Sunday, 13 May 2018
Latest news
Music
New single by Ocean in a Bottle
“Seeing her sitting there unresponsive makes me
realize that silence has a sound.”
― Jodi Picoult, My Sister's Keeper
― Jodi Picoult, My Sister's Keeper
“To understand silence, you have to listen to
the sound in-between opening doors
and saying goodbye to your loved one counting
emotions counting snowflakes
until you wish you could turn back time’
- Ocean in a Bottle
Spoken Label
Simon Widdop
Faatima-s
Writing
New interview with Authorsinterviews
A Poem by Manchester has accepted the above from myself.
I also recently finished off my 2018 NaPoWriMo epic. Have a
look.
All been good, it will return next year for a massive
conclusion.
Sunday, 29 April 2018
Latest Podcasts / Music news
Plenty of news forthcoming over poetry as I’ve had
confirmation coming through in quite a few publications / opportunities but in
the meantime, here is the latest on Podcasts etc.
Spoken Label:
Lots of releases to follow as Spoken Label has and is
proving very popluar at the moment but here are the last few releases:
Randy Horton
George Melling (Live Word Central, April 2018)
Hilary Robinson
Reading in Bed:
The newish Podcast series by me and my little lady Amanda
is going great and we are both reading for Programme 5 at the moment.
Programme 4 is here - https://readinginbed.bandcamp.com/album/reading-in-bed-4-april-2018
OR
and features us reviewing the following books:
Gillian McAllister - Anything you do say
Jay Asher - Thirteen reasons why
Alice VL - The Weeping Prince
Keith Houghton - Crash
Jacqueline Woods - I have learnt
Jay Asher - Thirteen reasons why
Alice VL - The Weeping Prince
Keith Houghton - Crash
Jacqueline Woods - I have learnt
Ocean in a Bottle:
After a break, Ocean in a Bottle recently released the almost
silent single ‘Awakening I’.
Part II and an additional single Reading in the reference
library will follow over summer
Sunday, 1 April 2018
Premature Birth poem published on Bonnie's Crew
The excellent Bonnie's Crew website has just published one of my poems 'Premature Birth'.
Without
going into personal details too much over Kate (who set up this project)'s personal background
but Bonnie’s Crew was created after problems through the birth of Kate’s youngest child and the hard work Leeds Congenital Hearts put it for her. Paraphrasing the site, the unit is funded by the Children’s Heart Surgery Fund for the
invaluable work they do, and it doesn’t bear thinking about that the government
nearly closed this unit down. Whether someone’s heart defect is big or small,
whether the person is big or small, they do everything they can to save a life.
This
experience Kate advises made her want to give back to the unit, to the nurses,
the doctors and everyone who keeps the place going which resulted in the
creation of this site (and an accompanying anthology will follow, with 100% of
the proceeds going to the CHSF Keeping the Beat campaign)
to showcase poems of hope, hearts, hospitals, children, survival, love, faith –
however those things manifest in the work people send – and hopefully raise
some money for the CHSF / Leeds Congenital Hearts.
Speaking
from my side, Premature Birth covers the difficult birth my nephew went through
years back, and is now a lovely young man of just turned 10 and looks like me
I’ve heard more than a few people say like me at that age several times now and
made me reflect on my own birth back in 1972 and the problems my mother also
had with me. Without the care I received and Jack also received, it is open to
debate whether either of us would have survived.
I
struggle with money myself at the best of times but the poem needed to be wrote
for this excellent cause and I hope you like it and also choose to donate
something to their Just Giving Page which can be found here
Saturday, 31 March 2018
Ghost Story V
Well, it's that time of year for NaPoWriMo (National Poetry Writing Month) and of course it's time for the return of my annual series, Ghost Story.
A blog on the separate blog itself reveals where Ghost Story originally came from, and a little bit about the seasons which have followed it since.
Not going to give anything away this year apart from Part 5 was in my thoughts when I wrote Part 4 last year in particular in reference to a missing character who was missing for almost the full of the narrative.
