I'm posting this quickly, between aftershocks. There has been another huge earthquake – magnitude 6.3, 5 km deep, centred in Lyttleton. It was, and still is, absolutely terrifying. But so far I'm ok, and Stewart is ok – Southbridge and Lincoln are on the other side of Christchurch, so we have so far escaped the …
The Editing Masterclass is Go!
Hooray, enough people want to attend my Editing Masterclass! There are still a couple of places left, if you've been umming and ahhing. Those who are interested in the course but don't have a poem they want worked on, that's fine too – the course is about the process more than the product. Last possible …
Billy Collins vs Samuel Chelpka
Following from Amy's comment on yesterday's post, I came across a YouTube vid that I just have to share. It's a three year old boy called Samuel Chelpka, who has memorised Billy Collins's poem “Litany”: Gorgeous, isn't it? And what great parents, to have taught their child to love poetry this young. If you're wondering what …
Billy Collins, Roses, and beagles
I recently discovered the Slate magazine weekly poem column – well worth checking out. Each week a new poem read by the author (or, if the author is someone dead, read by Robert Pinsky). There's also a comments free-for-all, suitably titled “The Fray”. I've lurked a bit, but not joined. But again, worth having a …
Guest Readerings and Workshops for 2011
I'm guest reader at two festivals this year – the Southland Festival of the Arts at the end of April, and Auckland Writers and Readers Festival in May. I'll be running a single-session Reading for Writing workshop in Invercargill on May 1st – I'll post fuller details in the sidebar when they come to hand, or you can …
A Dark Feathered Art 