I was recently sent a link to a gorgeous article in The Guardian written by Kate Clanchy: the story of The Very Quiet Foreign Girls poetry group. Having spent the weekend revisiting the deep pleasure of being a student (despite nearly dislocating myself trying not to butt in and teach over the top of poor …
You know those poems with amazing titles
that suggest anything could be about to happen, anything might lie hidden behind the words about to leap forth – the soldiers of syntax marshalled on parade, the magicians of imagination warming up their wands – but which, like the contents of a Fabergé egg or a politician’s promise or Don Juan’s trousers add the …
The Trouble with Teaching
Lets start with a quote from the late Terry Pratchett, that quite neatly sums this post up: Getting an education was a bit like a communicable sexual disease. It made you unsuitable for a lot of jobs, and then you had the urge to pass it on.” ― Terry Pratchett, Hogfather And there’s the problem. Since …
Winter Workshops 2014
Well I’ve got the winter workshops lined up at last. Drumroll please! The first one is a masterclass on linebreaks (well you knew that was coming, didn’t you!), held on Saturday 26th July. We’ll be looking at the different things you can do with linebreaks – drama, pacing, rhythm, meaning, tension, enjambment, parsing – you …
Some Reasons why Creative Writing Classes Might Actually Be Good Things
There’s been an outbreak of anti-Creative Writing Course rhetoric causing a few ripples in the UK. This most recent bit has been kicked off by comments allegedly made by Hanif Kureishi at the Bath Literature Festival a couple of weeks ago. Go read his comments (in the Independent, or the Guardian, whichever you prefer), and …
Continue reading "Some Reasons why Creative Writing Classes Might Actually Be Good Things"
A Dark Feathered Art 