Anyway, hope you enjoy it and always feel welcome to let me know what you think.
Any additional poems for NaPoWriMo this year will appear on this blog (don't expect 30!)
Cheers
Andy N
Sunday, 18 March 2018
New Podcasts and Poems published
Reading in Bed
Running a few days behind Amanda’s announcement, I can
confirm that our third episode in our Literature review podcast is now live.
It can be streamed at:
OR
We are always looking for books to do honest reviews on,
so please get in contact if you would like us to review your book.
Spoken Label has also been busy with the
following sessions / podcast:
Jacqueline Phillips – Pretty in Pink 3 (https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/jacqueline-phillips-pretty-in-pink-3)
Hilary Walker – February 2018 (https://spokenlabel.bandcamp.com/album/hilary-walker-spoken-label-february-2018)
Various Poets – Extracts from Please hear what I’m not saying
Poetry
Ann Arbor Review Issue 20 have published the poems
‘Threads of a Jumper, Early Morning Walk and Early Autumn Walk’ (http://annarborreview.net/aArborReview_XIX/AARPg20.htm)
A New Ulster 65 have published the following poetry - Brighton
in September, Remains of a Christmas Day Party, Absence of Words, Underscoring
Immortality, Swallows and Amazons, Threads of a Jumper and The Highwayman’s
Daughter (https://issuu.com/amosgreig/docs/anu65)
Nthandareview have published the poems ‘Early Mornig,
Brighton in September and The Swan (after Mary Oliver) (http://nthandareview.com/poetry-from-andy-n/)
I am not a silent poet have published Let him have it (A
tribute to Derek Bentley)
(https://iamnotasilentpoet.wordpress.com/2018/03/12/let-him-have-it-by-andy-n)
(https://iamnotasilentpoet.wordpress.com/2018/03/12/let-him-have-it-by-andy-n)
Ghost Story
The latest NaPoWriMo story begins on 1st April (http://ghoststoryv.blogspot.co.uk)
Additional NaPoWriMo poems may appear on this blog.
The latest NaPoWriMo story begins on 1st April (http://ghoststoryv.blogspot.co.uk)
Additional NaPoWriMo poems may appear on this blog.
Saturday, 3 February 2018
Three short poems for Mark E Smith
1996.
Starting off with an instrumental
Blazen in a fragmented fury;
Their first song stumbled along
In a bass heavy nervourness
as the band looked at each other worried
Like they were throwing
accidential thunder at the crowd
With a mellifluous speed
Until the words ‘I am coming out of the toilet’
Could be heard going through the crowd
Ricochetting eventually onto the stage
Where he sang two songs
Then fell through the drummers kit
And collapsed backstage drunk.
1991.
Popping into the Duchess for a quick pint
After missing a train home
turned into three
when Pat bumped into his brother
who worked for the NME
and was interviewing Mark
who had already gone through
four and a half pints already
and insisted he added us to his tad before adding
‘I can’t stick musicians
Like journalists you know’
And sat there pissing Pat’s brother off
With as many anti journalist jokes
As he could remember for the rest of the interview.
2010.
Clearly ruffled,
lost in the wilderness of memory
he stood there at the other side
of the bus station
his hands fluttered
with his paper
like a paper clown
lost in the upswing of a sigh
before looking at his watch
and me
and walking off
scraping insults in the wind
almost like it was
the only person left
who was listening.
(Mark Edward Smith (5 March 1957 – 24 January 2018) was an English singer, songwriter and musician. He was best known as the lead singer, lyricist and only constant member of the post-punk group The Fall, which he led from 1976 until his death.
Smith formed the group after attending a Sex Pistols gig at the Manchester Free Trade Hall in June 1976. During their 42-year existence, the Fall's line-up consisted of some 60 musicians who, with Smith, released 32 studio albums and many singles and EPs.
The three above short poems are memories of the three times I met him over a 19 year period)
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