Sorry things here at A Dark Feathered Art have been so quietly lately. Life has become somewhat complicated, not least of all because on Saturday afternoon I'm heading across the Tasman to attend the 2010 WA Spring Poetry Festival and Australian National Poetry Week. It's my first festival as a guest artist – I'm the …
Gifts for your Favourite Bibliophile
Couldn't resist this – I've just been sent a link to a website for The Literary Gift Company, and they have all kinds of cool book-related things. My personal favourites: the George Herbert book handbag, the A Brief History of Time clock, the Go Away I'm Writing coffee mug (doesn't everyone need one of those?), and …
Tuesday Poem – “Perfect Grief”, by Elizabeth Barrett Browning
I tell you, hopeless grief is passionless; That only men incredulous of despair, Half-taught in anguish, through the midnight air Beat upward to God's throne in loud access Of shrieking and reproach. Full desertness In souls as countries lieth silent-bare Under the blanching, vertical eye-glare Of the absolute Heavens. Deep-hearted man, express Grief for thy …
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Tuesday Poem – “The Hare” by Gillian Clarke
i.m. Frances Horovitz 1938-1983 That March night I remember how we heard a baby crying in a neighbouring room but found him sleeping quietly in his cot. The others went to bed and we sat late talking of children and the men we loved. You thought you’d like another child. ‘Too late.’ you said. And …
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Cinquains – for pleasure and profit
Ok, maybe not the profit part. But Wednesday was the first session of the POET105: Jump-Starting the Muse poetry workshop at CPIT, and one of the challenges I gave them was the cinquain. Like haiku, it's a form that most people get taught a fairly dodgey version of while at school. (Personally I blame maths: …
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