brilliant arts festival! I met such interesting people and took part in a range of movement and writing workshops. It was such a rich environment with so many interesting people from all over the world. I wrote ekphrastic poetry, Gothic fiction, and spent time sitting on a bench (and wrote about it afterwards...). There was even a lake to swim in. Highly recommend this gorgeous festival and am most indebted to Dominic Williams and Kultivera for allowing me to perform there. An absolute treat!
Laugharne 2024
Stargazing, midnight walking, poetry and immense amounts of laughter were my favourite things about Laugharne this year. Highlights were similar to last with Luke Wright's gut-punching poetry being one of my biggest recommendations to anyone who hasn't seen him before. It's always an emotional journey of Shakespearean proportion. Owen Sheers will always be a favourite - not least because of his generosity when he was my M.A supervisor, but because he is the ultimate wordsmith and gives compelling performances of his incredibly high quality literature. Despite my best efforts, I couldn't help but sob in the background when he read from Green Hollow about the tragedy of Aberfan.
Cerys Matthews' work on Dylan Thomas was also magical with her soft, melodic readings, and it was wonderful to meet musician Arun Ghosh, who accompanied Cerys with a jamming performance of Sosban Fach. I can't help but smile when I think of that one - and what a total legend Arun turned out to be too. It's meeting new people and making new friends, as well as the performances, which I love about festivals - and Laugharne is brilliant for that.
Unblocking Writer's Block - Christmas 2023
What is it about walking that sets the imagination grooving? I've started to write while I walk now, in an attempt to carve out time in life to get the words on a page. I never thought I'd be someone who used their phone to write, as I've always been pretty primal about the benefits of pen and paper. But. I CAN do both.
This Winter, I'm in Sweden, in the forest and I thought: I'm going for a poetry walk. And by that I meant one thing - writing on my walk. Not after.
I've been suffering from a cloggy, cloying 'block when it comes to my Middle Grade novel and so the purpose of the walk was to look for my main character in amongst her landscape. I wrote the poem at different points on the walk, observing the landscape, the tracks, the shapes of the ice and listening to sounds that I wouldn't ordinarily imagine to be there. The poem took the rhythm of a pursuit with a focus on looking for the character, and eventually finding her - almost - in echoes bouncing off the bare snowy branches. The poem is one thing for me to work on, but it certainly fuelled the next section of description in the novel.
Now... if only I could think what would happen next?
Maybe it's time to put those walking boots back on...
Masters 2023
Well, well, well - third in the year and 82% for my poetry. My writing has developed a lot over the past three years with the help of some great tutors and brilliant critiques from peers. Whilst poetry still has my heart, I absolutely loved fiction writing and WILL finish my book. I couldn't have finished the M.A without the love, patience and support from lots of wonderful people.
These3 Streams 2023
Another year and so much fun taking part in and helping to run this lovely little festival in Llantwit Major. Highlights for me were the Modron Poetry Event, the incredible National Poet of Wales, Hanan Issa, writing workshops from Carole Hailey and Sophie Bouchaillard, and performing with the wonderful Taz Rahman in the Galilee Chapel. It was great to welcome Horatio Clare for his talk at St Illtud's Church, and get his new children's book signed for a birthday present. This is such a lovely festival, run entirely by volunteers who want to share their love of the arts with the local community. Come along in 2024 if you can!
Photos by Richard Arnold @ Waffle Waffle – Creating a Buzz for our clients
Poetry and Pints: Second Sundays @ The Swan
It's been fun to start up a monthly Poetry night and see what it brings each month. This open-mic is fairly relaxed, and it's fine to ask for feedback if you'd like some, or just perform a new poem and see how it lands. We have established published poets and those at the start of their careers too - we go round the circle a couple of times to perform poems in all their many forms.
Particular love to any poems about the local pirate: Colyn Dolphyn...
Litteraturhus: July 2022
Performing in Sweden, as part of the Poesi and Pilsner event with Carmarthen based Write4Word, was really exciting. The event linked Kultivera, an arts organisation in Tranås, with Litteraturhus in Jönköping and Carmarthen in Wales. Poems were performed in different languages such as Swedish, Spanish and English with participants joining online internationally, as well as at the in-person venues. I performed my poem 'First Day' which has allusions to Norse mythology in it, clocking this up as my first international poetry performance. And hopefully not the last!
Seren Poetry Festival Review - July 2022
Brilliant July Weekend at Seren Poetry Festival. Here are some of my thoughts as part of Taz Rahman's brilliant Just Another Poet channel.