Mice nests and parcels

Apart from the process of writing of poems, the 21^st century poet wishing to be read by more than a few friends and family has to send out of poems to magazines and / or competitions.

There are the seemingly endless periods where nothing seems to happen. Nothing falls onto the doormat for months. Every other poet  you know is reading at festivals and publishing everywhere. You may be happy for them, but you begin to wonder if anyone knows you exist.

And when poems are accepted there can be another wait for publication – sometimes for years.

For the poet published by a small press there are also periods when  you wonder if you will ever read to an audience again. So it goes.

Then, if you are lucky, hardworking and patient, there will be weeks when the outside world responds and several things happen at once.

My contributors copy of ‘Blame Montezuma!’ (Happenstance, 2014) was delivered by today. The post-lady brought me out of the garage where I had been emptying  the nests of mice  from a selection of children’s out-grown Wellington boots.

The London launch for this wonderfully elegant and brilliantly conceived book containing poems about chocolate from the likes of Alison Brackenbury, Hilary Menos, Clare Best, Rob A Mackenzie, David Mark Williams, Matthew Stewart and many other fabulous poets will be in September, and I look forward to posting more details then.

This week I also received a very generous review of my book from the renowned publisher and poet Peter Carpenter in Under The Radar Magazine.   Peter writes superbly and so it is a review I will cherish.

Another very kind review appeared on the website of the marvellous Nottingham based independent bookshop, Five Leaves. I also had two of my poems taken by New Walk, one of my favourite poetry magazines.

And finally my wonderful publisher John Lucas informs me he has sold out of the first print run of my book. Thank you to everyone who has bought a copy. I have four copies left as I write this, and due to the successful sales I can offer then at a reduced price of £8 plus pp. If you would like one you can order one from ‘The Sun Bathers’ page of this blog.

I wish any poets reading this similar weeks. They will come. They don’t happen very often, but when they do…

NB- No mice were harmed in the making of this piece.