We're delighted to welcome Claire Booker back to the blog, this time with a piece selected by our second guest editor Jess Green. Jess says "I love subtlety of this poem (right down to its structure on the page) which presents a familiar image of the person with the advertising board. We've all seen those … Continue reading Board Man by Claire Booker
Author: Kirsten Luckins
Poet and performer.
North East Programme Co-ordinator for Apples and Snakes.
First collection, The Trouble With Compassion, launched March 2016 and available from Burning Eye Books.
First solo show, The Moon Cannot Be Stolen, voted second in Saboteur Awards 2014. Second show currently under construction.
Poet-in-Residence at the Heroism & Heartbreak project, Hartlepool Community Archive, looking at WW1 maritime stories.
Dancing In Your Houses by Sarah L Dixon
When guest editor Jess Green chose this poem, she said "I love the familiarity and warmth of Dancing In Your Houses, the idea of throughout the week we 'feel the air waiting patiently for Friday' and the image of ' the corners of the front room no-one usually goes in are filled with wind-milling arms'. … Continue reading Dancing In Your Houses by Sarah L Dixon
Catholic Girl Ghazal by Rachel Burns
Welcome to the second of thirteen wonderful weeks in the company of poems selected by guest editor Jess Green, who says of this ghazal "The traditional structure of Catholic Girl Ghazal sits brilliantly alongside the references to Madonna both in pop culture and religion. The repetition creates a musicality which is echoed in the reference … Continue reading Catholic Girl Ghazal by Rachel Burns
Crewe by Ye Min
This week we start a series of poems selected by guest editor Jess Green, on the theme of 'Difference & Defiance'. Of our first piece , she says "I love a poem which does a lot with as little as possible. The question of the final line about a past which has led to 'weekend … Continue reading Crewe by Ye Min
Two poems by Neil Laurenson
We say thank you and goodbye to our guest editor Kinsman with their final selection of two comedic pieces by Neil Laurenson. For the first poem, they say "I enjoyed this poem because of its humour. As well as satirizing those that want to privatise the NHS, it is also an affectionate parody of the … Continue reading Two poems by Neil Laurenson
If you are under the moon’s bleeding sway by Moira Garland
"Whilst many people are now incensed by cruel changes to abortion law coming into effect in some states of America, Northern Ireland's policies are often overlooked. As citizens of the United Kingdom if we are appalled about America we should too be appalled about our own nation. This poem is a great reminder of that … Continue reading If you are under the moon’s bleeding sway by Moira Garland
Two poems by Michael Prihoda
Our guest editor, Amy Kinsman of Riggwelter magazine, says of this first poem that "Writing sparsely can often be more impactful than writing several pages on a topic. In this poem the silence speaks volumes because its entire subject is a failure of words. When speaking about sexual assault, the very act of saying anything … Continue reading Two poems by Michael Prihoda
